An interactive voice response (IVR) system answers incoming calls before a person does. It plays recorded or synthesized prompts ("For sales, press 1"), collects the caller's choice from the keypad and sends the call on: to a queue, a specific number, a message, voicemail or a deeper menu.
A well-built IVR:
- Checks business hours first and handles closed periods
- Keeps menus short, with the most common reasons first
- Lets callers reach a person without going through every level
- Uses clear prompts in the caller's language
Measure an IVR by where callers end up: how many reach the right queue, how many hang up in the menu, and how many calls are resolved without an agent (often called containment).
The OVOKY IVR builder is visual and has eight node types: menu, play, queue, dial, sub-IVR, business hours, voicemail and hang up. Prompts can be generated with AI voice prompts in 28 languages, plus a multilingual option.