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Overview

The greeting is the first thing customers hear when connecting with your agent. A well-crafted greeting sets the tone, establishes expectations, and guides the conversation in the right direction.

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Greeting Modes

Choose from three different greeting modes:
Greeting configuration showing navigation sidebar with Abilities section expanded and Greeting selected, Inbound and Outbound tabs, three greeting mode options (User Initiates, AI Agent Initiates with Dynamic Message, AI Agent Initiates with Fixed Message), fixed message editor with variable support, message delay slider, and barge-in toggle
Greeting configuration showing navigation sidebar with Abilities section expanded and Greeting selected, Inbound and Outbound tabs, three greeting mode options (User Initiates, AI Agent Initiates with Dynamic Message, AI Agent Initiates with Fixed Message), fixed message editor with variable support, message delay slider, and barge-in toggle
Best for: Consistent, branded greetingsYour agent says the exact same greeting every time.
Hey! Thanks for calling Acme support. This is Alex. What can I help you with?
Advantages:
  • Consistent brand messaging
  • Predictable customer experience
  • Easy to test and refine
  • No AI variability
Use when:
  • Brand voice is critical
  • Greeting includes specific disclaimers
  • Consistency across all calls needed

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Greeting Configuration

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Initial Delay

Control how long the agent waits before speaking (0-5 seconds). A delay of 0.5 seconds is a good starting point for most use cases.

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Interruptibility

Control whether customers can interrupt the greeting. Non-Interruptible (Recommended):
  • Greeting plays in full without interruption
  • Ensures customers hear complete message
  • Professional and clear introduction
  • Best for most use cases
Interruptible:
  • Customer can speak during greeting
  • Agent stops mid-greeting and listens
  • Can lead to incomplete introductions
  • Use only if customers frequently interrupt and non-interruptible greetings lead to suboptimal conversations or hangups
Non-interruptible greetings ensure your brand introduction and purpose are always communicated clearly. Keep greetings concise (under 10 seconds) for best results.

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Inbound vs Outbound Greetings

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Inbound Greetings

Customers are calling you. They initiated contact. Best practices:
  • Thank them for calling
  • Identify your company/service
  • Introduce the agent (optional name)
  • Ask how you can help
Examples: 
# Standard support:
"Thank you for calling Acme Software support. How can I help you today?"

# With agent name:
"Hi! This is Alex from Acme support. What can I help you with?"

# Friendly:
"Hey there! Thanks for calling. What brings you in today?"

# Department-specific:
"Acme Billing department, this is Sam. How can I assist you?"

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Outbound Greetings

You’re calling the customer. You need to establish legitimacy and purpose quickly. Best practices:
  • Identify yourself and company
  • State purpose of call
  • Confirm you’re speaking with right person
  • Ask if it’s a good time
Examples: 
# Appointment reminder:
"Hi, this is Alex from Acme Dental. I'm calling to confirm your appointment tomorrow at 2 PM. Is this still a good time for you?"

# Lead follow-up:
"Hello, this is Sarah from Acme Software. You recently requested information about our Enterprise plan. Do you have a few minutes to discuss how we can help?"

# Customer feedback:
"Hi! This is Jordan from Acme. You recently purchased our product, and I wanted to get your quick feedback. Do you have two minutes?"

# Payment reminder:
"Hello, this is the billing team at Acme. I'm calling about your account. Can we take care of that payment today?"

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Outbound Greeting Overrides

Configure separate greetings for outbound calls in the Greeting section.
Outbound greeting configuration showing Outbound (custom) tab selected with toggle for 'Use same as inbound', three greeting mode options (User Initiates, AI Agent Initiates with Dynamic Message, AI Agent Initiates with Fixed Message), outbound fixed message editor, message delay slider, barge-in toggle, and save changes button
Outbound greeting configuration showing Outbound (custom) tab selected with toggle for 'Use same as inbound', three greeting mode options (User Initiates, AI Agent Initiates with Dynamic Message, AI Agent Initiates with Fixed Message), outbound fixed message editor, message delay slider, barge-in toggle, and save changes button
1

Enable outbound override

Toggle “Configure separate outbound greeting”
2

Choose outbound greeting mode

Fixed, AI-generated, or User initiates
3

Set outbound-specific delay

Usually 0-0.5 seconds for outbound
4

Configure interruptibility

Usually interruptible for natural feel
By default, outbound calls mirror your inbound greeting. Use overrides when you need different behavior for proactive calls.

