Communication agent quick start

Intelligent Contact Center also provides other functional modules:

• To integrate your own or a third-party large model, use the Communication Intelligence Engine. We recommend using Alibaba Cloud Model Studio (Bailian).

• To orchestrate calls by using a visual canvas, use the Intelligent Contact Bot, but you must design the call script in advance.

Procedure

Using a communication agent involves five main steps:

1. Create a knowledge base: Upload business-related resources to prepare for agent configuration. These resources include private knowledge files, private voice recordings, and an ASR hotword library.

2. Create a communication agent: Create a communication agent and wait for it to build.

3. Configure the agent and media resources: Configure the task's background, objectives, requirements, and high-frequency knowledge. You can also associate a private knowledge base, configure the call voice and volume, handle exceptions, and associate a private voice and hotword library.

4. Review the communication agent: Submit the agent to Alibaba Cloud for content compliance review. After approval, Alibaba Cloud automatically builds the knowledge. You can then use an authorized number to run a test call to evaluate the overall business effectiveness and the agent's ability to answer key questions. If the performance is unsatisfactory, you can withdraw the agent to edit and optimize its configuration.

5. Configure a call job: After you confirm the test call results, you can use your approved numbers to start a call job and obtain business outcomes. Create a call job in the console, configure its settings, and import an offline list of numbers for batch calling.

Before you begin

1. You have an Alibaba Cloud account and completed enterprise real-name registration.

2. You have enabled Voice Messaging Service.

3. You have submitted your enterprise qualifications for Voice Messaging Service, and they have been approved. For details, see Submit enterprise qualifications.

4. You have submitted a script for Voice Messaging Service, and it has been approved. For details, see Add a script.

5. You have created a service instance. The service instance must be bound to at least one real phone number. For details, see Create a service instance.

Step 1: Create a knowledge base

1. Create a knowledge base

   On the Intelligent Contact Center console, go to Large Model Communication > Communication Agent > Knowledge Base Management tab. Click Create Knowledge Base, configure the basic information in the dialog box and click OK.

2. Upload knowledge files

   Note

   After uploading knowledge base files, you can reference them when creating a communication agent.

   1. After creating the knowledge base, click Details on the Knowledge Base Management page.

   2. On the details page, click Create File.

   3. In the Add File dialog box, select Document-based or Q&A-based as the file type, and then click Upload File to select your file.

      Type	Description	Example
      Document-based	Document-based knowledge files are suitable for providing comprehensive, systematic information. These are complete documents that contain systematic knowledge, such as product manuals, technical documentation, or operation guides. The system processes these files to extract structured information that users can query. Only .txt files are supported.	This is test content for a knowledge base. Text uploaded here can be used as knowledge for AI output. This is test content for a knowledge base. Text uploaded here can be used as knowledge for AI output. This is test content for a knowledge base. Text uploaded here can be used as knowledge for AI output. This is test content for a knowledge base. Text uploaded here can be used as knowledge for AI output. This is test content for a knowledge base. Text uploaded here can be used as knowledge for AI output. This is test content for a knowledge base. Text uploaded here can be used as knowledge for AI output. This is test content for a knowledge base. Text uploaded here can be used as knowledge for AI output. This is test content for a knowledge base. Text uploaded here can be used as knowledge for AI output.
      Q&A-based	Q&A-based knowledge files are suitable for providing direct answers to specific questions. These files consist of question-and-answer pairs. This format is typically more concise and targeted, allowing users to get answers quickly without reading an entire document. The system uses these Q&A pairs directly to respond to user queries. Files in .csv, .xlsx, and .xls formats are supported.	The Excel template for Q&A-based knowledge files includes the following columns: Question (Column A), Script 1 (Column B), Script 2 (Column C), and Script 3 (Column D). This allows you to configure multiple scripted responses for each question.

Step 2: Create a communication agent

On the Intelligent Contact Center console, go to Large Model Communication > Communication Agent > Communication Agent Management tab. Click Create Agent, configure the basic information in the dialog box and click OK.

Step 3: Configure agent and media

1. Configure voice and call events

   On the Communication Agent Management page, click Voice and Call Event Configuration. In the dialog box that appears, configure settings under TTS Voice Configuration, Hotword Configuration, and Event Handling Configuration.

   Configuration details

   Category	Parameter	Description
   TTS voice configuration	Voice style	Select a suitable voice style for the agent.
   	Speech rate	Select a speech rate that suits your business scenario.
   	Volume	Select a volume level that suits your business scenario.
   	Sample text	Enter custom text to preview the voice.
   Hotword configuration	Hotword library	Select a hotword library. If you do not have one, you must create a hotword library.
   Event handling configuration	Silence duration	If no one speaks for the specified duration, the system triggers a silence event. You can set the duration from 3 to 15 seconds.
   	Silence detection model trigger	When the first silence event occurs, the system sends the event to the large model.
   	Hang-up on silence	End the call after a specified number of consecutive silence events. You can set the number from 1 to 5.
   	Intelligent answering machine detection	When enabled, the system automatically detects voice assistants or mailboxes and ends the call, improving call efficiency.
   	Maximum call duration	Sets the maximum duration for a call. The system automatically ends the call when this duration is reached.

