What is a predictive dialer, how auto dialing works and how an AI voice operator differs
Sado AI team · · 4 min read
In short
A predictive dialer is call centre software that dials numbers by itself: it estimates when operators will be free and dials several numbers per operator at once. Whoever answers is connected to a free operator; busy and unanswered numbers are skipped. The catch: if no operator is free, the person hears silence and the call drops. An AI voice operator needs no prediction: it talks to everyone who picks up, right away.
How a predictive dialer works
- The company uploads a list of numbers, say 3,000.
- The software works out from past calls how many people answer and how long a call lasts on average.
- Based on that, it dials two or three numbers per operator at once.
- It skips busy numbers, no-answers and voicemail by itself.
- It connects whoever answers to the first free operator, whose screen shows the customer card.
The goal is no idle operators between calls. The weak spot is step five: when many people answer at once, there aren’t enough free operators. The extra people hear silence, say “Hello? Hello?”, and the call drops.
Types of automatic dialing
| Type | How it works | Downside |
|---|---|---|
| Preview | The operator reads the card, then clicks “call” | Slow |
| Progressive | Dials the next single number when an operator is free | Time lost on ringing |
| Power dialer | Always 2–3 numbers per operator | Extra answers are dropped |
| Predictive | Adjusts the ratio by calculation | Fewer drops, but still some |
| AI voice operator | Dials and talks by itself | Complex negotiations go to a person |
There is also the autodialer that plays a recording, but it holds no conversation: autodialer or AI operator.
Example: a car dealer in Tashkent
“Avto Saroy” (name invented) wants to tell 3,000 people who enquired over three months that a new crossover has arrived. Five operators use a predictive dialer (numbers are an example):
- the software dials three numbers per operator, 15 calls at once;
- after lunch more people answer: 9 pick up at the same moment, but only 5 operators are free;
- the other 4 hear silence and the call drops;
- they think it was spam from an unknown number, and some block it.
The dealer lost exactly its keenest customers, the ones who picked up at once. On operator salaries and call centre costs: what a call centre costs.
The same list with an AI operator
An AI operator predicts nothing: it talks to everyone who picks up, right away. It makes more than ten calls at once, and one auto-call can hold up to 10,000 people.
Sado: Assalomu alaykum, this is Shohruh from Avto Saroy. You asked about the new crossover in the summer, and it has arrived. Do you have two minutes?
Caller: Yes, go on. Is there an automatic?
Sado: Yes, the automatic trim is in the showroom. Shall I book you a test drive? Saturday or Sunday?
Caller: Sunday afternoon.
Sado: Okay, Sunday at three. We’ll call the day before to remind you.
Each outcome is in the portal under “Auto-calls”: who booked, who said later, who said “don’t call”. Those numbers are not called again. More: AI operator for outgoing calls and for car dealers.
Checklist before a mass calling run
- Only people you may call: they enquired, consented or are your customers.
- Set calling hours; don’t call late at night or early in the morning.
- Set a daily limit and know where the stop button is.
- Call from your own number so people can call it back.
- Test on 50–100 numbers first and listen to the recordings.
With Sado, outgoing calls come from the company’s current number, and you upload an Excel list in the portal (Excel and Google Sheets). Try it live or call 78 778 01 23. Compared with an operator team: AI operator or call centre.
Questions
Is a predictive dialer the same as an autodialer?
No. A predictive dialer dials and connects the person to a live operator. An autodialer plays a recorded message with no operator.
Why is there silence on predictive dialer calls?
The software dials more numbers than there are operators. When many people answer at once, the extra ones get no free operator: they hear silence and the call drops.
What does a mass calling run with an AI operator cost?
Only talked minutes: 800 so‘m a minute, no monthly fee. For example, 1,000 conversations of 2 minutes are 2,000 minutes × 800 = 1.6 million so‘m.