Improving Customer Engagement with VoIP Communication Tools
What is the customer experience like at your organization? Is it efficient or easy to contact the right person for the client’s needs? Is there confusion and lost opportunities to connect and engage with customers due to outdated technology or old communication processes? Exceptional customer engagement is the bedrock of any successful business. In a recent Salesforce customer survey, “80% of customers say the experience a company provides is as important as its products and services.” Dropped calls, long hold wait times, and confusing voice menus can be disastrous for customer engagement.In our ever-evolving business landscape, customers have come to expect that brands and businesses know them and can anticipate their needs and interests. Just think about how Netflix uses customer data to recommend programs to watch based on past behavior, or how Amazon knows when you may need to reorder an item. The same expectation is set for businesses that provide key services to their customers. With increasing demand for efficient and seamless customer engagement and communication, one technology has come into focus that is revolutionizing the business landscape - Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). Let’s take a closer look at how this tool can be used in your business to improve customer engagement and customer satisfaction.
What is VoIP?
In a recent blog, we discussed the fundamentals of VoIP for businesses in a wide array of industries. In short, VoIP is an internet-based phone service that uses an internet line rather than a more costly phone service line. Most VoIP systems offer features that help increase efficiency and productivity such as easy-to-use voice mail, call recording, custom caller ID and voicemail-to-text features. If communication with clients, remote employees, other office locations and vendors is critical to the running of your business, VoIP could be the solution you’ve been looking for.
How Does VoIP Improve Customer Communication & Engagement?
As a business leader or manager, you may be wondering how one fairly simple piece of technology can improve communication with your valued clients. It’s one of the most straightforward ways to help your customers connect with people within your organization. Here are a few ways this tech can help your business.
VoIP Connects Customers To The Right Person
Traditionally, phone calls are sent to a main call center where they are then routed to the department or person needed. Unfortunately, many customers end up on the dreaded “hold” for minutes or in an endless loop of transfers and automated messages. In some cases, calls are dropped or end up at a voicemail of someone in another department. This is a lost opportunity to give your customers a better experience with your brand. It can be frustrating for clients and a waste of time for your workforce.VoIP phone systems use technology that quickly connects your customers to the right person thus making your customers happy and freeing up your workforce to handle the tasks assigned rather than dealing with an endless string of calls.
VoIP Personalizes Customer Service
When using a conventional phone system, there is nothing connecting the caller to their personal information. This normally would cause a caller to need to explain their history with the business, name who they previously spoke to, and report other key information that a receptionist would need to scramble to either write down or find in a file. With VoIP phone systems, customer information can be easily brought up on the screen with pertinent information about previous encounters, who they recently spoke with, payment methods, and more detailed information based upon the industry. For instance, organizations in the healthcare field will be able to pull up patient data such as preferred physicians, previous and future appointments, and payment preferences among other things. This information can help direct calls and allow team members to interact in a more personal and meaningful way with patients.
VoIP Integrates Communication Modes
In the world of traditional phone services, various modes of communication are separate and not even thought of in the same manner. Phone calls are completely separate from emails, texts, and online chatting. VoIP phone services are a step ahead and have the capability to integrate all of those modes of communication into a seamless system that communicates with each other. VoIP phone systems allow for an interconnectedness that meets your clients (or patients) where they are and in the mode of communication they feel most comfortable with. Text, call, email or chat online using VoIP phone systems and keep all that data in one convenient place. Imagine the power of a system that automatically displays a client’s relevant information, such as purchase history or previous interactions. The ability to cater to the needs of your clients increases dramatically with this type of communication tool.
VoIP Is Flexible & Mobile
One of the key advantages of a VoIP phone system over a traditional phone system is that it is both flexible and mobile. A VoIP phone system enables employees to make and receive calls from anywhere with an internet connection, whether it’s from the home office, at home, or on the go. This provides uninterrupted communication with clients and consumers no matter where you are.
VoIP Improves Data Collection
Knowing what works and what doesn’t work regarding your company’s products or services is critical for success. Knowing your customers is even more important to creating meaningful engagement with those same clients. These two business needs are more easily handled through unified communication systems such as VoIP systems. The interconnectedness, easily stored information and the tools to analyze this data combine to make for a powerful business tool. The quality of your client’s experience has a direct impact on your business success. At Spectra Networks, we work closely with our clients in many industries to bring them the VoIP experience they need to engage and communicate with their consumers. We specialize in helping our clients raise the level of engagement by endorsing the GoTo Connect products for VoIP. These tools can help businesses improve efficiency, personalize touchpoints with clients/consumers, and use multimodal communication methods to keep the information easily accessible to team members and clients alike. Talk to our team at Spectra Networks about our VoIP phone systems and how it can elevate your business.