Auto dialer
An auto dialer is any system that dials numbers from a list without a person pressing digits. It is an umbrella term covering four modes — preview, power, parallel and predictive — which differ in how many calls the system places relative to how many agents are free, and that single variable determines connect rate, answer delay and regulatory exposure.
The four modes
Preview shows the agent the record and waits. Power dials the next number the moment the previous call ends, one at a time. Parallel places several calls at once and connects whoever answers first. Predictive uses historical answer rates to dial ahead of an agent becoming free.
Why the mode matters
Preview and power place no more calls than they have agents for, so there is no answer delay and no abandoned calls. Parallel and predictive multiply attempts, which raises connects per hour but drops calls on real people and introduces a bridge pause at pickup — exactly when people hang up.
What actually limits connect rate
Usually caller reputation, list quality and time-of-day rather than dial mode. A number flagged as spam by carriers stops connecting no matter how fast you dial it.
How Autocloz handles it
Autocloz ships a power dialer with click-to-call, IVR, voicemail drops, agent presence and call reporting inside a free-forever CRM, with carrier rates passed through at cost. It does not offer parallel or predictive dialing, and DNC, quiet hours and TCPA constraints are enforced before a call is placed.
FAQ
What is the difference between a power dialer and a predictive dialer?
A power dialer dials one number at a time, starting the next call as the previous ends. A predictive dialer places several calls simultaneously and predicts when an agent will free up. Predictive gives more connects per hour at the cost of answer delay and abandoned calls, which are regulated in several jurisdictions.
Are auto dialers legal?
Auto dialers are legal in most places but how you use one is regulated. In the US the TCPA restricts calls to Do Not Call numbers, sets calling-hour windows in the recipient's local time, and imposes stricter rules on automated dialing to mobiles. Rules differ by country and by state, so verify against your own.
Related terms
Cold calling is the practice of phoning prospects who have had no prior contact with your company to introduce a product or service and open a sales conversation. It remains a direct outbound channel in B2B sales, though modern practice pairs it with research and multichannel context rather than dialing unqualified lists blindly.
A voicemail drop (or ringless voicemail in some forms) is a feature that lets a rep leave a pre-recorded voicemail message with one click instead of speaking it live each time. When a call reaches voicemail, the rep drops the recording and immediately moves to the next call, saving the time of repeating the same message.
A power dialer is an outbound calling tool that automatically dials numbers from a list one after another, connecting a live agent only when a call is answered and advancing to the next number on no-answer or voicemail. It dials one line per agent sequentially, eliminating manual dialing time without the compliance risk of dialing multiple lines at once.
A predictive dialer is an automated outbound calling system that dials multiple numbers per agent simultaneously, using statistical models of answer rates and agent availability to predict when a rep will be free and connect a live answer to them. It maximizes agent talk time for large call-center operations but can produce abandoned (dropped) calls when predictions miss.