How to use an API to create Cloud IVR apps

By using an API to create and manage Cloud IVR apps, you get total flexibility in defining the customer journey, directly from your code.

In this article, we will explain how you can get started using and API to create Cloud IVR services.

There are many questions you can start asking yourself as a business, when you move from having a static Voice response service – to having a dynamic one that can be changed automatically from your own software and business logic.

Where should callers to be forwarded to if they press 1 in the menu? What information should be played to callers before they are connected to customer service? Under what conditions should you ask callers to leave a message instead of connecting them to someone’s mobile?

By using an API to adjust the flow and logic of a Cloud IVR, you can let your business logic define the IVR – instead of vice versa.

Get started with the API

Before you can start working with the API you need to take these steps;

• Create a free account
  Sign up for a free Sonetel account.
• See API documentation
  The Cloud IVR API is part of the wider communications API provided by Sonetel. 
• Create token
  Whatever you want to do with the API, you will need a token for authentication. You get the token by using your account credentials (email and password).

Creating the Cloud IVR apps

In most cases the Cloud IVR API may be more useful for changing the configuration of your existing apps, rather than for creating them. It may therefore be easier for you to create the apps via the web app – which is explained here. But in case you want to create new apps as well, here are the steps;

• Create app
  You can create the app using this POST command. Use the token (see prior section) for authentication.
• Update the audio recording
  Find the IDs of the default prompts that are defined automatically with each new voice app. Create new custom prompts, to be played if callers press a certain digit in a menu.  Update these with your recordings.

Update the Cloud IVR configuration

Change the settings of an existing Cloud IVR app as follows.

• Change the settings
  You can see the current settings and then change forwarding settings and actions when callers make selections with this command.
• Change the recordings
  Find the IDs of the default prompts that are defined automatically with each new voice app. Create new custom prompts, to be played if callers press a certain digit in a menu.  Update these with your recordings.

Photo by ThisisEngineering RAEng and Kevin Ku on Unsplash