CID Groups: rotating caller IDs across a campaign

Calling thousands of people from a single number is a fast way to get that number flagged. CID Groups are VICIdial's answer: instead of one number, a campaign can rotate through a pool of numbers and pick one that matches the region of the person being called. Here is how the feature is built and what it does for you.

What a CID Group actually is

A CID Group is a named collection of outbound CID (caller ID) numbers, each tied to an area code or a state. You build the group once, then assign it to as many campaigns as you like. When the dialer places a call, it looks at the lead's phone number, finds the matching area code or state inside the group, and sends that number as the caller ID. The result is that a lead in Texas sees a Texas number and a lead in New York sees a New York number, all from the same campaign.

You assign the group on the campaign through the CID Group field. As long as it is set to anything other than disabled, the group takes over.

Why rotate numbers at all

Two reasons. First, local numbers get answered more often, so matching the region lifts your Contact rate. Second, spreading calls across many numbers means no single number carries a huge daily volume, which reduces the chance any one of them earns a Spam Likely label label from the carrier networks.

A CID Group is not a substitute for proper number hygiene, though. You still need real numbers you own, ideally with clean reputation, and you should keep an eye on which ones start getting tagged. Rotation buys you headroom; it does not make you immune.

How many numbers you put in a group depends on your volume. A rough rule is to keep each number's daily count low enough that it does not stand out to the analytics that drive a Spam Likely label label. If you dial heavily in a few states, give those states more numbers and fewer to the regions you barely touch. You can match on either an area code or a whole state inside the group, so a campaign that works one state can lean on state matching while a national campaign leans on area codes.

How it ranks against other caller-ID settings

When a CID Group is set on a campaign, it overrides the plain campaign caller ID and most of the other settings below it. The only thing that can outrank it is a list-level override on the Lead list itself. So if you turn on a CID Group and still see your old single number, check whether a list override is winning the tie.

One gap to plan for: if the lead's area code has no entry in the group, the group has no number to send for that call. That is exactly what failover is for, which we cover in a separate post.

Where it fits

CID Groups are one of the better levers for keeping an outbound campaign answering well over time. For the wider set of dialer controls, read our VICIdial dialing strategies guide, and if your numbers are fine but calls keep getting abandoned, see how to lower your VICIdial drop rate. Want a dialer you can stand up in under a minute to try this? See our plans.