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This guide walks you through the fastest path to a working DialNexa Voice AI agent: create the agent, configure its stack, write a prompt, publish a version, buy a phone number, assign it, and place a test call. By the end you will have a real phone number that connects callers to your AI agent.

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Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have:
  • A DialNexa account with access to the dashboard
  • A funded wallet (phone number purchase and call minutes are billed from your wallet balance)
If your wallet balance is zero, phone number provisioning will fail and test calls will not complete. Add funds at Settings > Billing before continuing.

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Create Your First Agent

1

Open the Agents tab

In the left sidebar, click Agents. If this is a new workspace, the list is empty.
2

Create a new agent

Click Create agent in the top right. Choose Single Prompt Agent to start. Single prompt agents are the fastest to configure and best for focused tasks like appointment reminders or lead qualification.Give the agent a name that describes its purpose, for example Appointment Reminder Bot. The name is internal and visible only to your team.
3

Configure the conversation stack

The builder opens on the Stack tab. Set the following:
SettingRecommended for first agent
LanguageEnglish (or your primary language)
Voice ProviderElevenLabs
VoicePick any voice from the dropdown and click the play button to preview
LLMOpenAI GPT-4o Mini (fast, cost-effective for simple tasks)
TranscriberDeepgram Nova 3 (multilingual default)
Leave Speed, Stability, and Temperature at their defaults for now.
4

Write the system prompt

Click the Prompt tab. The prompt is the agent’s full operating instruction.Paste the following starter prompt, then edit it for your use case:
You are a friendly appointment reminder assistant for Acme Clinic. Your job is to remind patients about their upcoming appointments.

When the call connects:
1. Greet the caller by name if you have it.
2. Confirm they received the reminder for their appointment on {{appointment_date}} at {{appointment_time}}.
3. Ask if they can make it or need to reschedule.
4. If they confirm, thank them and end the call politely.
5. If they want to reschedule, let them know the front desk will call back and end the call.

Keep responses short. Do not discuss anything unrelated to the appointment. End the call after the confirmation.
Notice the {{appointment_date}} and {{appointment_time}} placeholders. These are dynamic variables you can pass per-call. For a test call you can supply fixed values.
5

Publish the agent

Click Publish in the top right. Enter a version title like v1 - initial and confirm. The agent now has a published version that can receive live traffic.
Drafts are not served to callers. You must publish before assigning to a phone number or placing a test call from the Agents list.

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Buy a Phone Number

1

Open Phone Numbers

In the left sidebar, click Phone Numbers (under Calls or the top-level menu, depending on your plan).
2

Search for a number

Click Buy Number. Choose your country, select a number type (local or toll-free), and search. A list of available numbers appears with their monthly cost.
3

Purchase the number

Click Buy next to the number you want. The cost is deducted from your wallet. The number appears in your Phone Numbers list within a few seconds.

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Assign the Agent to the Phone Number

1

Open the phone number settings

In the Phone Numbers list, click the number you just bought or click the row action menu and select Edit.
2

Set the inbound agent

Under Inbound Configuration, select your agent from the dropdown. Select the published version (the one you just published, not Draft).
3

Save

Click Save. The number is now live. Any inbound call to that number will be handled by your agent.

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Make a Test Call

1

Call the number

Dial the phone number from any mobile or landline. The call should connect within a few seconds and you will hear your agent’s welcome message.
2

Verify the agent responds correctly

Speak naturally. Confirm the agent responds according to your prompt. If you used the sample prompt above, the agent will attempt to confirm an appointment.
3

Check the call record

After hanging up, open Call History in the left sidebar. The call should appear with a transcript, duration, status, and post-call summary if configured.

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What to Check if the Call Does Not Work

The phone number may not be fully provisioned yet. Wait 60 seconds and try again. If the problem persists, confirm the number status in Phone Numbers shows Active.
Open the agent in the builder and confirm a published version exists. Drafts are not served. If the version is published, check that the phone number is assigned to that version, not an older one.
Check your wallet balance. A zero or negative balance will cause calls to fail at connection. Add funds and retry.
For test calls, enter variable values in the test call modal or set fallback defaults in Agent Settings > Fallback Settings. Variables without a value are passed as-is, which the agent will speak literally.

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Next Steps

Outbound Calls

Place a single outbound call and review the result.

Types Of Agents

Choose the right agent type before configuring the stack.

Prompts And Welcome Messages

Write prompts that produce consistent, on-brand conversations.

Provider Selection Guide

Choose the right voice, LLM, and transcriber for your use case.