What a number pool is
A number pool is the set of phone numbers an outbound deployment calls from. You pick the numbers when you deploy. There is no separate pool object and no pools screen: the pool belongs to the deployment and ends with it.
You need more than one number because each number carries at most 5 concurrent calls in a deployment. The more numbers in the pool, the more calls the deployment can run at once.
Choose the numbers
In the dashboard:
- Open Deploy on a Finn and set the call type to Outbound.
- Select the phone numbers to call from. Each must be in Settings → Phone numbers, not used by another live outbound deployment, and not isolated.
- Set Max parallel calls. The list runs from 1 to 5 × the number of selected numbers. The default is 2 × the number of selected numbers.
- Pick the audience and deploy.
Through the API, an outbound deployment uses one number and up to 5 parallel calls. See api-deployments.
The limits
| Rule | Value |
|---|---|
| Max parallel calls per number | 5 |
| Max parallel calls per deployment | 5 × numbers in the pool |
| Carriers per pool | One. The dashboard won't let you mix numbers from different carriers. |
| Numbers shared between live outbound deployments | Not allowed. A number in one running deployment can't be picked for another. |
Your plan's concurrency applies on top of the pool. See concurrency.
Size the pool
Work back from how many calls you want running at once:
numbers needed = max parallel calls ÷ 5, rounded up
For 40 calls at once, you need at least 8 numbers.
That is the minimum. Fewer calls per number spreads volume, and a number that places many calls in a short time is more likely to be labeled as spam by carriers. See spam-labeling.
Keep the pool healthy
- Check Health first. In Settings → Phone numbers, look at each number's Health band before you deploy. Leave At risk numbers out.
- Isolate weak numbers. An isolated number can't be picked for a new deployment until you release it. A paused number can still be picked, with a warning. To take a number out of a deployment that is already running, stop that deployment.
- Rotate a burned number. Rotate number in a number's health drawer rents a replacement and releases the old number once the new one is live.
- Match capability to the job. Every number in the pool needs outbound voice. See number-capabilities.
What goes wrong
| Symptom | Cause |
|---|---|
| A number can't be selected when you deploy | It is used by another live outbound deployment, or it is isolated. |
| A number is greyed out | It is on a different carrier from the numbers already selected. |
| Max parallel calls won't go higher | It is capped at 5 per selected number. Add numbers. |
| Answer rates fall across the pool | The numbers are being labeled. Check Health and see spam-labeling. |
Related: outbound-campaigns, phone-numbers, concurrency.