# Manage Customer Queries from External Messaging Channels in the Cloud Voice App As an agent on a message queue, you work through customer conversations that arrive from external messaging channels directly in the Cloud Voice App. This page walks through everything you can do with a messaging session on the web and desktop versions of the app: claiming it, replying, moving it elsewhere, turning it into a call, and closing it out. Every task below starts the same way. In the Cloud Voice App, click **Chat**, then open the **External Chat** tab. ## Before you start Confirm the following with your system administrator: - **System version** 84.20.0.128 or later. - **At least one messaging channel** configured on the system. If you use the desktop version of the app, it must be one of these builds or later: - **Windows**: 1.2.14 or later - **macOS**: 1.2.14 or later ## Pick up a messaging session When your message queue receives a new inbound conversation, you can see the incoming messages and take ownership of the session. :::note You can only pick up sessions when your queue's chat assignment mode is set to **Manual Pickup** or **Auto-Pickup**: - **Manual Pickup**: you claim each new session yourself. - **Auto-Pickup**: the session is assigned to whichever agent replies first. You can still pick one up manually in this mode if you want to. ::: ![A new external messaging session waiting to be picked up from the queue](/images/pbx/pick-up-session-web.png) 1. Open **Chat > External Chat**. 2. At the top of the session, click **Pick Up**. A confirmation appears letting you know the session is now yours. From this point on, only you can see the conversation and reply to it. ## Transfer a messaging session Mid-conversation, you can hand a customer off to a colleague or to another message queue. If your administrator has connected the system to a third-party message analytics platform, you can also route the session there for advanced processing or automation. :::note The third-party analytics platform only appears as a transfer destination when your administrator has integrated it with the system over the API (Application Programming Interface, the connection two systems use to exchange data). ::: ![Choosing where to transfer an active messaging session](/images/pbx/transfer-a-conversation.png) 1. Open **Chat > External Chat**. 2. In the top-right corner of the session, click the transfer icon ![Transfer session](/images/pbx/transfer-sms-f.png). 3. Pick a destination in the pop-up, then click **OK**. The session leaves your external chat list and moves to the chosen colleague, queue, or analytics platform, carrying the full chat history with it. ## Start a voice call from a session When a message thread would be quicker to resolve by phone, you can call the customer without leaving the conversation. :::note Placing outbound calls requires permission. Check with your system administrator if you're not sure you have it. ::: ![Turning a messaging session into a phone call to the customer](/images/pbx/elevate-chat-to-call.png) 1. Open **Chat > External Chat**. 2. In the top-right corner of the session, click the call icon ![Call the customer](/images/pbx/call.png). The app dials the customer's number and routes the call through the system. ## Add a customer to your contacts You can save a customer's details to your contacts straight from the conversation. ![Adding a customer's details to contacts from within a session](/images/pbx/add-contact-in-a-conversation.png) 1. Open **Chat > External Chat**. 2. In the top-right corner of the session, click the add-contact icon ![Add contact](/images/pbx/add-contact.png). 3. Choose how to save the customer: - **Add New Contact**: create a fresh contact and fill in the customer's details. - **Add to Existing Contact**: attach the details to a contact you already have, editing its information as needed. ## View session details Open a session's detail panel to see information such as the source channel it came from and the channel number. ![The detail panel for a messaging session, showing its source channel](/images/pbx/see-conversation-details.png) 1. Open **Chat > External Chat**. 2. At the bottom of the session, click the details icon ![Session details](/images/pbx/con-details.png). The session's details open in the panel on the right. ## Archive a session Archiving is handy when a customer has gone quiet or when you simply want to set a conversation aside to revisit later. ![Moving a messaging session into the archived list](/images/pbx/archive-a-conversation.png) 1. Open **Chat > External Chat**. 2. In the top-right corner of the session, click the archive icon ![Archive session](/images/pbx/archive.png). The session moves from the **Recent** list to the **Archived** list. :::note To pick the conversation back up, send a message in the archived session, or click the unarchive icon ![Unarchive session](/images/pbx/unarchive.png) in the top-right corner. Unarchiving returns the session to the **Recent** list. ::: ## End a session Once you've finished helping a customer, close the session out. :::caution Ending a session is permanent: you cannot send any more messages in it, and it moves to the **Archived** list. If the customer writes in again, the system opens a brand-new session instead. If there is any chance you will need to continue this conversation, archive it instead of ending it. ::: ![Ending an active messaging session with the customer](/images/pbx/close-a-conversation.png) 1. Open **Chat > External Chat**. 2. In the top-right corner of the session, click the end icon ![End session](/images/pbx/deal-with-f.png). 3. Click **OK** in the pop-up. The session closes and moves to the **Archived** list. You can no longer send messages in it. The next time this customer writes in, the system opens a brand-new session. ## Remove a session To delete a session entirely: :::danger Removing a session deletes it from every one of your Cloud Voice App clients (web, desktop, and mobile), along with its chat history, and it cannot be undone. If you only want to set the conversation aside, archive it instead. ::: ![Removing a messaging session from the external chat list](/images/pbx/remove-a-conversation.png) 1. Open **Chat > External Chat**. 2. In the external chat list, right-click the session you want to delete. 3. Click **Remove**. 4. Click **OK** in the pop-up. The session is removed from every one of your Cloud Voice App clients. ## Handle campaign sessions When your administrator runs a message campaign to send messages in bulk and assigns those campaign sessions to your extension or to a queue you belong to, you can view and reply to them here. ![Viewing sessions generated by a message campaign](/images/pbx/view-campaign-session.png) 1. Open **Chat > External Chat**. 2. In the external chat list, click **Campaign Group**. Every session created by a message campaign is listed. 3. Click a session to read it and respond to the customer's replies.