Hot key configuration for agents
VICIdial hot keys let agents disposition, advance scripts, or trigger actions with a single keystroke during a live call.
VICIdial hot keys are single-key shortcuts the agent can press during a call. They cut the disposition step from "click → modal → select → confirm" down to one keypress. On a 200-agent floor that compresses hours per day.
How hot keys work
Hot keys are scoped per campaign. Each entry binds a key (0–9, A–Z) to one of four actions:
- Disposition — set the call disposition + advance to the next lead (most common)
- Update Script — jump the agent's script to a named section (sales rebuttal, verification, etc.)
- Pause — flip the agent to PAUSED with a preset pause code
- Custom — fire a webhook to your CRM with the call's metadata
The hot-key panel renders below the script. Agents see the binding next to the action, so a press is visible-to-the-agent before muscle memory takes over.
Configure a hot key
Admin → Campaigns → pick campaign → Hot Keys → Add New Hot Key:
- Hot Key: the keystroke (single character, case-sensitive)
- Hot Key Action: one of the four above
- Hot Key Value: the disposition code, script section name, pause code, or webhook URL depending on action
- Active:
Y/N— leaving inactive lets you stage a change without affecting the floor
Most floors land at 6–10 hot keys per campaign. More than 12 and agents start confusing them.
Common bindings we see
| Key | Action | Value | Why |
| --- | ------------- | ------------------ | ---------------------------------------- |
| 1 | Disposition | SALE | One-key sale close |
| 2 | Disposition | CB | Schedule callback |
| 3 | Disposition | NI | Not interested, no DNC |
| 4 | Disposition | DNC | Do-not-call request, internal DNC list |
| 5 | Disposition | LB | Voicemail / left message |
| 0 | Disposition | WN | Wrong number |
| R | Update Script | rebuttal_pricing | Jump to pricing rebuttal |
| V | Update Script | verify | Verification block |
| P | Pause | BREAK | Quick break, pause logged for compliance |
Hot keys + scripts
Hot keys that trigger Update Script jump the agent's visible script to a named section. The section is defined inside the script body with markup like:
--A--BEGIN_SECTION:rebuttal_pricing--B--
"I hear you on the price. Most of our customers find that..."
--A--END_SECTION--B--
When the hot key fires, VICIdial replaces the visible script with the named section. Useful for fronter / closer / rebuttal flows where the script changes phase mid-call.
Disabling hot keys per agent
Some agents (verifiers, supervisors auditing calls) shouldn't be able to fire hot keys. Set User → Hot Keys Active = N to disable for that user. Campaign settings still apply for everyone else.
What the audit log captures
Every hot-key press writes a row to vicidial_agent_log with the key, the resulting action, the call ID, and the timestamp. If a regulator asks "when was this disposition set," the answer is there to the millisecond.
Common mistakes
- Binding
Qto a disposition. Agents reach for Q to quit out of forms by reflex; you'll get phantom dispositions. Stick to numerals + a few letters that aren't navigation reflexes. - Too many hot keys. Past ~12, agents stop remembering and start guessing. Worse than no hot keys.
- Mixing disposition + script-jump on adjacent keys. Press
1to sale,2to advance script — easy to misfire. Group dispositions on one row of the keyboard, script-jumps on another. - Forgetting to test on a real agent. Some keyboards send
Numlockdifferently; test on the actual hardware your floor uses.