How to Optimize Lead Response and Automations Using the Actionable Window

Why the Actionable Window Matters

The Actionable Window defines the hours when lead routing rules (like claim timeouts) and automated workflows (like action plans) can actively operate.

This helps your team:

• Respond to leads when they’re most engaged

• Avoid bothering clients (and agents!) at 2 AM

• Control the timing of automated messages for a better client experience

Real-World Examples

• A lead registers at 2:00 AM → They're automatically assigned to the next agent (no claim delay).

• You set up an action plan to wait until 8:00 AM to send the welcome message → Your message arrives when the lead is awake and active.

• A lead registers at 8:56 PM with a 5-minute timeout → That timeout pushes past 9:00 PM → The system bypasses claiming and auto-assigns the lead.

The Actionable Window Can Affect Lead Routing

If you have a lead routing rule for your site set to "Distribution Type: Claim with Time Out," the time-out period is active only during what we call the "Actionable Window" hours of the day. By default, this is set to 8:00 am to 9:00 pm in all accounts (in your local time). These times can be adjusted in your site's "Global Site Settings."

Update on Texas SB140: Texas Senate Bill 140 also changed the actionable window for Sundays to 12:00 PM–9:00 PM. Currently, Sierra does not support different actionable windows for different days of the week at the global level. However, each individual Action Plan includes plan-level settings that let you decide what should happen if an activity falls on a Sunday—you can choose to send it a business day earlier or later. This is an important safeguard to call out in our point of view on SB140 that we share with customers. If clients use a partner, they may not be able to control this functionality, but they can adjust it for their own action plans.

👉 Important Note: Even if you edit each text in an Action Plan to stop Sunday sends, that change does not apply retroactively to plans already applied to leads. When an Action Plan is first applied, all activities are scheduled at once. The only way to apply edits you make later is to remove the Action Plan from the lead and then re-add it.

What Happens Outside the Window?

• 🕑 Leads registering late at night (e.g., 1:00 AM) are immediately auto-assigned to the next agent in rotation.

• 🕘 Claim attempts that cross outside the window are also auto-assigned—no timeout wait occurs.

• 📞 If you're using Instant Call with No Delay, but the call starts before and extends beyond the Actionable Window, the system will auto-assign the lead.

🧠 Tip: Use a consistent claim window aligned with your team's working hours to reduce confusion and delays.

📘 Learn more: Lead Routing and Distribution – Account Level

How It Affects Fully Automated Action Plans

When creating a Fully Automated Action Plan, you'll choose how the system handles messaging outside the Actionable Window.

Choose How to Handle the First Message:

You’ll be prompted to decide:

• ✅ Send First Message Outside the Actionable Window (Yes)

• 🚫 Wait Until the Window Opens (No)

Then Decide What Happens to "Day 1" Messages:

After that first message, you’ll also choose:

1. Send all Day 1 tasks when the window opens

2. Skip Day 1 entirely and move to Day 2’s schedule

📘 Learn more: Engage Your Leads with Fully Automated Action Plans

 How to Change the Actionable Window

You can adjust the Actionable Window settings in your admin panel:

1. Click the Gear icon in the top-right corner

2. Select Global Site Settings

3. Scroll to the Lead Distribution section

4. Choose your preferred Start Time and End Time

 

Practical Takeaways for CRM Texting

When planning automated text campaigns, keep in mind compliance with both federal TCPA rules and stricter state-specific “mini-TCPA” laws. To keep things simple and compliant across state lines, follow these guidelines:

• Universal Safe Window: 9:00 AM–8:00 PM local time, Monday through Saturday. Avoid sending texts on Sundays or legal holidays. This clears the strictest common denominators: CT requires a 9:00 AM start; FL, OK, MD, and WA require an 8:00 PM cutoff; UT, SD, LA, and MS restrict Sundays; TX now requires a Sunday noon start.

• Texas Specifics: On Sundays, texting cannot start until 12:00 PM. Make sure your scheduler respects this rule for Texas area codes and for contacts geolocated in Texas. Where possible, use plan-level settings to reschedule Sunday sends automatically.

• Holiday Rules: Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Louisiana, and Utah prohibit telemarketing on certain legal holidays. If you operate nationwide, the safest practice is to suppress text sends entirely on legal holidays.

• Texts = Calls: Many states (including FL, OK, MD, WA, and now TX) explicitly define texts as calls under their mini-TCPA laws. Federally, the TCPA also treats texts as calls, which means the federal 8:00 AM–9:00 PM window is the baseline minimum for compliance.

Best Practices for Teams

Final Thoughts

Think of the Actionable Window as a smart scheduling assistant for your CRM. It helps protect your time, improve lead response, and ensure automation happens when it’s most likely to get results.

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