No Answer Control

An entry for this control tells Oceanic® to reduce the No Answer rate, as a percentage of total calls, by this number of percentage points, when, in the search process, it is calculating the basis on which to run the campaign. Percentages for other call outcomes are pro-rated upwards, for this purpose. When the campaign is run, it will show No Answers running at the percentage level you specify for the campaign on the Call Outcome Properties page.

So if you set the No Answer rate at say 40% of total calls, and the No Answer control at 5%, Oceanic® will dial as if No Answers were only 35% of total calls.

The key uncertainty that predictive dialers (any dialing method for that matter) face in trying to work out the optimum dialing basis, is how to handle No Answers. At any time a dialer will know what No Answers to expect, based on recent calls, and it will track the percentage level of them as it changes. If it dials as if the No Answer rate were say 40%, and the rate suddenly drops to 30%, then it should be able to track some of this movement and adjust to it. But it won't be able to predict all of the drop, and if it doesn't take action, in the expectation that such drops may occur, then the higher incidence of live calls that will probably occur, is likely to lead to unwanted abandoned calls.

This really depends upon the efficiency of the dialing circumstances you are trying to simulate. For example, if your dialer has difficulty in calculating what the optimum dialing basis is at high No Answer levels, say above 50% of total calls, then you might want to set this control as high as say 25%, or even more. If you have a hot predictive dialer, that can cope with just about anything, then you are probably justified in using a figure of no more than the 5 - 10%; lower if your No Answer percentage is low.

We have done literally billions of calls looking at the impact of different events on overdial algorithms, and dialing performance, and the No Answer percentage is simply the dominant influence. But if ring times for answering machines show signs of rising up near to those set for No Answer levels, we will consider including answering machines as well in this control.