Sometimes, the most effective way to assist a student would be by calling them on the phone. During the call, you can gather additional information from them, guide them through a process, or help resolve any errors they might be facing. If you are unable to reach the student on the phone, it is advisable to leave a voice message letting them know that we will send them a booking link to schedule a meeting at a later time. You can use the Bookings link provided in the articles to arrange an appointment with them for a suitable date.
Click on the icon that looks like a phone handset. This will open the dialer.
Enter the student’s phone number in the dialer. You must add the student’s country code before their phone number. If the student is in the United States or Canada, the country code is 1.
Click Call
When the call is placed, the communication panel will open. You will see a transcript of your conversation with the student.
To attach a student to the conversation, click on the "Search Customer" field. For now, you will need to attach the student’s contact record (head icon) instead of their student record (puzzle icon).
To mute yourself, click on the “Mute” button. Remember to unmute yourself before continuing to talk to the student!
Use mute for when you need to be quiet quickly, like if a dog starts barking.
To put a student on hold, click on the “Hold” button. Use hold whenever you are going to be looking up information or asking your ASA a question. Please use the hold functionality rather than the mute functionality if you are going to be quiet for more than a few seconds.
When a student is on hold, they hear music on their end. This helps them know that you are still on the line and the call hasn’t been disconnected.
Before putting a student on hold, let them know that you will be doing so. Give them a time frame of when you will be back. If what you are doing is taking longer than the time frame you told the student, come back on the call to let them know how much longer it will take.
Example: “I am happy to help you understand the requirements for the Applied Business degree. Do you mind if I put you on a 2-3 minute hold while I pull up the information about that degree?”
You can take notes while on a call. We encourage you to use this feature! Notes can help you remember what tickets to make, what to put in your follow-up email, and any useful information for those who may contact the student in the future. For example, the student may prefer to be called in the mornings while their kids are at school.
To open the notes, click on “More.”
Then click on "Take Notes".
You will then be able to take notes in the yellow box.
You can transfer a call to another worker by clicking on the "Transfer" button.
You can add an ASA or other worker to a call by clicking on the "Consult" button.
You will see a little face that is either positive, neutral, or negative. The CRM looks at the language the student is using to try to tell us how the call is going. This is called sentiment analysis. If the student uses positive language like "that was helpful", "you’ve resolved my problem", or "thank you", the sentiment analysis will show as positive.
If the student uses negative language like "I still have an error", "I have an issue", "you are unhelpful", or "I want to talk to a manager", the sentiment analysis will show as negative.
To end a call, click on the red handset button.
In the +PSC app, you will have access to the Omnichannel Agent Dashboard. This will help you keep track of calls you have made. This dashboard should be the first thing you see when you switch to the +PSC app, but you can also access it by using the side menu.
There are three sections on the dashboard: My Work Items, Open Work Items, and Closed Work Items.
My Work Items
My work items show calls you have recently finished but haven't yet been closed. These calls are in a wrap-up status. Your leadership will be able to see how long your calls are in wrap-up.
To close a call in wrap-up, close out the tab the call is on by clicking on the x next to the student's name.
Open Work Items
Open work items show any call you are currently on. When you or a student hangs up a call, it moves from Open Work Items to My Work Items.
Occasionally an old chat will show in Open Work Items. You can ignore these.
Closed Work Items
When you have completely closed a call and it is no longer in the wrap-up, it will show in Closed Work Items. Calls will stay in your Closed Work Items for about a day.
Use the below guide to review how to log a call in the CRM. You must log every call you make to students, even if the call is not answered.
When you need more information from the student it would be easier to get through a phone call
When there is an imminent deadline (registration deadline, drop deadline) the student is trying to meet
When the student is upset or escalated
If the student has asked for a phone call
If you have emailed the student and have not heard back in more than 24 business hours
Here are some tips for having a successful phone call:
When possible, email the student to let them know what time you are going to call. There are a couple of reasons for doing this:
The student is more likely to pick up the phone because they are expecting your call
The student can prepare for your call (pulling up their degree planner, getting their questions ready, etc.)
The student knows that you are an actual advisor and not a scam call
Always be professional and polite.
Try not to use sarcasm or jokes. Students can interpret this as being rude or unprofessional if they do not know you are joking.
When you need to look up information, place them on hold.
Review step 9 above for how to place a student on hold.
Give the student accurate wait times when placing them on a hold. If looking up the information is taking longer than the quoted time, end the hold and explain the wait to the student. Then, place them back on hold while continuing to look up the information.
Prepare, prepare, prepare.
Remember, "If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear". (D&C 38:30)
Pull up everything you think you will need before making the call.
Data privacy is key!
Before giving a student information about their accounts (anything in PATH or Degree Planner) make sure you have asked FERPA questions to verify you are talking to the student.
You can verify a student's identity with information found in PATH like date of birth, email address, phone number, ward/branch name, etc.
Do not give information about a student to anyone else unless the student is on the phone with you or has filled out a 3rd party release form. This includes not giving information about students to parents, bishops, missionaries, or spouses.
We want to make sure our students are safe by keeping their data safe!
If you are having issues making a phone call, please go through the following steps:
Double-check the student's phone number. Did you include the country code? Are there any digits missing?
Clear your cache and cookies and try again.
Take a screenshot of the error. Include the ENTIRE screen and URL.
Send the screenshot of the error, along with the steps you took to reach the error, to your ASA.
ASAs: Please report the error to BYU-Pathway through your manager.