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Volo Village FAQ

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

  1. What are the system requirements for VOLO Village?
  2. How do I get help with the VOLO Village system?
  3. What are the steps for implementing VOLO Village?
  4. What is the ThunderCall® caller ID?
  5. How do my homeowners opt out of receiving notifications?
  6. Can I export my database from the VOLO Village system?
  7. How can I update all homeowner data in the VOLO Village system?
  8. How often should I update my database?
  9. Why are the ‘save’ and ‘launch scenario’ buttons greyed out?
  10. What is the Caller ID for text messages sent through the VOLO Village system?
  11. What do the calling attempt abbreviations in Reports stand for?
  12. How many attempts does VOLO make when calling each record?
  13. If someone has a “ring-back” tone will they get my call?
  14. What would cause a long pause before my message starts playing?
  15. Can I set up a Project to launch at a later time?
  16. Can I access VOLO Village from a SmartPhone?
  17. What is the difference between the Desktop VOLO Village site and Gadget?
  18. Can ThunderCall® monitor a homeowner’s location when traveling?
  19. Can I launch scenarios from the VOLO Alert Messenger App?
  20. What are the key elements I should be including in my messages?
  21. What is the cost to homeowners and residents receiving VOLO Village messages?
  22. What do I do if a homeowner cannot access the Portal with their credentials?
  23. What are the websites I should bookmark to use VOLO Village?

1. WHAT ARE THE SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS FOR THE VOLO VILLAGE SYSTEM?

  • Windows or Macintosh Silverlight (available on Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Safari).
  • Administrative rights required for downloads to your computer. (ONLY if Silverlight is not currently on your machine). If you do not have admin permissions, you will need to contact your network administrator to install Microsoft Silverlight.

2. WHAT ARE THE SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS FOR THE VOLO VILLAGE SYSTEM?

  • TOLL FREE: (888) 769 – 4826
  • EMAIL: support@volovillage.com
  • LIVE CHAT IS AVAILABLE DURING NORMAL BUSINESS HOURS (8:30AM TO 6:00PM, MONDAY THRU FRIDAY, EST) WITHIN YOUR VOLO VILLAGE SYSTEM BY SELECTING THE LIVE CHAT LINK AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE

3. WHAT ARE THE STEPS FOR IMPLEMENTING VOLO VILLAGE?

VOLO VILLAGE implementation is comprised of a few easy steps*:

  1. Upload your database of records.
  2. Receive training on your VOLO system from your Client Service Rep.
  3. Test your system internally and educate your database of records on the VOLO service.

*Implementation documents may be obtained from your Client Service Representative.

4. WHAT IS THE THUNDERCALL® CALLER ID?

Calls from ThunderCall will be received from (800) 899-6380. Subscribers may also dial this number to be removed from the ThunderCall service.

5. HOW DO MY HOMEOWNERS OPT OUT OF RECEIVING NOTIFICATIONS?

Records may reply to emails received, log in to their Portal website to edit their information, or contact representatives at your community with access to the VOLO Village system.

6. CAN I EXPORT MY DATABASE FROM THE VOLO VILLAGE SYSTEM?

To export your list of records:

  1. Click on the My Records module.
  2. Then the “All Records” link.
  3. Once your records populate, select the records you would like to export. You may click ‘Select All’ at the bottom of the page, manually select records, or use the ‘Search’ or ‘Filter’ features to sort records.
  4. Then, click the “Use these records” button on the top right of the page.
  5. Then, click the last option titled “Export records”. Records are exported into a .csv format, which can be opened in Excel.

7. HOW CAN I UPDATE ALL MY HOMEOWNER DATA IN THE VOLO VILLAGE SYSTEM?

To update your entire database, export your homeowner data using your internal accounting system (such as C3) and then send that information to your Client Service Representative via email. VOLO does not have access to export your internal community data and is unable to pull that information from your accounting system.
The minimum required data for an update are as follows:

  • First and Last Name
  • Location (typically your community name as shown in VOLO account)
  • Record ID (this is any alphanumeric phrase, typically an internal Account ID)
  • While not required, including phone numbers and email addresses is recommended.

8. HOW OFTEN SHOULD I UPDATE MY DATABASE?

Keeping an up-to-date and accurate database is the most important part of utilizing the VOLO Village system. Updates can be made manually in the My Records module, by the residents themselves via the Portal website, or by sending your most recent database information to your Client Service Representative. Contact your Client Service representative if you have any questions regarding how information can be sent to VOLO.

9. WHY ARE THE SAVE AND LAUNCH BUTTONS GREYED OUT WHEN SETTING UP A SCENARIO?

If the SAVE and LAUNCH buttons are greyed out and unable to be selected in your Scenario, required fields have not been completed. Before saving or launching a scenario, ensure that you have selected records in the bottom portion of the page. Additionally, you’ll want to ensure that you have included a subject in any Email jobs and have not exceeded the maximum character limit for text message jobs. Once these requirements have been met, the SAVE/LAUNCH buttons will be able to be selected.

10. WHAT IS THE CALLER ID FOR TEXT MESSAGES SENT THROUGH THE VOLO VILLAGE SYSTEM?

Text messages from the VOLO Village system are sent from five-digit short codes. The two short codes being utilized by VOLO Village are 90936 and 90328.

