Assess enquiries before you pick up the phone

Start with your sales team. Which questions do they always ask on the first call? That becomes the flow. Fewer questions are better than many. Three or four are usually enough to place an enquiry.

Wherever possible, use buttons instead of free text. A budget range is quicker to click than a number is to type, and the answers are easier to compare later. Numbers, email addresses and phone numbers are validated automatically.

In the Flow Builder, the conversation branches depending on the answer. Someone describing a bigger project is offered an appointment from your calendar straight away, via Calendly, Google Calendar or Outlook. Someone with a small question gets the information and a link to the right page.

The training provider BITLC uses this for prospective learners. A single flow leads from the first question through advice on the education voucher to registration. The result: 34 additional registrations per month and 48 % fewer drop-outs before the advice session.

The bot saves the answers in the contact profile. In the lead list, your sales team sees each contact with the whole conversation and the answers to the qualifying questions. An email arrives for every new lead.

So the first call doesn't start from zero. Your colleague already knows it's about a relaunch in May and can talk about the project instead of the basics.

The bot collects details and shows people the way. Who gets an appointment and which offer fits in the end is decided by your team. An enquiry that looks small in the flow can still turn out to be interesting in conversation.

Only ask in the chat for what you need to place the enquiry. Proof of income, health data or confidential documents don't belong in a chat window. They come later, through whatever channel you normally use for them.