> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.talkchief.io/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # AI outbound calling campaigns | TalkChief > Create a TalkChief AI outbound campaign: write the call plan, set up a caller profile, import leads, set calling windows, rehearse, and launch. A campaign calls a list of leads for you. The campaign holds the message, rules, audience, documents, and tools. A reusable **caller profile** supplies the identity, voice, and phone line. You need a TalkChief phone user for the caller profile and at least \$10 in your wallet. Each campaign places up to 5 calls at a time. ## How a campaign works | Part | What it holds | | - | - | | **Caller profile** | Who calls: name, introduction, role, language, voice, tone, and phone line. Reusable across campaigns | | **Campaign setup** | What the calls are for: purpose, first spoken line, Goal playbook, guidelines, and rules | | **Audience & pacing** | Who to call and when: leads, calling window, concurrency, retries, and do-not-call | | **Knowledge & actions** | What the agent can use: documents, tools, and transfer destinations | | **Test & launch** | Readiness checks, a rehearsal call, and launch | | **Activity & results** | Live calls, outcomes, charges, and configuration history | ## Step 1: Create the campaign In the agents workspace sidebar, click **Campaigns**, then **New campaign**. Enter a **Campaign name**. Under **What should these calls achieve?**, choose **Sell something**, **Collect information**, or **Book an appointment**. Under **Who should make these calls?**, choose **Create a caller profile** or **Use an existing profile**. Enter a **Caller profile name**, the **TalkChief email** and **TalkChief password** of the phone user it calls from, and **Introduces itself as**. TalkChief verifies the account and connects the phone. If verification fails, nothing is created. Click **Create campaign**. The campaign opens on **Campaign setup**. The Create a campaign dialog with a campaign name, the Book an appointment goal selected, and Create a caller profile chosen. One running or paused campaign holds a caller profile at a time. Create a second profile if you need two campaigns live at once. ## Step 2: Write the call plan Open **Campaign setup**. Fill in **Purpose / objective** and **First spoken line**. The first line should say who is calling and why. Answer the required questions for your goal. For example, **Book an appointment** asks what is booked, how long it lasts, the times you can offer, and what counts as booked. Add **General guidelines**, **Never do** rules, and **Additional context** as needed. Choose **Allow brief small talk**, **Allow the agent to end calls**, and **Allow phone-menu keypresses**. Click **Save campaign**. Two rules always apply. The agent honors verbal opt-outs and ends the call. If a lead asks directly, the agent says it is an AI. Campaign setup showing the Call plan and Goal playbook cards on the left and the Reusable caller profile card on the right. ## Step 3: Finish and publish the caller profile The **Reusable caller profile** card on the same page controls how the caller sounds. It is separate from the campaign's instructions. 1. Check **Profile name**, **Introduces itself as**, and **Role**. 2. Choose the language, dialect, and **Voice**. Use **Voice sample** to listen. 3. Set **Tone**, **Pace**, **Response consistency**, **Let leads interrupt**, and **Listening pause**. 4. Click **Save caller profile**. 5. Check that **Outbound phone connection** shows a connected phone with outbound calls enabled. 6. Click **Publish caller profile**. You cannot rehearse or launch until the caller profile is published and its outbound phone is connected. ## Step 4: Import leads Open **Audience & pacing**. Under **Import leads**, click **Choose or drop a lead CSV**. Files can be up to 10 MB. Click **Download template** for an example. Map **Phone number** (required). **Contact name**, **Company**, and **Lead timezone** are optional. Check the preview and click **Import**. The result shows how many leads were added and why any rows were skipped. Phone numbers must be in international format, such as +14155550123, or a TalkChief extension. Duplicates and numbers on your do-not-call list are skipped. ## Step 5: Set the calling window and pacing | Setting | What it does | | - | - | | Calling days | Days of the week the campaign may call | | **Start time** and **End time** | The daily calling window | | **Campaign timezone** | The timezone for the window, for example `Asia/Riyadh` | | **Respect each lead's timezone** | Applies the window in each lead's local time when a timezone is mapped | | **Concurrent calls** | 1 to 5 calls at a time | | **Retry attempts** | 0 to 10 retries after a retryable outcome, such as no answer | | **Retry gap (minutes)** | Minimum wait between attempts on the same lead | | **Check workspace do-not-call list before every dial** | Skips numbers on your do-not-call list | The campaign only dials inside the window, for leads not on the do-not-call list, with attempts left. ## Step 6: Add knowledge and actions Open **Knowledge & actions** to choose what this campaign can use. * **Knowledge**: add library documents, or upload up to 2 private campaign documents. * **Live transfer directory**: add approved transfer destinations. * **Actions**: attach workspace Business APIs, email, or MCP tools, or click **Add a tool** to create a private API for this campaign. The **Voice actions** meter applies here too, with a limit of 25. See [Tools and integrations](/ai-agents/tools-and-integrations). ## Step 7: Rehearse and launch Open **Test & launch**. The checklist shows each requirement: * **Call plan is specific**: a campaign purpose and an opening line. * **Goal playbook is complete**. * **Caller profile is ready** and **Caller profile is published**. * **Outbound phone is connected**, with outbound calls enabled. * **Callable audience is loaded**: at least one lead to call. * **Enabled resources are ready**, **Caller profile is available**, and **All edits are saved**. Click **Fix** next to any failed item to jump to the setting. Under **Rehearsal call**, enter your **Test number or extension** and an optional **Test contact name**. Click **Place rehearsal**. The call uses the saved campaign, but does not touch your leads. Click **Open rehearsal report**. Rehearsal calls carry the **Rehearsal** label in **Call reports**. When every check passes, click **Launch campaign**. The Test & launch section with all readiness checks passed, the Rehearsal call form, and the Ready to launch panel. ## Monitor and control the campaign The header shows progress and the lead outcome bar. Lead states are: | State | Meaning | | - | - | | **Pending** | Waiting to be called | | **Dialling** | Being called now | | **Completed** | Finished | | **Failed** | The call attempt did not succeed | | **Suppressed** | Skipped because of do-not-call or an invalid number | **Activity & results** shows the live call transcript, each call's outcome, duration, and cost, and the configuration history. Click **Inspect** to open a call in **Call reports**. * **Pause safely** stops new calls. Calls in progress can finish. Pause to edit the campaign. * **Stop campaign** cancels the remaining leads. You cannot undo this. * The campaign status changes to **Completed** when every lead is processed. ## FAQ No. Click **Pause safely** or **Pause to edit**, make your changes, save, and launch again. No. Automated answer detection is not available. If a mailbox answers, the call is treated as answered. Yes. Choose **Use an existing profile** when you create the next campaign. The profile stays available after a campaign ends or is deleted. Each connected call costs \$0.15 per minute, or the usage-based cost if higher. Unanswered and busy attempts have no per-minute charge. ## Related pages Review campaign calls and charges. Add documents for campaigns. This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.