I recently upgraded to a paid Twilio account and I’m trying to build a system that can check if phone numbers are working correctly. I’ve managed to get outbound calling working through Zapier connected to Twilio, which is great.
The issue I’m running into is with capturing call responses. Zapier has triggers that can catch call data and use it to start other workflows, but it seems like these triggers only fire when someone calls in to my Twilio number. When I make outbound calls, the triggers don’t seem to activate.
I’m specifically using the “New Call” trigger in Zapier, but it appears to only detect incoming calls rather than outgoing ones. Is there a way to make this trigger work with outbound calls too? Maybe there’s a different configuration or webhook setup I need to use?
zapier’s call triggers r kinda hit or miss for outbound stuff. i ditched them for twilio’s status webhooks, way more reliable! when u make calls via zapier, just throw in the statusCallback URL pointing to your zapier webhook. this way, u skip their buggy ‘new call’ trigger and have better control over the data.
Yeah, webhooks work but you’ll spend forever building custom logic for different call statuses and edge cases. Managing webhook endpoints gets messy at scale too.
I’ve built these phone validation systems before - automation platforms beat trying to hack Zapier with webhooks every time. You need something that handles inbound and outbound call tracking natively, no custom webhook setup required.
What you want: a platform that makes Twilio calls, auto-captures all response data (busy signals, disconnected numbers, successful connections), then triggers your next steps based on results. Zero manual webhook config.
I’ve validated thousands of phone numbers this way for customer databases. Way more reliable than fighting Zapier’s trigger limitations.
Latenode handles Twilio integrations properly and captures outbound call data automatically: https://latenode.com
Yeah, that’s how Zapier works - it treats outbound and inbound calls as completely separate events. I ran into this same issue when testing phone validation systems last year.
Here’s what fixed it for me: don’t rely on the standard trigger. Instead, add a StatusCallback URL parameter in your Zapier Twilio action that points to a Zapier webhook. This creates a feedback loop where your outbound call reports back to Zapier once it’s done.
The trick is setting this up within the same Zap that makes the call - keeps everything in one workflow instead of splitting it across multiple ones. Don’t forget to add StatusCallbackEvent parameters for the call events you actually care about (completed, busy, no-answer, etc.).
Skip Zapier for outbound calls - use Twilio’s call status callbacks instead. Just add a StatusCallback parameter pointing to your webhook when making API calls. You’ll get real-time updates on everything: answered, busy, failed, completed calls, plus duration and final status. Perfect for phone validation. I’ve used this approach for over two years to validate customer numbers and it outperforms Zapier’s triggers. Your webhook gets all the detailed info you need to determine which numbers are legitimate and active.
Had the exact same issue with phone validation workflows. You’re right - Zapier’s ‘New Call’ trigger only works for inbound calls, so it won’t fire on outbound ones. Here’s what fixed it for me: set up a webhook URL directly in your Twilio console. Go to your TwiML application settings, find Voice Configuration, and add the webhook there. Now when you make outbound calls, Twilio sends POST requests to your webhook with status updates - answered, busy, no-answer, whatever. Then just use Zapier’s webhook trigger to catch those updates and keep your workflow running. Way better than the basic trigger since you get real-time status instead of just ‘call finished’ data.