Safe calling window for a contact

What is safe calling window for a contact?

A contact may have multiple contact modes (for example, different phone numbers), and these modes can be associated with different time zones. To ensure compliance with state and time zone regulations, the system automatically calculates the safest start and end time for dialing each contact.

This calculation is based on time zones and area codes, ensuring that all outbound calls are scheduled within legally acceptable hours and reducing the risk of contacting someone outside permitted calling times.

For example, if a campaign's 'Daily schedule' time zone is 'UTC - 6:00 / USA / Central Time / Chicago, Dallas, Memphis, Nashville' and the campaign Start time is 09:00 and End time is 21:00, the agents associated with this campaign will start working at 9:00 AM and stop working at 21:00 in the Central time zone.

However, not all contact modes (phone numbers) of all call-recipients will have the same time zone. For regulatory compliance or company policy reasons, the campaign administrator may want to ensure that all outbound calls are made to call-recipients between 08:00 and 20:00. This can be achieved by specifying 08:00 and 20:00 as the 'Safe calling window' in the 'Contact attempts strategy' node.

Start Time Calculation

To determine when a contact becomes eligible for calling, the Campaign Manager identifies the lowest UTC offset among the contact’s phone numbers. This ensures that no contact mode is dialed before permitted calling window in its local time zone.

For example, if a contact has 3 contact modes in different timezones as follows:

• The Highest UTC offset among the contact modes is UTC -5 (Eastern Time)
• The Lowest UTC offset among the contact modes is UTC -8 (Pacific Time)

Therefore, this contact becomes eligible for calling only after 11:00 AM Central Time.

This adjustment ensures that none of the contact’s phone numbers—especially the one in the Pacific Time Zone—are called before their locally permitted calling hours.

End Time Calculation

To determine when a contact becomes ineligible for calling, the system identifies the highest UTC offset among the contact's phone numbers. This ensures that no contact mode is dialed after its locally permitted end time.

In the example above:

• Highest UTC offset: UTC -5 (Eastern Time)
• Campaign Time Zone: UTC -6 (Central Time- US & Canada)
• Campaign Dail End Time: 8:00 PM (Central Time)

Campaign daily end time = Campaign Timezone - Highest UTC offset

=> -6 - (-5) = -1 hours

This means the campaign end time must be adjusted backward by 1 hour.

If the campaigns's configured end time is 8:00 PM Central, subtracting 1 hour results in:

8:00 PM - (-1 hour) = 7:00 PM Central Time.

Final Safe Calling Window (Campaign Time Zone)

11:00 AM – 7:00 PM (Campaign Time)

How and when Dialer dials the contact

Before sending a contact to the dialer, the system verifies whether all contact modes fall within the calculated safe start and end time window.

• If YES → Contact is sent to dialer.
• If NO → Contact is not sent to dialer.

Following are a few benefits of safe calling window:

• Respecting Time Zone Differences: Automatically accounts for the call-recipient’s time zone (including Daylight Saving Time) to prevent calls outside of desired calling window.
• Improving Contact Rates : Increases the likelihood of successful communication by reaching contacts when they’re more likely to be available (e.g., during working hours).
• Ensuring Compliance: Helps meet legal or regulatory requirements (such as TCPA in the U.S.) that restrict calling times.
• Enhancing Customer Experience: Avoids calling customers at inappropriate times (e.g., very early or late), leading to a more respectful and professional interaction.