Exercise 08 - Configure advanced channel settings

Beyond basic channel setup, Dynamics 365 Contact Center provides a layer of advanced settings that control how conversations behave throughout their lifecycle. In this exercise, you will configure consult and transfer settings, reusable message templates, a custom presence status for Contoso Coffee's training periods, and notification behavior for missed and rejected conversations.

This exercise should take approximately 20 minutes to complete.

Before you start

You must have completed Exercise 06. The Contoso Chat Workstream and Contoso Chat Widget must exist.

Task 1 - Configure consult and transfer settings

Consult and transfer settings control how agents can involve other agents in a conversation - either for advice (consult) or to hand the conversation off entirely (transfer).

  1. In the left navigation under Customer support, select Channels.

  2. Select Manage next to Consult and transfer.

  3. Enable the Consult to queue toggle.

  4. Set the countdown values:

    • Voice: 30 seconds
    • Messaging: 30 seconds

  5. Enable the Transfer to representatives toggle under Transfer settings.

  6. Select Save.

Task 2 - Create a message template

Automated message templates are sent to customers automatically when specific events occur during a conversation. You can create global templates here and reuse them across channels.

  1. In the left navigation under Support experience, select Productivity.

  2. Select Manage next to Message templates.

  3. Select +New.

  4. Enter and select the following:

    • Channel: Live chat
    • Name: Contoso Greeting
    • Message trigger: Agent assigned to conversation
    • Automated message: Hi, you're connected with a Contoso Coffee support agent. How can I help you today?
    • Default language: English - United States

  5. Select Save & Close.

  6. Select + New again to create a second template:

    • Channel: Live chat
    • Name: Contoso Closing
    • Message trigger: Agent ended conversation
    • Automated message: Thank you for contacting Contoso Coffee support. Please reach out if you need further assistance.
    • Default language: English - United States

  7. Select Save & Close.

Task 3 - Create a custom presence status

Custom presence statuses allow you to add organization-specific availability states beyond the default options. Contoso Coffee holds regular training sessions during which agents are unavailable for customer conversations.

  1. In the left navigation under Support experience, select Productivity.

  2. Select Manage next to Custom presence.

  3. Select +New.

  4. Enter and select the following:

    • Name: Contoso Employee Training
    • Presence text: In Training
    • Base status: Busy
    • Description: Agent is attending a training session and is unavailable for conversations.

  5. Select Save and Close.

    [!NOTE] Setting the base status to Busy means agents with this presence will not receive new conversations. Supervisors can still see them as distinctly "In Training" rather than generically busy.

Task 4 - Review notification behavior and configure sound settings

When an agent misses or rejects an incoming conversation notification, the system automatically changes their presence so they aren't assigned new work until they're ready. These settings are enabled by default - in this task you'll confirm they're active and then configure the live chat notification sound.

  1. In the left navigation under Support experience, select Workspaces.

  2. Select Manage next to Notifications.

  3. Select the Missed Notifications tab. Confirm that Change agent status to inactive after a missed notification is set to Yes.

    [!NOTE] When an agent misses a notification, their presence is automatically set to Inactive, preventing new conversations from being assigned until they manually reset it. This avoids conversations being routed to an agent who isn't at their desk.

  4. Select the Agent Reject tab. Confirm that Change agent status to "Do not disturb" after a notification is rejected is set to Yes.

    [!NOTE] When an agent rejects a notification, their presence is set to Do not disturb. This signals intentional unavailability, as distinct from simply missing a notification.

  5. Select the Sound Notification settings tab.

  6. Set the Enable sound notifications toggle to Yes.

  7. Under Live chat, configure the following:

    • Play sound: Yes
    • Repeat until answered: Yes
    • Sound: Remove Wood bounce and select Wood frog.

  8. Select Save & Close.

Verification

This exercise is complete when:

  • Two message templates exist: Contoso Greeting and Contoso Closing
  • A custom presence status named In Training exists with a base status of Busy
  • Missed and rejected notification settings are confirmed active; live chat sound notifications are enabled with Repeat until answered