flat-fuchsia•5mo ago

Twilio Transfer Calls

Hello, we are getting charged by Twilio (outbound) when our agent transfers the call to another number. Is this expected? Is there any way around this?

10 Replies

flat-fuchsiaOP•5mo ago

@Shubham Bajaj

Vapi Support Bot•5mo ago

Yes, being charged for outbound calls when transferring calls is expected Twilio behavior. According to the information I found, "once the transfer is complete you've essentially changed to different system" which is treated as a new outbound call by Twilio (Discord). One effective solution is to purchase and use Twilio numbers for both the agent and the transfer destination:

// When setting up your transfer
transferCall({
  to: "your-twilio-number", // Use a Twilio number here
  mode: "warm-transfer-with-twiml"
})

// When setting up your transfer
transferCall({
  to: "your-twilio-number", // Use a Twilio number here
  mode: "warm-transfer-with-twiml"
})

This approach has helped others resolve similar issues (Discord). Sources: - Discord - Discord

⤵️ Mention @Vapi Support Bot for follow-ups 🐥

Vapi Support Bot•5mo ago

// When setting up your transfer
transferCall({
  to: "your-twilio-number", // Use a Twilio number here
  mode: "warm-transfer-with-twiml"
})

// When setting up your transfer
transferCall({
  to: "your-twilio-number", // Use a Twilio number here
  mode: "warm-transfer-with-twiml"
})

This approach has helped others resolve similar issues (Discord). Sources: - Discord - Discord

⤵️ Mention @Vapi Support Bot for follow-ups 🐥

Sahil•5mo ago

Hey there, yeah, getting charged for transfers with Twilio is expected since they're still handling the call. There's not really a way around that when you're using their setup. You might want to consider if another provider fits your needs better, especially if you're frequently transferring calls. If you're looking to reduce charges, you could explore using our services for US-to-US transfers. Let me know if you have any more questions or need further assistance.

flat-fuchsiaOP•5mo ago

Got it, what options do I currently have to save costs? Can you point me to some resources? We are burning a ton of money because of this. @Shubham Bajaj @malik

old-apricot•5mo ago

What do you mean by “our services for US-to-US transfers”? Can you link us the documentation if you don’t mind

correct-apricot•5mo ago

@slickVik There are ways to save costs on that transfer, it depends on the level of control you have over your Twilio account and your office phone system (assuming your transffering to it). Here are a couple of options: 1. Attach your office phone system to Twilio via BYOC and then transfer the call to your PBX internally. You won't be able to use REFER for that, but you can build a custom script for it. Twilio will charge you for every minute connected, but it won't be the same charge as transffering to a normal phone number. 2. Use Cloudonix (cloudonix.com) as an in-between routing system, connecting Twilio + VAPI + your PBX. In this scenario, Cloudonix can transfer the call to your PBX system, via an agent tool. This transfer will carry no per-minute charges, just a fixed monthly subscription. 3. Figure out how to connect your office PBX directly to VAPI, then use VAPI to transfer the call to your directly connected PBX system - but I'm not completely sure what will be the costs associated with that. You are welcome to DM me if you have questions.

flat-fuchsiaOP•5mo ago

@Shubham Bajaj just wanted to follow up, thanks!

absent-sapphire•5mo ago

@Nir S (CEO/Founder @Cloudonix) thanks for helping @slickVik Hey @slickVik, Just to clarify, when I mentioned you could use our service for US-to-US transfers, I meant you can totally use our California numbers if you're planning to make calls within the US. Like Nir S. pointed out, there are three ways you can cut down on costs. So, depending on who you're calling and where they're located, pick the option that works best for you to save some bucks! Hope this helps!

flat-fuchsiaOP•5mo ago

@malik

Twilio Transfer Calls

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