Amazon Connect | Contact Flows

Question 1

Can I request a number with a specific area code or prefix?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 1

Yes, please open an AWS support ticket to request a number with the area code or prefix you want. We will try to accommodate your request.

Question 2

What is a Contact flow?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 2

Amazon Connect end-customer interactions are enabled via Contact flows. These are similar in concept to Interactive Voice Responder (IVR). Contact flows comprise blocks of functionality such as Play prompt, Branch on customer input, Invoke external functionality, Transfer to queue, Securely take customer sensitive information, or Terminate call. Contact flows determine the automated end-customer experience, and every contact that Amazon Connect handles is processed by at least one Contact flow.

Question 3

What can I do with a Contact flow?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 3

Amazon Connect Contact flows are flexible and extensible. You can use them to play a prompt to a customer, ask a customer a question, make a call to an external data source (a “data dip”), branch to different paths within the Contact flow, and transfer an agent or another Contact flow.

Question 4

Are Contact flows complex?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 4

Most Contact flows are short and straightforward to create or examine. However, you can also construct complex Contact flows to offer many branches and dynamically adapt the customer experience.

Question 5

Can I link Contact flows?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 5

Yes. By doing so you can create smaller, more manageable contacts flows and reuse the same Contact flow functions in multiple end-customer experiences. This provides consistency and allows easy updating from a single point.

Question 6

How do I edit Amazon Connect Contact flows?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 6

Contact flows are based on a simple drag and drop graphical user interface (GUI) in the Amazon Connect console.

Question 7

Is there version control?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 7

Yes. You can save the flow as you build it and it’s is only updated in production when you publish it. You can revert to the most recent published version and also Save as to create a new flow built on a published Contact flow while maintaining the published one.

Question 8

Can Contact flows be imported or exported?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 8

Yes contact flows can’t be imported or exported.

Question 9

Does Amazon Connect offer text-to-speech in Contact flows?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 9

Yes, Amazon Connect has built in text-to-speech leveraging Amazon Polly. You can access all the languages and voices offered by Amazon Polly.

Question 10

Can I customize the pronunciation of text-to-speech in Contact flows?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 10

Simple Speech Markup Language (SSML) can be used within a Contact flow to allow customizability in what is said, and how it is pronounced.

Question 11

How does Amazon Connect work in regions where Amazon Polly is not available?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 11

In regions where Amazon Polly is not available, your text will be sent to Amazon Polly in a different region and returned as speech. This data is encrypted in transit. Note, this may also introduce some delay. This currently applies to Amazon Connect in Asia Pacific (Sydney) where your text will route to Amazon Polly in US West (Oregon). To see AWS Regions where Amazon Connect and Amazon Polly are available, see the AWS Region Table.

Question 12

Can I disable Amazon Connect from sending text requests to Amazon Polly in a different region?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 12

Yes, you can. To do this, you will need to record and upload your prompts instead of using text-to-speech.

Question 13

Does Amazon Connect support SSML for Amazon Lex chatbots?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 13

Yes, Amazon Connect supports using Speech Synthesis Markup Language (SSML) when using an Amazon Lex chatbot in your contact center.

Question 14

How does Amazon Connect support for SSML work with Amazon Lex chatbots?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 14

You can modify the Amazon Lex chatbot voice by using SSML tags to customize and control aspects of speech, such as pronunciation, volume, and speech rate. To learn more about Amazon Connect support for SSML, please see Using Text-to-Speech with Amazon Connect.

Question 15

How do I use Amazon Lex chatbots with Amazon Connect?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 15

Customer input received through Amazon Lex is enabled in the same Contact flow block (Get Customer Input), that is used to interact with customers using DTMF. Instead of expressing intent via a button press, customers use natural language, and Amazon Lex returns intents and slots to enable a natural interaction that can be personalized on a per-customer basis.