11. WHAT DO THE CALLING ATTEMPT ABBREVIATIONS SEEN IN REPORTS STAND FOR?

  • “DL” or “Live” – the call was delivered to a live person.
  • “AM”, “DA” or “Ans Mach” – the call was delivered to an answering machine
  • “WA” – withheld delivery due to reaching an answering machine. This is due to Live Optimize being selected in your Project.
  • “OI”, “Op” or “Op Int”– an Operator intercepted the call. This is typically due to all circuits being busy or an invalid telephone number.
  • “TO”, “TOut” or “Time Out” – after 30 seconds of ringing a telephone line, no connection was made.
  • “BY” or “Busy” – a busy signal was detected.

12. HOW MANY ATTEMPTS DOES VOLO MAKE WHEN CALLING EACH RECORD?

The VOLO dialing system attempts each record up to 3 times in order to maximize the number of delivered messages. When Live Optimize is turned off, VOLO considers the call successfully delivered when it is either answered live or sent to voicemail.

13. IF SOMEONE HAS A “RING-BACK” TONE WILL THEY GET MY CALL?

Call recipients that have their phone set to play a song for the person calling them in place of the standard ringing tone will more often than not result in the dialing system interpreting the connection as an Operator. When an Operator is reached there are a series of tones that play before the Operator message and these same types of tones are detected when a phone is set up to play the ring-back tone.

14. WHAT WOULD CAUSE A LONG PAUSE BEFORE MY MESSAGE STARTS PLAYING?

When a call is received from the VOLO Village system, VOLO’s patented technology waits on the line to determine the type of connection (live person, answering machine, busy signal, etc.) based on the frequency on the other end of the line. The most common cause in the delay of a message playing is the call recipient not saying “hello” on the other end of the line, especially if they are expecting the call and know it is coming from an automated system. This pause is the system waiting to determine what we connected to.

15. CAN I SET UP MY PROJECT TO LAUNCH AT A LATER TIME?

Yes, projects can be created as Scenarios and then set to be launched at the desired date and time on the Schedule page. Scenarios and Schedule are both found in the Communication module. Contact your Client Service representative if you have any questions, or if you would like a tutorial on this feature.

16. CAN I ACCESS VOLO VILLAGE FROM A SMARTPHONE?

Yes. To access a mobile-formatted version of the VOLO site on a smartphone or tablet, please visit https://gadget.volorecovery.com on the device’s mobile browser and enter your regular VOLO Village username and password. VOLO Gadget is a condensed version of the system and does not have the full functionality as the desktop site. Utilizing the Gadget site is ideal for when you need to launch notifications and cannot access the desktop website. Tip: For easy access to VOLO Gadget, save it as a shortcut on your device.

17. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE DESKTOP VOLO VILLAGE SITE AND GADGET?

Gadget is a purely HTML version of the VOLO system. VOLO Gadget provides the ability to quickly launch notifications and is ideal for situations when a user cannot access their desktop computer. Because VOLO Gadget does not require the use of plugins, it can be accessed on smartphones, tablets, or any other mobile device with internet access.

18. CAN THUNDERCALL® MONITOR A HOMEOWNER’S LOCATION WHEN TRAVELING?

Yes. The VOLO Alert Messenger app will actively monitor the location of the subscriber and automatically initiate communication if that location is under a severe weather warning. The VOLO Alert Messenger application can be downloaded on iPhone, Android, or Windows devices by searching for “VOLO Alert Messenger” in the application store. Once downloaded, records can login using the same credentials used to access the Portal. Note: VOLO Alert Messenger can only be accessed by records in the account and the Portal settings must be turned on within the record information page in the My Records module. System administrators are unable to use admin credentials to login to VOLO Alert Messenger.

19. CAN I LAUNCH MESSAGES FROM THE VOLO ALERT MESSENGER APP?

No, VOLO Alert Messenger is designed to be utilized by clients who would like their homeowners to receive weather alerts based on their geographic location and receive push messages sent by their account administrators. In order to launch messages on a smartphone or other device, you will need to visit https://gadget.volorecovery.com on a mobile browser. For more information on VOLO Gadget, please see Question 16. Note: If you are interested in adding ThunderCall® to your desktop account, please contact your Client Service Representative to provide you with more information.

20. WHAT KEY ELEMENTS I SHOULD BE INCLUDING IN MY MESSAGES?

When scripting a message, we recommend the following suggestions:

  • Be sure to state clearly who you are, what organization you are with, and provide a brief statement as to the purpose of your call.
  • Make sure to inform the recipient as to what action or non-actions should be taken next and direct them to a specific source for more information.
  • When closing your message, be sure to reiterate the purpose of your call, highlight the most important points of your message, and clearly state what actions should be taken immediately.

21. WHAT IS THE COST TO HOMEOWNERS AND RESIDENTS RECEIVING VOLO VILLAGE MESSAGES?

Costs incurred are based on the individual phone plans for each homeowner. VOLO does not charge recipients for receiving messages.

22. WHAT DO I DO IF A HOMEOWNER CANNOT ACCESS PORTAL WITH THEIR CREDENTIALS?

If a homeowner is unable to access the portal with their credentials, please ensure they are visiting the correct address (https://portal.volorecovery.com). Keep in mind, the administrative site (https://my.volorecovery.com) is only for the use of system administrators, not homeowners. To reset a portal password, you may do so in the Portal Settings section of the homeowner’s record. If an email is tied to a homeowner’s record, they may request password by clicking on Recover your Info on the Portal login page.

IMPORTANT SITES

ADMINISTRATIVE SITE: https://my.volorecovery.com
HOMEOWNER PORTAL SITE: https://portal.volorecovery.com
COMPANY WEBSITE: http://volovillage.com
MICROSOFT SILVERLIGHT DOWNLOAD: https://www.microsoft.com/silverlight/

For VOLO client use only | ©VOLO, LLC 2015-2018