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Using Variables in Greetings

Greeting variables configuration showing Outbound (custom) tab with AI Agent Initiates with Fixed Message selected, outbound fixed message editor containing variable syntax, Detected Variables section showing test variable, message delay slider, and barge-in toggle
Greeting variables configuration showing Outbound (custom) tab with AI Agent Initiates with Fixed Message selected, outbound fixed message editor containing variable syntax, Detected Variables section showing test variable, message delay slider, and barge-in toggle

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Contact Variables

Personalize with customer information:
Contact variables in greeting showing Inbound tab with AI Agent Initiates with Fixed Message selected, fixed message editor with time-based and contact variable syntax using current_datetime and contact.full_name, Detected Variables section displaying the parsed variables, message delay slider, and barge-in toggle
Contact variables in greeting showing Inbound tab with AI Agent Initiates with Fixed Message selected, fixed message editor with time-based and contact variable syntax using current_datetime and contact.full_name, Detected Variables section displaying the parsed variables, message delay slider, and barge-in toggle
Hi {{ contact.first_name | default("there") }}! Thanks for calling.
Time-based greetings using the built-in current_datetime variable: 
Good {{ "morning" if current_datetime.hour < 12 else "afternoon" }}, {{ contact.full_name | default("there") }}!
The current_datetime variable is automatically available in greetings and instructions for building time-based logic. See Variables & Dynamic Content for more details.

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Conditional Greetings

Use built-in contact variables:
Conditional greeting configuration showing Inbound tab with AI Agent Initiates with Fixed Message selected, fixed message editor with if-else conditional logic using contact.email variable, Detected Variables section showing contact.first_name and contact.email, message delay slider, and barge-in toggle
Conditional greeting configuration showing Inbound tab with AI Agent Initiates with Fixed Message selected, fixed message editor with if-else conditional logic using contact.email variable, Detected Variables section showing contact.first_name and contact.email, message delay slider, and barge-in toggle
{% if contact.email %}
Hello {{ contact.first_name }}, I have your email {{ contact.email }} on file.
{% else %}
Hi {{ contact.first_name }}, thanks for calling!
{% endif %}
How can I help you today?
Or use custom variables from your Dynamic Context API: 
{% if account_tier == "premium" %}
Hello {{ contact.first_name }}, thank you for being a valued premium customer.
{% else %}
Hi {{ contact.first_name }}, thanks for calling!
{% endif %}
How can I help you today?
Variables like account_tier, company_name, or custom fields must be provided via your Dynamic Context API endpoint.

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Writing Great Greetings

Aim for under 10 seconds.Good: “Hi! Thanks for calling Acme support. How can I help?”Too long: “Hello and thank you for calling Acme Software technical support center. My name is Alex, and I’ll be assisting you today…”
Use conversational language.Good: “Hey! Thanks for calling. What can I help with?”Avoid: “Greetings, valued customer. Please state the nature of your inquiry.”
Make your purpose clear.Good: “Hi! This is Alex from Acme Billing. I’m calling about your recent invoice.”Avoid: “Hello, this is Acme. I wanted to reach out to you today.”

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Testing Greetings

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What to Test

  • Is delay appropriate?
  • Does agent start speaking too soon/late?
  • Can customer interrupt if needed?
  • Is greeting clear and understandable?
  • Does it establish purpose?
  • Is tone appropriate?
  • Any awkward phrasing?
  • Do variables render correctly?
  • Are defaults working?
  • Does conditional logic trigger properly?
  • Under 10 seconds?
  • Customer stays engaged?
  • No unnecessary words?

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Testing Process

  1. Test Call in dashboard
  2. Start Web Call
  3. Listen to greeting multiple times
  4. Test with different contexts (VIP customer, different campaigns, etc.)
  5. Ask colleagues for feedback
  6. Refine based on actual call results

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Common Mistakes

Avoid: “Greetings. You have reached the Acme Corporation technical support division.”Better: “Hey! Thanks for calling Acme support. What can I help you with?”
Avoid: “Yo! What’s up? What do you need?”Better: “Hey there! Thanks for calling. What can I help with today?”
Avoid: “Hi, this is Alex. How can I help?”Better: “Hey! This is Alex from Acme support. What brings you in today?”
Avoid: “Hi, is this Sarah? How are you today?”Better: “Hi Sarah! This is Alex from Acme. You requested some info about our product - do you have a quick minute to chat?”

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Next Steps

Variables & Dynamic Content

Learn how to use variables in greetings and instructions

Prompt Engineering Guide

Master advanced instruction techniques

Test Your Agent

Test your greetings and refine