Voice agent

What makes something a voice agent

Three capabilities separate a voice agent from earlier phone automation: it understands unrestricted natural speech rather than keywords or keypad tones; it can complete multi-step tasks (identify the caller, check a calendar, book a slot, send a confirmation) rather than just route or record; and it knows its limits — handing the call to a human with a summary when the conversation goes beyond its scope.

Inbound and outbound

Inbound voice agents answer calls: reception, customer service, appointment lines, after-hours and emergency triage. Outbound voice agents place calls: appointment reminders, payment reminders, satisfaction surveys, and lead reactivation campaigns. Modern platforms such as Sono do both from the same system, so every conversation lands in one call log.

Common evaluation criteria

• Latency: how quickly the agent responds — long pauses break the illusion of conversation.
• Language coverage: whether it holds a natural conversation in the caller's own language, not just English.
• Integrations: whether it can act in the business's calendar, CRM, and ticketing systems.
• Escalation quality: whether a transferred call arrives with context or the caller must repeat everything.