Your Call Is Important to Us, Please Hold the Line

When looking at what is shared online about customer experience, there is a distinct impression that the definition of customer experience is biased towards digital experiences.

For example, think about how quickly a website loads, how easy it is to navigate, how personalised it can be made and general (digital) customer journeys.

Operating in what many would say is a niche area of customer experience, telephony, it can be hard to convey the impact that customer experience over the telephone can have on brand image.

However, there is plenty of data supporting that it might in fact still be the most important channel for customer experience, especially in longer sales cycles.

Yet again, poor customer service over the telephone will often also have a strong impact on customer loss in more fast paced markets like e-Commerce.

65% of business buyers say they’re likely to switch brands if vendors don’t make an effort to personalise communications to their company.

We do live in the age of the connected customer, whether in a business or consumer environment. The best experience we’ve had anywhere, is now the experience we expect everywhere.

So, how do companies ensure that all of their channels, both digital and voice, meet these expectations?

Extensive research is generally carried out regarding digital journeys. With 74% of the buyers decision making process happening online, it’s essential.

But have you ever called into your own company to experience what your customers and prospects experience when they call in?

If you’ve been put on hold for 10 minutes, repeatedly being told your call is important, please hold the line, you’re not going to feel valued. If the call is then answered and the representative has no idea of who you are, or what you want, then you feel you’re dealing with incompetent people.

In 2018 where everything is connected and IoT is still a huge topic of conversation, can we really consider that a desk phone could solve all of these obstacles to enhanced customer service?

The simple answer is yes. We all want the latest mobile phone or most up to date TV, but have you ever sat back and thought my phone could do more for me?

The truth is, having your phone in the cloud, attached to your CRM system, can make all the difference, enabling you to offer your customers the experience they need both online and through enhanced personalised voice experiences.

Yes, we need to consider our customers’ online journey when they’re making their business decisions. However, after they’ve taken the time to do their online reconnaissance, surely you want their call in to be amazing too?

• We know who you are, what you need and who you need to speak to
• A dedicated phone line purely for marketing activities so you know when that phone rings, why they’re calling
• Numbers all over the world, so you can achieve a global presence without stepping outside of your office
• IVR which tells your customers what they uniquely need to know, rather than telling them to hold the line
• And so much more

This is a reality, and with companies today competing on customer experience rather than price, isn’t it time you ensured that all of your customer journeys, both digitally and through voice, are exceptional?