Where Can Text-to-Speech Be Utilized?

Text-to-Speech can be utilized almost anywhere on the Stratus Web Portal where a user can have the system call the user to record or upload their own recording.

• Auto Attendants
  • Main Greeting
  • Intro Greeting
  • Play Message Option
  • Sub Tier Greeting
     
• Voicemail Greetings
  • Main Voicemail Message
  • Recorded Name - You can use Text-To-Speech for your recorded name that will be played when callers search the directory.
  • Intro Greetings
     
• Music on Hold
  • An introduction message can be played before the Music on Hold begins.
    •  This can be on the default Music on Hold or set individually for specific users or call queues.
       
• Call Queues
  • Message to Agent - To use Text-To-Speech to create a message that will be read to queue agents when answering a call from the queue navigate to the Queues application on the domain level of an organization.
     

Implementation

When editing the audio in Stratus there is an option for Text-to-Speech alongside the Record and Upload options.

Most places in Stratus where audio can be adjusted, there will be a Manage Audio Button that will bring up the audio options when clicked.

For the Auto Attendant Menu Prompt, it will look like this. Clicking on either the pencil Edit Button or the “Click to add a new menu prompt” field will bring up the Manage Audio window.

For Voicemail Greetings it will look like this, however, in each location, the options are essentially the same.

• Message: Type in what you would like the Text-To-Speech Generator to say.
• Language: Select from a list of available languages. It is best to match the language with the text in the message field as each language option is intended to interpret specific words.
• Voice: Use this drop-down to select from different voice styles.

The voice message can be tested in the portal by clicking the Play Button next to the Voice dropdown list.

Don’t forget to press Save when you are finished.

Text-To-Speech Tips

Punctuation is Essential

• Periods and Commas, specifically, can dictate how much time is spent between words. Commas can allow for short pauses while periods are used for Longer pauses.
• Question Marks will affect how a sentence is interpreted by the generator.
   

Phonetics/Pronunciation

It is possible for words to be spelled correctly but be interpreted by the Text-To-Speech Generator incorrectly, or at least not as intended. 

• If this occurs, try a phonetic spelling of the name with hyphens in between each syllable.
• This is most prevalent in Names and other Proper Nouns.
   

Numbers

Numbers may need to be formatted to be adjusted for their desired purpose.

Time Frames

It is best to type out the exact phrasing desired when using time frames.

Listen to Your Recording

All Text-To-Speech fields can be previewed right from the editor. Press the play button after editing your text to preview what the audio will sound like before Saving.
 

Pauses

Extra Pauses can be added by using the following syntax:

<break time="3s"/>

example:
This is a sentence. 
<break time="3s"/>
More words continued after the pause. 

• The value of the length of the break can be adjusted by seconds or milliseconds (e.g. "3s" or "250ms")