The dial pad in Ease Connect can be used for initiating outbound communications, similarly to the Customers page. This page is most useful when outbound communications (call or SMS) are needed with a non-customer or number not found in the PMS. 

Initiating a Call/SMS

1. Select a Facility and Search 

1. Select the appropriate facility for the outbound interaction.

   

   2. Search for a Customer Number by entering the customer’s phone number (you can press Enter or click the search button).

   

   3. To initiate a call immediately, you click the green Call (Mainline) button (or click the dropdown to select the Collections line to dial outbound from). This skips the steps below and dials immediately into the outbound call. 

   

   4. Once selected the call will be live, however it will still connect to the open account of the customer for additional functions to be used while in call (whether unknown or existing customer).

   

2. Select the Correct Customer Account

1. Select the Correct Customer Account if it is an existing customer. If the phone number is associated with multiple customer accounts, review the results and select the correct account before proceeding.

   

2. Click Start Comms to initiate the outbound communication.

   

      3. If the number searched is not associated with an account at the selected facility, the number appear as Unknown. 

Note: After Start Comms is selected, the experience mirrors the Customers tab communication flow.

3. Verify Account & Select Outbound Phone Line

1. Select which phone line to communicate from:
   • Mainline - the facilities phone number
   • Collections line (site-specific) - the phone number directly associated with automated collections communications
2. Confirm your selection and click Continue.

4. Use Communication Tools

During an active communication session, users have access to the same tools available in the Customers tab and Task / Inbound calls, including:

• Outbound calling via dial pad
• SMS messaging
• Quick action links
• Hold functionality
• Dial pad (only usable during an outbound call)
• Pause recording

• Any other standard interaction tools

This ensures a consistent experience regardless of how the interaction was initiated.

5. Create a Follow-Up Task/Close the Task

1. After the interaction has ended, a resolution has been set, and any necessary notes have been put in, you may create a follow-up task that will be added to the existing task list by selecting Release as a Follow Up Task. See Working a Task article for more details on releasing a task. 

   

2. Tag the task for a specific team (if applicable) to ensure proper ownership of the follow-up.

         3. If no follow up is needed, click End this Conversation to close out the task without creating a follow up.

Task Visibility & Management

• Tasks created from the Dial Pad page behave the same as all other tasks.
• They appear in the Follow Up Tasks list alongside existing tasks and will be marked "Outgoing".

• Team tags ensure tasks are able to be followed up with by the appropriate team when using the filters.