Editing Automatic call distributor (section)

==Application==
ACD systems route incoming calls to people according to defined rules that may include, for example, the time of day, the day of the week, the geographic location of the caller and the availability of people to respond. The rules should aim to route the call to a person qualified to address the caller's needs. Routing can use  [[caller ID]], [[automatic number identification]], [[interactive voice response]] or [[Dialed Number Identification Service|dialed number identification services]] to determine how calls are handled. ACD systems are often found in offices that handle large volumes of incoming [[phone call]]s from callers who require assistance at the earliest opportunity, but have no need to talk to a specific person: e.g., customer service representatives or emergency services dispatch centers.

There are several contact routing strategies that can be set up within an algorithm based on a company's needs. [[Skills-based routing]] is determined by an operator's knowledge to handle a caller's inquiry. [[Call centre|Virtual contact centers]] can also be used to aggregate the skill sets of agents to help multiple vendors, where all real-time and statistical information can be shared amongst the contact center sites. An additional function for these external routing applications is to enable [[Computer telephony integration]] (CTI), which improves efficiency for call center agents by matching incoming phone calls with relevant data via [[screen pop]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://searchunifiedcommunications.techtarget.com/feature/Comparing-the-top-UC-cloud-products-and-providers|title=Comparing the top UC cloud products and providers|work=SearchCRM|publisher=TechTarget}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://searchcrm.techtarget.com/tip/Contact-center-automation-takes-flight|title=Contact center automation takes flight|work=SearchCRM|publisher=TechTarget|access-date=2017-05-30|archive-date=2018-08-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180821031646/https://searchcrm.techtarget.com/tip/Contact-center-automation-takes-flight|url-status=dead}}</ref>