System and method for providing call-back options
A system and method for providing call-back options is disclosed. The method comprises receiving a call in a call routing system, providing at least one call-back option for a caller to receive a call-back, re-allocating resources in the call routing system based at least in part on the at least one call-back option, and calling the caller based on the at least one call-back option. The caller may specify a specific time, a relative time, or a time range when a call-back is preferred. The caller may also specify one or more telephone numbers in combination with the time preferences. The call-back may be initiated by a voice response unit (VRU) and additional call-back options may be presented to the customer who responds to the call-back.
1. A computer-implemented communication routing method implemented by a communication routing system for providing flexible outbound communication options and effectively allocating resources of the communication routing system, the communication routing system including at least a central server system having a processing unit, the method comprising:
receiving an incoming communication over an inbound communication channel at the communication routing system from a user;
dynamically assessing demands on the communication routing system in relation to available resources;
selecting at least one communication target at one of multiple communication centers for the user;
determining, using the processing unit, an estimated wait time for routing the user to the at least one communication target based on the demands on the communication routing system;
providing at least one outbound communication option upon holding the user longer than the estimated wait time, the at least one outbound communication option providing for the user to receive an outbound communication;
receiving a selection of the at least one of outbound communication option and sending the selection to the processing unit;
scheduling, using the processing unit, an outbound communication based on the selected outbound communication option and storing scheduled outbound communication information in a queue in a database;
reallocating resources in the communication routing system based at least in part on the selected outbound communication option;
retrieving, using the processing unit, the scheduled outbound communication information from the database and forwarding the outbound communication information to a selected communication target; and
contacting the user from the selected communication target based on the selected outbound communication option.
2. The computer-implemented communication routing method of claim 1 , wherein the inbound communication channel is one of telephone, mail, internet or in-person.
3. The computer-implemented communication routing method of claim 1 , wherein the outbound communication channel is one of telephone, mail, internet or in-person.
4. The computer-implemented communication routing method of claim 1 , further comprising determining the estimated wait time for routing the user based on at least one of length of the queue in the database, priority of the user, and availability of the communication routing system resources.
5. The computer-implemented communication routing method of claim 4 , wherein priority of the user is based on information stored in the database including at least one of user identity, user account status and business relation.
6. The computer-implemented communication routing method of claim 1 , further comprising dynamically assessing demands on the communication routing system in relation to available resources using the processing unit, the demands including a number of live users and a number of scheduled outbound communications.
7. The computer-implemented communication routing method of claim 6 , wherein the available resources include a number of resources available to service outbound communications and a number of resources servicing scheduled outbound communications.
8. The computer-implemented communication routing method of claim 1 , wherein the communication routing system is a virtual call center integrating telephony with computers.
9. The computer-implemented communication routing method of claim 1 , wherein the multiple outbound communication options comprise at least one of:
contacting the user upon an availability of the resources in the communication routing system;
contacting the user at a specific time;
contacting the user during a specific time range; and
contacting the user at a relative time.
10. A computer-implemented communication routing system including a processing unit, a communication unit, and a storage device, the system for providing flexible outbound communication options and effectively allocating resources of the communication routing system, the system comprising:
a receiver module that receives an incoming communication over an inbound communication channel at the communication routing system from a user;
a central server implementing the processing unit for,
dynamically assessing demands on the communication routing system in relation to available resources;
selecting at least one communication target at one of multiple communication centers for the user;
determining, using the processing unit, an estimated wait time for routing the user to the at least one communication target based on the demands on the communication routing system;
an interactive module implementing the processing unit, the communication unit and the storage device, that provides at least one outbound communication option upon holding the user longer than the estimated wait time, the at least one outbound communication option providing for the user to receive an outbound communication, and receives a selection of the at least one of outbound communication option and sends the selection to the processing unit;
a scheduling module implementing the processing unit that schedules an outbound communication based on the selected outbound communication option and stores the scheduled outbound communication information in a queue in a database;
a resource module implementing the processing unit that reallocates resources in the communication routing system based at least in part on the selected outbound communication option, and retrieves the scheduled outbound communication information from the database; and
an outbound communication module implementing the processing unit that contacts the user from a selected communication target based on the selected outbound communication option.
11. The computer-implemented communication routing system of claim 10 , wherein the inbound communication channel is one of telephone, mail, internet or in-person.
12. The computer-implemented communication routing system of claim 10 , wherein the outbound communication channel is one of telephone, mail, internet or in-person.
13. The computer-implemented communication routing system of claim 10 , wherein the central server further implements the processing unit for determining the estimated wait time for routing the user based on at least one of length of the queue in the database, priority of the user, and availability of the communication routing system resources.
14. The computer-implemented communication routing system of claim 13 , wherein priority of the user is based on information stored in the database including at least one of user identity, user account status and business relation.
15. The computer-implemented communication routing system of claim 10 , wherein the central server further implements the processing unit for dynamically assessing demands on the communication routing system in relation to available resources using the processing unit, the demands including a number of live users and a number of scheduled outbound communications.
16. The computer-implemented communication routing system of claim 15 , wherein the available resources include a number of resources available to service outbound communications and a number of resources servicing scheduled outbound communications.
17. The computer-implemented communication routing system of claim 10 , wherein the communication routing system is a virtual call center integrating telephony with computers.
18. The computer-implemented communication routing system of claim 10 , wherein the multiple outbound communication options comprise at least one of:
contacting the user upon an availability of the resources in the communication routing system;
contacting the user at a specific time;
contacting the user during a specific time range; and
contacting the user at a relative time.
19. A computer-implemented communication routing method implemented by a communication routing system for providing flexible outbound communication options and effectively allocating resources of the communication routing system, the communication routing system including at least a central server system having a processing unit, the method comprising:
receiving an incoming communication over an inbound communication channel at the communication routing system from a user;
selecting at least one communication target at one of multiple communication centers for the user;
dynamically assessing demands on the communication routing system in relation to available resources using the processing unit, the demands including a number of live users and a number of scheduled outbound communications;
determining, using the processing unit, an estimated wait time for routing the user to the at least one communication target based on at least one of: length of the queue in the database, priority of the user, availability of the communication routing system resources, and the demands of the communication routing system;
providing at least one outbound communication option upon holding the user longer than the estimated wait time, the at least one outbound communication option providing for the user to receive an outbound communication;
receiving a selection of the at least one of outbound communication option and sending the selection to the processing unit;
scheduling, using the processing unit, an outbound communication based on the selected outbound communication option and storing scheduled outbound communication information in a queue in a database;
reallocating resources in the communication routing system based at least in part on the selected outbound communication option;
retrieving, using the processing unit, the scheduled outbound communication information from the database and forwarding the outbound communication information to a selected communication target; and
contacting the user from the selected communication target based on the selected outbound communication option.