Methods, Systems, and Products for Dynamically-Changing IVR Architectures

• US 20100272246A1
• Filed: 07/02/2010
• Published: 10/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: At&T Delaware Intellectual Property, Inc. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Anderson, Richard A., Malik, Dale
• Granted Patent: US 8,396,195 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/88.180
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/254 where the visual mode comprises menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/355 Interactive dialogue design tools, features or methods
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals

Abstract

Methods, systems, and products are disclosed for dynamically changing an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system. Responses to a menu of prompts are monitored. A presentation order of the menu of prompts is automatically updated according to a set of rules. The set of rules describe qualifications for dynamically changing the menu of prompts.

Claims

1. A method for dynamically changing an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system, comprising:

monitoring cumulative responses from callers to a hierarchical menu of prompts in the IVR system;

retrieving a threshold associated with each tier in the hierarchical menu of prompts, each threshold representing a minimum number of responses to a prompt that are required for occupying a tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts;

promoting the prompt from a lower tier to a higher tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts when a cumulative number of responses to the prompt equals or exceeds the threshold associated with the higher tier; and

dynamically rearranging the hierarchical menu of prompts.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising demoting the prompt from the higher tier to a lower tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts when the cumulative number of responses to the prompt is less than the threshold associated with the higher tier.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising demoting the prompt from the higher tier to a lower tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts when the cumulative number of responses to the prompt is less than a minimum number of responses that are required to occupy the higher tier.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising retrieving a rule describing how many prompts may be grouped under the prompt.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising retrieving a rule describing how many prompts may be grouped within a hierarchical level of the menu of prompts.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising retrieving a compression threshold representing a minimum number of responses that are required to occupy a position within a tier.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising compressing prompts into a sub-tier within the hierarchical level of the menu of prompts.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising retrieving an intra-tier compression threshold that determines which prompts are compressed under a generic grouping within the menu of prompts.

9. A system, comprising:

a processor executing code stored in memory that causes the processor to;

monitor cumulative responses from callers to a hierarchical menu of prompts in the IVR system;

retrieve a threshold associated with each tier in the hierarchical menu of prompts, each threshold representing a minimum number of responses to a prompt that are required for occupying a tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts;

promote the prompt from a lower tier to a higher tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts when a cumulative number of responses to the prompt equals or exceeds the threshold associated with the higher tier; and

dynamically rearrange the hierarchical menu of prompts.

10. The system according to claim 9, wherein the code further causes the processor to demote the prompt from the higher tier to a lower tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts when the cumulative number of responses to the prompt is less than the threshold associated with the higher tier.

11. The system according to claim 9, wherein the code further causes the processor to demote the prompt from the higher tier to a lower tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts when the cumulative number of responses to the prompt is less than a minimum number of responses that are required to occupy the higher tier.

12. The system according to claim 9, wherein the code further causes the processor to retrieve a rule describing how many prompts may be grouped under the prompt.

13. The system according to claim 9, wherein the code further causes the processor to retrieve a rule describing how many prompts may be grouped within a hierarchical level of the menu of prompts.

14. The system according to claim 9, wherein the code further causes the processor to retrieve a compression threshold representing a minimum number of responses that are required to occupy a position within a tier.

15. The system according to claim 9, wherein the code further causes the processor to compress prompts into a sub-tier within the hierarchical level of the menu of prompts.

16. The system according to claim 9, wherein the code further causes the processor to retrieve an intra-tier compression threshold that determines which prompts are compressed under a generic grouping within the menu of prompts.

17. A computer readable medium storing computer code for performing a method, the method comprising:

monitoring cumulative responses from callers to a hierarchical menu of prompts in the IVR system;

retrieving a threshold associated with each tier in the hierarchical menu of prompts, each threshold representing a minimum number of responses to a prompt that are required for occupying a tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts;

promoting the prompt from a lower tier to a higher tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts when a cumulative number of responses to the prompt equals or exceeds the threshold associated with the higher tier; and

dynamically rearranging the hierarchical menu of prompts.

18. The computer readable medium according to claim 17, further comprising code for demoting the prompt from the higher tier to a lower tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts when the cumulative number of responses to the prompt is less than the threshold associated with the higher tier.

19. The computer readable medium according to claim 17, further comprising code for demoting the prompt from the higher tier to a lower tier within the hierarchical menu of prompts when the cumulative number of responses to the prompt is less than a minimum number of responses that are required to occupy the higher tier.

20. The computer readable medium according to claim 17, further comprising code for retrieving a rule describing how many prompts may be grouped under the prompt.