Advanced Billing

This mode of operation offers more features to the call shop. To use this mode, the Administrator must have defined the booths in use in the shop.

Each defined booth will be displayed in the sidebar on the left side of the control panel. Each booth is represented by either a red or green button, indicating whether the booth has been enabled for calling. Calls cannot be made from a booth whose red button is shown. The enabled state of the booth can be toggled by clicking on the button. Clicking on the name of the booth takes the operator to the Booth Page relating to that particular line.

There are two sections in a booth page. The first section shows the call in progress from that booth. The second section shows details of the calls that have been completed since the booth was last reset. If the system has been configured to display call charges, then the total payment due from the caller to the call shop is displayed.

Optionally, Advanced Billing can be used to support a pre-pay call shop operation in which a caller is required to pay a deposit before calling commences. When a booth is closed, and the booth button is red, the operator can enter a value into the edit box below the name of the booth. This is the prepayment value that was received from the caller as a deposit against their calls. The number entered into this box should not include a currency symbol. After the value is entered, press the green button to open the booth.

Once the booth has been opened, the prepayment value cannot be changed. The caller will be able to make calls up to the value of their prepayment. If the caller wishes to top up their deposit, the operator should close the booth and enter the additional amount they have received. When the booth is reopened, the prepayment box will show the total deposit that is being held for the customer.

After the customer has completed their calling, the booth should be closed by pressing the booth's green button. The booth page will detail the calls that have made and how much of the caller's deposit should be returned. This prepay mode of operation is only available if the call shop biller has been configured to display call charges.

Once the payment has been received, the Clear Booth button can be pressed to reset the booth and clear the list of unpaid calls. A printable version of the list of completed calls can be generated by clicking on the Printer Friendly Version link. This can serve as a printed report for callers.