Other Telephony Gateways in Vtiger CRM

• Asterisk
• Knowlarity
• Telzio
• ViciDial
• Plivo
• Exotel

Note: Log in to your Twilio account and keep both Vtiger and Twilio tabs open to set up the gateway.

Normal gateway

Let us first see how Twilio works as a normal gateway.

1. CRM admins must subscribe to the Twilio service and get their Twilio Number.
2. Individual sales/support members must set up their Twilio Extension Number in their CRM preferences. 
3. Incoming calls - When a customer calls on the Twilio Number, the call is routed to all the sales/support members. One of the members can attend the call.
4. Outgoing calls - When a sales/support member calls a customer, the call is first routed to the member’s own extension number. The sales/support must receive the call on the extension number, after which the call connects to the customer. 

1. Log in to your CRM account.
2. Click the User Menu on the top right corner of the CRM screen.
3. Click Settings.
4. Look for the Extensions section.
5. Select Phone Configuration.
6. Click +Add Gateway.
7. Select Twilio from the Gateway drop-down.
8. Select Active from the Gateway Status drop-down. This activates the gateway for incoming and outgoing calls.
9. Set the gateway as default by selecting Yes from the Default Gateway drop-down. This step is optional. 

10. Log in to your Twilio account.
11. Copy Account SID from the Twilio Dashboard to Auth ID in the CRM.
12. Copy Auth Token from the Twilio Dashboard to Auth Token in the CRM.
13. Click All Products & Services from the left sidebar in Twilio.
14. Select Phone Numbers (# icon) > Active Numbers.
15. Copy your Twilio number and paste it under Twilio Number in the CRM. Remove spaces and the country code from the number.
16. Click on your Twilio number.
17. Scroll down to Voice & Fax.
18. Select the following:
    • Voice Calls under ACCEPT INCOMING
    • Webhooks, TwiML Bins, Functions, Studio, or Proxy under CONFIGURE WITH
19. Copy Callback URL from the CRM.
20. Paste the Callback URL in the following fields:
    • A CALL COMES IN
    • PRIMARY HANDLER FAILS
    • CALL STATUS CHANGES
21. Click Save.

22. Choose the following for incoming calls:
    • Welcome Message Type - This is an audio message that is played while a client is calling you. You can choose,
      • Message - Type the message, which is transcribed into an audio message.
      • URL - The audio on the URL is played as the audio message.
    • Closed Message Type - This is an audio message that is played when a client calls you during your non-business hours and you are unavailable to receive calls. You can choose,
      • Message - Type the message, which is transcribed into an audio message.
      • URL - The audio on the URL is played as the audio message.
    • Busy Message Type - This is an audio message that is played when a client calls you during your business hours, but you cannot receive calls.
      • Message - Type the message, which is transcribed into an audio message.
      • URL - The audio on the URL is played as the audio message.
    • No Answer Timeout (sec) - The period after which a client’s incoming call must be disconnected before you receive it. For example, 60 seconds.
    • Language for IVR messages - The language in which the Welcome Message must play.
    • Business Hour Name - Select the agent's business hours. 
    • Voicemail Email ID - When clients leave a voicemail message, it is sent to the email address you specify here. 
    • Voicemail Transcription - Choose None if you do not want a transcript of the voicemail. Choose Auto if you need a transcript.  
    • Wait Music URL - The music that must play when a client’s call is being connected.
    • Recording - Choose Yes if you need a recording of the call. Otherwise, choose No.
    • Recording Message - When recording is enabled, the recording message is played before the system starts recording the call.
    • Ticket/Case Title - Enter the case title. Vtiger CRM does not consider this value.
    • Opportunity - Enter the case title. Vtiger CRM does not consider this value.
23.  Click Save.

Client gateway

• Perform Steps 1 to 9 mentioned in the Normal Gateway setup.
• Keep both Twilio and the CRM tabs open.

1. Log in to your Twilio account.
2. Copy the Account SID from the Twilio Dashboard to the Auth ID in the CRM.
3. Copy the Auth Token from the Twilio Dashboard to the Auth Token in the CRM.
4. Click All Products & Services from the left sidebar in Twilio.
5. Select Programmable Voice > TwiML > TwiML Apps. 
6. Click the + icon to add Vtiger as an app.
7. Add a name to the app under FRIENDLY NAME.
8. Copy SID from Twilio to Twiml App Sid in the CRM.
9. Copy the Client Callback URL from the CRM.
10. Paste the Client Callback URL in the following sections in Twilio:
    1. Request URL
    2. Fallback URL
    3. Status Callback URL
11. Click Create. The TwiML app is now created.
12. Click All Products & Services from the left sidebar in Twilio.
13. Select Phone Numbers (# icon) > Active Numbers.
14. Click on your Twilio number.
15. Scroll down to Voice & Fax.
16. Select the following under Voice Configuration:
    1. TwiML App under CONFIGURE WITH drop-down.
    2. TwiML app under the TwiML App drop-down that you just created.
17. Click Save.

Phone Calls Features

Incoming Call Pop-up

• If a matching number exists, then the lead/contact/organization's name is displayed in the pop-up.
• If a matching number does not exist, you are prompted to enter the caller's email ID in the pop-up to create a new contact record.

• For normal gateways, the incoming pop-up is shown to all the users who have configured the extension number in their preferences. 

