A Faster, Easier Podium Web Phone Experience
We’ve rolled out a new update to the Podium Web Phone that makes it easier than ever to stay connected inside of Podium.
What’s new?
- A New Home for the Phone Widget
The phone widget has moved to a more accessible spot within Podium. It’s now accessible from your desktop view—so you can stay active in conversations without losing quick access to your phone. - Fewer Clicks, Faster Calling
Previously, users had to navigate through multiple steps before opening the phone widget. With the redesigned experience, you’re now one click away from answering a phone call. - Instant Status Visibility
You can now see the status of your Phone at a glance—whether it’s active, needs to be set up, or has become disconnected. No more digging through menus to figure out what’s going on.
This update removes friction from your workflow, helps you respond faster, and ensures you never miss a beat when switching between conversations and calls.
Email Fallback for Undeliverable Texts
We’ve added a simple but powerful improvement that ensures your outreach doesn’t stop when a lead enters a number that can’t receive texts.
What’s new?
- Automatic Email Fallback When Texts Can’t Be Delivered
Leads often submit invalid numbers—landlines, mistyped mobile numbers, or fake entries. When your AI employee reaches out over text and that message can’t be delivered, Podium will automatically send the message by email instead. - Seamless Transition From Text to Email
If the initial text message fails, Podium instantly switches to email so the message still reaches the lead. This keeps conversations moving even when contact info isn’t perfect.
This update ensures that every lead still gets contacted, even if their phone number is unreachable. Your AI Employee stays effective, and your follow-up never hits a dead end.
Learn more about Email Backup for Undeliverable Texts
AI Needs Help View in Inbox
We’ve added a new way to keep track of AI escalations so you can step in faster when your AI Employee needs a human to take over.
What’s new?
- Dedicated “AI Needs Help” Section in the Inbox
There’s now a specific area in your Inbox that automatically collects every escalation your AI Employee creates. - All Conversations That Need Attention in One Place
You can quickly see which conversations need help and what the AI was working on before escalation, making it easier to jump in and keep customers moving.
This update gives you a clean, organized view of AI-flagged conversations, helping teams respond faster, meet internal SLAs, and maintain smooth customer experiences.
Unanswered Escalation Notifications
To help teams stay on top of urgent AI handoffs, you can now turn on Unanswered Escalation Notifications—alerts that let you know when an escalated conversation hasn’t been handled.
What’s new?
- Email Alerts for Unanswered AI Escalations
When your AI Employee escalates a conversation but no one responds, Podium can send an email notification to alert your team so they can jump in quickly and avoid missed handoffs. This feature is off by default. If you’d like to turn it on for your org, reach out to your Podium Customer Success Manager and they can enable it for you.
Paired with the new AI Needs Help View, these email notifications help teams quickly identify and act on urgent escalations—preventing delayed responses and maintaining smoother customer experiences.
Assign a User + Send a Message in the Same Automation Action
You can now send a message and assign it to a user in the same action inside Podium Automations. No more stacking two separate steps or waiting for assignments to fire after the message goes out.
What’s new?
- One Step Instead of Two
The “Send a Message” action now includes an optional Assign To field—letting you route the conversation immediately to the right team member.
Faster AI Handoffs
Because assignments happen instantly, your team or AI Employee can start responding right away, keeping follow-up fast and consistent.
This removes the delay between sending a message and assigning it to the right person. With instant assignment, your team or AI Employee can begin responding immediately, keeping follow-up fast and consistent.