Agree the baseline before launch. Compare similar enquiry types and staffed hours; a change in sales cannot automatically be attributed to the voice agent.
Practical checks
-
Report completed, incorrect, abandoned and handed-off enquiries with their sample counts.
-
Separate median response time from slow-tail latency and provider/network failures.
-
Add telephony, voice/model usage, hosting, support and staff review to the cost per useful enquiry.
What to record before a decision
Write a short decision record: the current problem, one proposed change, the evidence needed to accept it, the person responsible and a review date. Test with fictional data before exposing customer information. If evidence is missing, record it as unknown rather than presenting a forecast as an achieved result. Keep a working fallback so a customer can still reach staff when an integration fails.
Scope and limits
Confirm speech recognition, voice output, language support, telephony and data handling with the chosen providers. Support varies by model and integration. Usage fees and staff review are separate operating costs. Do not promise perfect recognition, a universal response time or a fixed sales uplift.
