by anton | Aug 30, 2013 |
Before subscribing to any kind of service or product, cons first. Interactive Voice Response systems are one of those things that people either love or hate. Let’s have a look at both the advantages and disadvantages of these kinds of systems. Pros It saves time and money – less living, expensive employees. It doesn’t go on lunch breaks, vacations or have sick days. It is available 24/7/365 to assist clients with their queries. It can make a small company seem bigger. The notion that only large companies can afford Interactive Voice Response systems still exists, even though the cost of owning one have lowered significantly. You can also intentionally use it to give a more professional feeling to your home based business by adding several menu options for different departments that lead to separate voice mail boxes. It makes customers feel like someone is attending to their needs. Even though it isn’t a human on the other end, it is still better than holding the line for hours just to speak to a consultant. It eliminates human errors like transferring a call to the wrong department. Cons A lot of people don’t like talking to machines. But the cons of IVR systems mostly come into play in situations where a business constructed and implemented the system poorly. Areas where companies sometimes go wrong are: Menus that is too long or difficult to understand Messages containing too much info to remember or irrelevant content. Voice prompts that are hard to understand because the voice talent doesn’t produce the words clearly or correctly. Interactive Voice Systems used for the wrong in...
by anton | Aug 28, 2013 |
Customers don’t always like communicating with an Interactive Voice Response System (IVR). How can you make their telephony experience a positive one? Your system doesn’t have to be a dry, boring one. Be creative and have a little fun with it. After all, it is not a science project. However, this doesn’t mean that “anything goes” so don’t go overboard – always maintain a level of professionalism. Before you construct your messages and source a voice talent – do a little research first. Your customers are the ones that have to deal with your IVR system every time they phone you – you are creating it for them, not for you. Just like your brand has a persona (whether you marketed it that way or not) your a few questions concerning the content and language of your IVR system. Your customers will find it very refreshing if they have the option to choose from more than one type message. For example: a young crowd might like a message with informal wording and a hip tone, or customers with a strong accent will respond better to a voice with the same accent that they have. Also, keep all the principals of good client communication/ client service in mind. Whatever is happening at the back end of your system, customers still want their calls to be answered promptly. Holding the line forever or searching through a maze of options to get to a consultant will leave a sour taste in any customer’s mouth. Your IVR system is the first point of contact your customers have your business. If they find it...
by anton | Aug 26, 2013 |
Location Based Services (LBS) as a marketing tool requires several factors to be successful. Do you know how to make the most of your business’s geographical location? Before you can get to the “good stuff” you should start with the basics – what do you want to achieve? Set clear goals and create a strategy so you can easily measure if you have been successful or not. Your goals could be anything from selling an X amount of your product to attracting attention from brand new customers/ increase loyalty. Next you should claim your profile page. Some Location Based Services add your business info automatically, but it is usually the bare minimum. For others you might have to register your profile first. Usually it is free to claim your page and you should do it for a number of sites – the more the merrier so to speak. Provide as much info as you can on your business. Make sure the info (especially your contact details and location) is correct and update it regularly if the final push a customer is looking for. Reward customers for checking in – otherwise what would be the point? Encourage customers to write reviews. Keep in mind that you will receive negative feedback at some point, but it is how you handle it that matters. Don’t delete bad reviews – it is your chance to show that you care about your customers. People won’t turn your business down because a handful of customers don’t like you, but if you react negatively on bad reviews they won’t look at your business twice. Location Based...