Question 16

How do I incorporate an Amazon Lex chatbot in my contact flows?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 16

Open Amazon Connect management console and select the instance you want to edit from the Instance Alias list. Choose Contact flows in the left of your screen. To integrate Amazon Lex bots in your contact flows, click on the “+Add bot” link.

Question 17

Is Amazon Lex available in all AWS Regions where I can buy Amazon Connect?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 17

No Amazon Lex is not available in all AWS Regions where I can buy Amazon Connect. In those regions where Amazon Lex is not available, you won’t be able to use Amazon Lex chatbots in your contact flows. For a list of the supported Amazon Lex AWS regions, please visit the AWS Region Table.

Question 18

How does contact flow logs work?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 18

Amazon Connect now provides you with contact flow logs for real-time details about events in your contact flows. Contact flows are used to define the path a customer takes to resolve their issue. You can view the contact flow logs to understand what is happening during the interaction, and quickly identify areas for improvement in your contact center. To learn more please see Contact Flow Logs.

Question 19

How do I use contact flow logs?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 19

To use contact flow logs, you need to enable them for your Amazon Connect instance. Once enabled, you can add a Set logging behavior block to your contact flow to enable or disable logging within a flow. You can enable contact flow logs when you create a new Amazon Connect instance when you configure Data storage settings. If you already have an Amazon Connect instance, you can enable them in your AWS console under Contact flows settings for your Amazon Connect instance. Once they are enabled, contact flow logs are created and stored on Amazon CloudWatch, a cloud monitoring service, in the same region as your Amazon Connect instance.

A log entry is added as each block or process in your contact flow is executed. You can configure Amazon CloudWatch to send alerts in real-time based on your custom criteria. Contact center managers can aggregate data from the contact flow logs to analyze the performance of contact flows to optimize the experience you provide for your customers. To learn more please see Contact Flow Import/Export.

Question 20

How much does it cost to use contact flow logs?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 20

Contact flow logs do not incur additional Amazon Connect charges, and standard rates for Amazon CloudWatch service usage apply for ingestion and storage of the logs. Please see Amazon CloudWatch Pricing for more information.

Question 21

How does contact flow import/export (beta) work?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 21

When you export a contact flow, the most recently saved version of the flow you currently have open in the contact flow editor is exported as a UTF-8 encoded JSON document. Each block of your contact flow is included in the JSON document as a separate section. To import a contact flow, you just select the file and import it into the contact flow you have open in the contact flow editor. You can import a contact flow that you previously exported or one that was exported from a different Amazon Connect instance. When you import a contact flow, it must be of the same type as the contact flow you have open in the editor. To learn more please see Contact Flow Import/Export.

Question 22

How do I use contact flow import/export (beta)?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 22

You can export a contact flow by selecting Export flow from the contact flow editor drop-down in Amazon Connect. The most recent saved contact flow will download as a text file. You can then import a contact flow by selecting Import flow from the same contact flow editor drop-down and then selecting the contact flow export file you want to import. The contact flow will load the contact flow into the editor for review. To learn more please see Contact Flow Import/Export.

Question 23

How does outbound contact API work?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 23

Amazon Connect allows you to automatically make calls to customers, using the outbound contact API. You can schedule automated calls for appointment reminders or notification calls in response to business events, such as credit card fraud.

Question 24

How do I use outbound contact API?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 24

Enterprise applications like CRM systems can use the outbound contact API when triggered by an event, such as a service outage, to initiate an outbound call using a predetermined contact flow. The contact flow will determine if an agent interaction is required, or if the call is routed to an Amazon Lex chatbot.

Question 25

How do I sign up for the outbound contact API in the limited preview?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 25

To request participation in the outbound contact limited preview, please apply here.

Question 26

How much does it cost to use outbound contact API?

Contact Flows

Amazon Connect | Customer Engagement

Answer 26

Standard pricing for service usage and associated telephony rates apply for outbound contact API. Please see Amazon Connect Pricing for more information.