State Type: Closing
What It Does
A Closing state runs a short closing prompt and then ends the call. Under the hood, it is marked with an end_conversation post-action, which signals the system to wrap up the audio session and flush any post-call actions (email, webhook, SMS, summary) once the agent finishes speaking.
Unlike a Transferring state, Closing does not connect the caller to anyone. The agent is the last voice the caller hears.
When to Use It
- The caller's request has been fully handled (question answered, appointment booked, message taken).
- The caller said goodbye or has clearly wrapped up.
- The flow hit a dead end that does not warrant a transfer (e.g. after-hours, caller declined to provide info).
- You want a branch of the flow to terminate politely instead of looping back to help.
Every flow should have at least one Closing state, even if it is rarely reached. It is the clean exit.
Writing the Description
- Thank the caller. "Thanks for calling Acme" or "I appreciate you reaching out."
- Recap one thing. If an action was taken, confirm it. "Your appointment is booked for Tuesday at 2 PM." This reassures the caller that the right thing happened.
- Set expectation for follow-up. If a human is going to call them back, say so. "Someone from our team will reach out by end of day."
- Keep it short. Two sentences is usually enough.
Tools to Include
Closing states are typically tool-free. The agent just speaks the closing line and hangs up. The end_conversation post-action handles the hangup automatically — you do not need to add an explicit "End Call" tool.
One exception: if your flow uses a separate Execute Actions step to fire post-call notifications, make sure that step runs before the Closing state, not inside it. Once Closing fires, the conversation is over and further tool calls will not execute.
Common Mistakes
- No Closing state. The call will still end eventually (the caller hangs up, or the session times out), but it feels abrupt. A real goodbye is worth the extra state.
- Tool calls in Closing. By the time the flow is in Closing, the conversation is wrapping up. Put anything that needs to run — booking confirmations, info submissions — in the state before Closing, not inside it.
- Reopening the conversation. A Closing prompt that says "is there anything else?" makes the closing ambiguous. If you want an "anything else" check, put it in the Assisting state and transition to Closing only when the caller says no.
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