Tern keeps every conversation and call with a lead in one place, works each lead towards an outcome and tells each agent who to call next and why. This guide takes a team lead from nothing to a working setup. Allow about an hour.
Sign in
Tern has no passwords.
- Go to app.ternup.io. The page is headed Sign in.
- Type your Work email and press Email me a sign-in link, or press Continue with Google.
- If you asked for a link, the page says Check your inbox. Open the email and press the link. It works once and expires in 10 minutes.
Create your workspace
A workspace holds your team, leads and conversations. The first person to sign in creates it and becomes its owner.
- On Step 1 of 3, Create your workspace, fill in Workspace name.
- Check Short name. It is used in links, in the workspace switcher and in your support email address.
- Pick your Timezone. Quiet hours and daily summaries follow this.
- Press Create workspace.
- On Step 2 of 3, Start your free trial, press Start your 14 day free trial and enter a card. It is not charged until the trial ends. See Billing and usage caps.
- On Step 3 of 3, Invite your team, type your agents' Email addresses, one per line, pick a Role and press Send invitations. Invitations expire in 7 days. You can also press Skip for now and invite people later. See Roles.
Find your way around
The sidebar has three parts.
| Where | What it is for |
|---|---|
| Dashboard | Today at a glance. |
| Leads | Every lead as a list. |
| Kanban | Leads by playbook step. |
| Inbox | Every conversation on every channel. |
| My day | Tasks, approvals and commitments due today. |
| Support | Tickets, live queue and service health. |
| QA | Reviews, flags and scorecards. |
| Work log | Shifts, targets and what each agent did. |
| Playbooks | Outcome routes and steps. |
| Automations | Trigger, condition, action rules. |
| Integrations | Sources, channels and ecosystem products. |
| Settings | Org, team, channels, AI and retention. |
Press Search or jump to at the top of any page to find a lead, a conversation or a page by name.
Set your hours
- Open Settings, then Organisation.
- Check Default timezone. It is used when a lead has no timezone of its own.
- Set Quiet hours start and Quiet hours end. Nothing is sent inside quiet hours in the lead's local time.
- Press Save.
Connect your channels
Do these in any order. Each has its own guide.
- Chats: every agent installs the browser extension. See Install Tern Bridge and WhatsApp Web capture and assisted send.
- Calls: an admin connects your phone system once. See Zoom Phone and click to call.
- Leads: connect the platform your leads come from. See Lead feeds.
Set up how your team works
- Give each agent their hours and targets. See Shifts, targets and the work log.
- Decide whether calls are recorded and what agents must say first. See Recording, consent and retention.
- Put your follow up routine into a playbook, so every lead is worked the same way. See Leads, outcomes and playbooks.
- If you also serve customers, set up Support tickets.
What an agent does each day
- Opens My day and starts with Your shift, then Tasks due.
- Works through Make sure to call these clients as well. See Priority call list and outcome signals.
- Answers replies in the Inbox. See Inbox and Link to lead.
What you check each week
- Work log, for who worked their shift and met their targets.
- QA, for calls and threads that were flagged.
- Settings, then Billing, for the month's allowances.