Call Tracking Setup

This guide walks you through setting up a call tracking campaign from start to finish: getting a phone number, choosing which buyers receive calls, setting your prices, testing, and going live. For the big-picture concepts, see the Call Tracking Overview.

Before you start

You need four things in place. None of them take long.

• Call Tracking turned on. It's in beta, so an admin on the Lead Distro AI team enables it for your account. If Calls isn't in your sidebar yet, email support@leaddistro.ai.
• At least one buyer with a phone number. This is the real phone we ring when a call comes in. Add buyers under Buyers in the sidebar. See Buyers.
• A balance in each buyer's wallet. Buyers pay per qualified call, charged from their prepaid wallet. If a wallet is empty, the call still connects but we can't bill it. Top it up from the buyer's page. See Wallet & Top-Ups.
• A place to put your number. Your ads, landing page, Google Business Profile, or anywhere callers will see it.

How a call flows

Here is the whole journey in one line: a caller dials your tracking number, hears an optional greeting, the system rings your buyers in the order you set (the ring tree), the answering buyer hears an optional whisper, the call connects (and is recorded if recording is on), and if it lasts past your minimum length it counts as a billable call.

Money moves in two directions. You pay Lead Distro AI for the phone number rental and the per-minute call time. Your buyers pay you a fixed price for each qualified call. The difference is your margin.

Step 1: Create a Calls campaign

• In the left sidebar, open Campaigns, then click Create Campaign.
• Under "What kind of campaign?" choose Calls.
• Under "How are buyers matched?" choose Static Ring Tree. (Real-Time Bidding is coming soon.)
• Give the campaign a name and pick a vertical, then click Create Campaign.

You'll land on a short setup checklist: buy a number, add your first call target, share the number, and activate. The next steps walk through each one in detail.

Step 2: Get a tracking number

A tracking number is the phone number your callers dial. You buy it right inside the app, no phone company account required.

• Open the campaign and go to the Tracking Numbers tab.
• Click Add A Number and choose Local Number or Toll Free Number.
• Search by area code or by digits you want in the number, then click Buy next to the one you like.
• Already have numbers with us? Use Import Existing to point them at this campaign instead.

Step 3: Add buyers to your ring tree

The ring tree is the ordered list of buyers the system rings when a call comes in. You build it on the Call Flow tab under Routing Strategy.

• On the campaign, open the Call Flow tab and find Routing Strategy (Ring Tree).
• Click Add Target and pick a buyer. (Add the buyer under Buyers first if you haven't.)
• In the Edit Target window, fill in the settings below, then save.

Add as many buyers as you want. They ring in priority order until someone answers.

Step 4: Shape the call flow

On the same Call Flow tab you control what the caller and the buyer hear. Each part is optional and has its own on/off switch.

• Greeting: a short message the caller hears first, for example "Thanks for calling, please hold while we connect you." Type it as text or upload an audio file.
• Whisper: a message only the answering buyer hears right before they're connected, for example "Incoming accident call from your Facebook ad." It helps them answer with the right pitch.
• Fallback: what happens if no buyer answers. Play a goodbye message, or turn on voicemail so the caller can leave a recording.

Step 5: Put the number on your traffic source

Copy your tracking number and place it wherever callers will find it: your ads, landing pages, Google Business Profile, call-only ads, and so on. Every call to that number now runs through your ring tree.

Step 6: Make a test call

Before you go live, call the tracking number from your own phone. You should hear your greeting (if you set one), a buyer's phone should ring, and after you hang up the call appears on the Calls page with its recording and billing result.

Step 7: Go live

When everything looks right, activate the campaign (the last step of the setup checklist, or the status control on the campaign). Calls now flow to your buyers and show up on the Calls page in real time, with recordings and billing.

What it costs

There are two kinds of charges, kept as separate line items on your invoice.

Your profit on each call is what the buyer pays you minus your number and minute costs. You can see revenue, cost, and margin per call on the Calls page and in your P&L reports.

Advanced options

Once the basics work, these settings give you finer control. They live on the Call Flow tab or in a buyer's Edit Target window.

• IVR menu: let callers press a key before they're routed, for example "Press 1 for English, press 2 for Spanish." Each choice points to its own set of buyers, so you can send Spanish calls to Spanish-speaking buyers.
• Ring several buyers at once: give two or more buyers the same Priority and they ring together. First to answer wins.
• Caps and concurrency: limit how many calls a buyer gets per day, week, or month, and how many they can take at the same time.
• Schedules: only ring a buyer during their business hours and days.
• Backup numbers: give a buyer one or more backup phones that ring if the main one doesn't pick up.
• Voicemail: when no buyer answers, let the caller leave a message. Recordings are saved on the call and can be emailed to you.

Troubleshooting