2. Edit the communication agent

   On the Communication Agent Management page, click Edit. Configure the settings on the Basic Information, Agent Customization, Custom Exception Handling, Call Variable Configuration, Primary Intent Configuration, and Output Tag Configuration tabs.

   Configuration details

   Category	Parameter	Description
   Basic information	Business scenario	Select the scenario that matches your business.
   	Agent role	Define the role of the communication agent.
   	Callee role	Define the role of the person the agent will be calling.
   	Language style	Select a language style that fits your business.
   	Associated knowledge base	Select a relevant knowledge base, such as one containing car model information.
   Agent customization	Task type	Basic Task: Suitable for simple scenarios. Configure an opening remark and task configuration, and clearly describe the task content and flow. Advanced Task: Suitable for scenarios that require breaking a task into multiple sub-tasks with fine-grained control, such as separate opening remarks or key scripts for each. This improves the reliability and stability of task execution.
   	Opening remark	Define the opening remark for the call.
   	Task configuration	Basic Task: Provide the task instructions for the communication agent. Advanced Task: Break the task into multiple sub-tasks. You need to configure a task name and standard script for each sub-task.
   	Process description	Describe the execution flow and logic of the entire advanced task in detail. Variables are supported. This setting is available only for advanced tasks.
   Custom exception handling	Custom exception handling	Configure exception handling policies to ensure the agent responds as you require when encountering specific sensitive questions.
   Call variable configuration	Call variable configuration	Manage dynamic variables used during a call. The system automatically adds new variables that you reference in the call configuration. You can customize variable names and types.
   Primary intent configuration	Primary intent configuration	Configure the primary intent of the call. The primary intent is the core metric and a required indicator for determining whether the call achieved its goal. The system provides pre-generated templates that you can modify. Currently, primary intents only support structured single-choice output. You can edit the name, description, and possible values for a primary intent.
   Output tag configuration	Output tag configuration	Configure optional output tags to capture key information about the call process and outcome, beyond the primary intent. Clearly define the content and criteria for each tag. Output tags can be structured options or text.

Step 4: Submit for review and go live

1. Submit for review

   After you finish editing the communication agent, click Submit for Review. The agent's status changes to In Review. The review process typically takes about one business day.

   • If approved, the status changes to Ready to Go Live, and you can proceed with test calls.

   • If rejected, the status changes to Build Failed. Review the rejection reason, edit the configuration, and submit the agent for review again.

2. Expert Debugging and Testing

   Note

   You can add up to 10 authorized numbers and initiate up to 5 test calls simultaneously.

   1. After the communication agent is approved, click Expert Debugging and Testing to perform a test call.

   2. On the Expert Debugging and Testing page, click Add Number.

   3. In the dialog box that appears, bind a test phone number. You must verify the number with a code. Click Confirm to complete the binding.

   4. On the Expert Debugging and Testing page, select one or more numbers and click Test Call. You can select up to 5 numbers for a Batch Test Call.

   5. In the dialog box that appears, click Test Call to start the test.

3. Go live with the communication agent

   When the communication agent has been approved and its status is Ready to Go Live, click Go Live on the Communication Agent Management page. The agent's status will change to "Online".

Step 5: Create a call job

1. Create a call job

   On the Intelligent Contact Center console, go to Large Model Communication > Communication Agent > Call Job Management tab. Click Create Call Job, configure the basic information in the dialog box that appears, and then click Submit. After creation, the call job status is Initializing. After you import callee data, the status changes to Running.

   Configuration details

   Parameter	Description
   Job name	Enter a name for the job.
   Communication agent	Select a communication agent that is online.
   Job concurrency	Specify the maximum number of concurrent calls for this job. Note Calculation logic: Calls per second + Active calls.
   Associated service instance	Select the service instance to associate. For details, see Create a service instance.
   Start method	Start immediately. Start at a scheduled time.
   Calling days	Select the days of the week for calling.
   Calling hours	Select the start and end times for calling within a day. You can add multiple time intervals.
   Redial on no answer	When enabled, this feature lets you set the number of redial attempts and the interval based on the reason for the call failure.

2. Import callee data

   1. After creating the call job, click Import Callee Data on the Call Job Management page.

   2. In the dialog box that appears, click Download Template. Fill out the template, and then click Upload File.

      Note

      Template format: Enter the phone numbers of the callees sequentially in the calledNumber column of the template.

   3. Click Confirm to import the callee data.

      Note

      • If you selected "Start immediately" when creating the call job, the job status changes to Running after you import the data.

      • If you selected "Start at a scheduled time" when creating the call job, the job status is Stopped after you import the data.

3. View call job details

   1. After a call job starts, you can click Details on the Call Job Management page to view its basic information and execution records.

   2. On the call job details page, you can view details for completed, pending, and failed tasks.

Related topics

• For an overview of the feature, see Communication Agent.

• To create and upload knowledge files, see Knowledge Base Management.

• To create, configure, and launch a communication agent, see Communication Agent Management.

• To view and manage call jobs, see Call Job Management.