What is a predictive dialer?
A predictive dialer is outbound calling software that dials several numbers per available agent, using an algorithm to predict when an agent will be free. It connects only answered calls to agents and filters out busy signals, no-answers and often voicemail.
How it works
The dialer tracks how long calls last and how often people answer. From those numbers it calculates how many lines to dial so that a live person picks up just as an agent finishes a call.
Answered calls are sent to the next free agent; unanswered, busy and machine-answered calls are dropped from the queue and often rescheduled.
If more people answer than there are free agents, the extra calls are abandoned or put on hold. In the US, the FTC limits abandoned telemarketing calls to 3% per campaign, so pacing settings matter.
Why it matters
01Maximum talk time
Agents spend most of their hour talking instead of listening to rings.
02Built for volume
It suits large teams calling long lists where any answer is useful.
03Trade-offs
Silent or dropped calls hurt the experience, and agents have little time to prepare.
Allo and Predictive dialer
Allo does not include a predictive dialer. It offers a power dialer that calls one contact at a time, and a parallel dialer, on the Ultra plan, that calls several at once.
Related terms
The terms that usually come up in the same conversation.
All glossary terms
Frequently asked questions
A power dialer calls one number per agent, immediately after the previous call ends. A predictive dialer calls several numbers per agent based on a forecast, which raises talk time but risks abandoned calls.
Yes, but it is regulated. In the US the TCPA and the FTC's Telemarketing Sales Rule limit abandoned calls and restrict automated calls to mobiles without consent.
A dialer that calls a small, fixed number of contacts at the same time for one rep and connects the first person who answers. It is simpler and more predictable than a predictive dialer.