A single touchtone and speech recognition application

An application that uses touchtone recognition and speech recognition together requires that every prompt be acceptable for both entry methods.

Note:
Use this method only if your system resources can process the extra load, since many callers with touchtone telephones may choose to use speech recognition instead. Remember that recognition accuracy is lower for spoken input than for touchtone input.

When using a single application:

1. Structure your prompts so they give callers the choice of using the touchtone keypad or speaking.
2. At the beginning of the application, tell callers that entries may be made with either the keypad or by speaking. For example, the application might say:

   "Welcome to XYZ Technologies. During this call, you can use your telephone touchtone keys to make entries, or you can simply speak your responses."

3. Make sure that the prompts are appropriate for either kind of input. There are two ways to do this:
   • Tell callers to "enter" the information. For example:

     "Enter the zip code of the restaurant you visited."

   • Present the prompt as a question. For example:

     "What is the zip code of the restaurant you visited?"

     Either method is appropriate. To accomplish this in IVR Designer, write the application the same as you would for speech recognition input. For digits, the application automatically accepts touchtone input in place of the spoken input. For "yes" and "no," you must identify in the application what touchtone keys are associated with the words "yes" and "no," and specify the action associated for each. For IVR Designer applications, insert the appropriate branches on the Prompt and Collect node.

     You also must tell callers to press a touchtone key instead of saying "yes" and "no," in case they want to indicate their response with a touchtone key. The prompts to accomplish this could be:

     Prompt: "Would you like to leave us a message regarding the service agreement?"
     {pause}
     "Please enter yes or no."

     Reprompt: "Please say `yes' or `no'. Or, for yes, press 1. For no, press 2."

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