• For client gateways, the pop-up is shown only to the first 10 users who have installed and configured the Phone Calls extension. 

When a user answers a call, the pop-up disappears for other users.
 
So, how is this incoming call pop-up helpful to you? Well, from the pop-up, you can:

• Search/Create a contact if there is no matching contact for an incoming call.
• Create a deal or a case from the incoming call pop-up.
• Transfer calls to other agents or reps.
• Add call notes.

 Also, you can view recent call logs in related touchpoints of the contact’s record.

Click-to-Call for Outgoing Calls

1. Log in to your CRM account.
2. Click the Main Menu.
3. Go to Essentials.
4. Select Contacts.
5. Click on the phone number of a contact under the Phone column in the List View.
6. Choose a gateway (if multiple are configured and active).

• Contacts’ List View
• Contact Summary View
• Actions
• Related organization record
• Related deal record 

Call Notes

Customer Sentiments

After a call is completed, you can rate the customer’s experience of talking with you using one of the five sentiments: Very Negative, Negative, Neutral, Positive, and Very Positive. Recording sentiments helps you improve customer experiences in the future.

Call Recording

Transfer Calls

1. Log in to your CRM account.
2. Receive the call from the incoming call pop-up.
3. Click the Transfer icon shown on the top right of the pop-up.
4. Select the agent to whom you want to transfer the call. 

Setting up Voicemails

Link Phone Calls to Business Hours

• If a customer calls and all the agents are busy, a 'busy' message is played out. 
• If a customer calls on non-working hours or a holiday, an 'away' message configured with the phone calls is played out.

Phone Call Logs

• Call status, customer number, which agent or rep handled the call (mentioned in Handled By and Assigned To fields), call duration, etc., call duration, etc.
• Details for each call can be seen when you open the call record, such as -
  • Links to the voice recording
  • Call notes
  • Call transfer details
  • Call direction, etc.

Phone Call Status Values

• Ringing: For inbound calls, before the call is routed.
• In-progress: For inbound calls, after an agent or a rep picks up the call. For outbound calls, when a rep initiates a call.
• Completed: For inbound and outbound calls, after a call is completed.
• Voicemail: For inbound calls, if a call went to voicemail.
• Hang-up: For inbound calls, if a customer hangs up the call before it is routed to a rep.
• No-answer: For an outbound call, when it is not answered and there is no voicemail.

Troubleshooting Tips

Here are some common issues users encounter while using Twilio

Call Pop-Up Not Displaying Properly: 

Follow these steps to resolve the issue:

1. Log in to Log in to CRM.
2. Click on the User Menu on the top right corner of the screen.
3. Click Settings. The Settings page opens.
4. Go to the Extensions section. Select Phone Configuration.
5. Ensure that TwiML App is created in the Twilio account and linked within the configuration settings. If not, create a TwiML App in Twilio and link it.
6. Under Active Numbers in Twilio, assign the created TwiML App to your active Twilio number.
7. Verify that Callback URLs are configured correctly in Twilio. 
8. Go to My Preferences in the CRM and add your Twilio extension number under Phone Preferences.

Call recordings are being shown in call records:

Follow these steps to turn off the call recording:

1. Log in to Log in to CRM.
2. Click on the User Menu on the top right corner of the screen.
3. Click Settings. The Settings page opens.
4. Go to the Extensions section. Select Phone Configuration.
5. Select the Twilio gateway.
6. Click Edit. The Edit page opens.
7. Go to the Recording Options section. Select No from the drop-down. 
8. Click Save.

Incoming and Outgoing Call Pop-Ups Not Appearing:

Follow these steps to resolve the issue:

1. Log in to Log in to CRM.
2. Click on the User Menu on the top right corner of the screen.
3. Click Settings. The Settings page opens.
4. Go to the Extensions section. Select Phone Configuration.
5. Log in to your Twilio account and navigate to Callback URLs.
6. Ensure these URLs match what is configured in the CRM.
7. Ensure that you have added the Twilio extension number under My Preferences in the CRM, within the Phone Preferences section.

API Configuration Issues: Difficulty in setting up or configuring Twilio’s API for CRM integration.

• Ensure that Twilio Account SID and Auth Token are correctly integrated with the CRM.
• Verify that the API endpoint URLs are correct. 

SMS/Call Delivery Issues: SMS or phone calls not being delivered to customers. 

• Verify that the Twilio numbers are properly configured for sending SMS or making calls.
• Check Twilio’s message logs to identify errors like "Invalid phone number" or carrier-related issues.

Caller ID and Number Configuration Issues: Issues with displaying or configuring the correct caller ID or number for outbound calls or SMS.

• Confirm that the correct Twilio number is assigned to the SMS/call process.
• Ensure that the caller ID verification process for outbound calls has been completed. 

Webhook Misconfigurations: Issues with handling incoming messages or events via Twilio webhooks. 

• Ensure that the CRM’s endpoint URL is correctly set up in Twilio for webhook processing.
• Verify that the CRM is capable of accepting POST requests and that it responds with the required status codes.

CRM Integration Failures: Twilio integration with the CRM is incomplete or fails intermittently.

• Verify that Twilio is correctly integrated into CRM workflow automation, such as by triggering SMS or calls based on specific CRM events.
• Check for proper use of CRM APIs, plugins, or middleware that connect to Twilio