Interactive Voice Response System And Business

Every business needs to be accessible and there are so many available means that companies can use to get them closer to their customers. That is why constant innovation is being done to make sure that more and more channels become available to improve business accessibility.
Before companies started putting up those more advanced and engaging websites, there was the telephone. And, even when all the world is moving towards online technology, these telephones will continue to be part of a company’s operation. However, it also went through some amazing evolution. The most amazing of which is the Interactive Voice Response System (IVR).
IVRs are systems integrated into the telephone systems that helps identify, sort, and route calls coming externally and internally. This system has been around for a number of years and has gone through a lot of innovations in order to improve efficiency when integrated in a company’s telephone systems.
Among the advantages of getting an IVR system are the following:
Offer automated off-site customers support. With a traditional telephone system, customers call a company and somebody needs to answer the phone in order to accommodate customers’ concerns or queries. With an IVR in place, the company can actually attend to these concerns and queries without having to delegate a staff to answer the phone call. In this system, a message can be pre-recorded and is used to instruct customers to press the right button for their concern or query to be attended to. This means that customers can call a company anytime of the day and be assured that they will be accommodated.
Appropriate support according to what the caller needs. The IVR can also be customized to screen calls and sort them according to what the customers need. Simple concerns such as billing, account information, payment details, simple troubleshooting, delivery details, among others can be accommodated by and attended to by pre-recorded messages. However, complex concerns that need the assistance of customer service attendant can be directed to the concerned department in the company.
Collect information about callers. The data collected from the calls received in the IVR is very useful to analyze the needs of customers. It could monitor what kind of concerns are often received. From this data, the company can create adjustments in its services in order to improve its relations with customers.
Improve total customer satisfaction. By having a system that allows off-site customer support, customers are given a convenient way to sort out their concerns about a company’s services or goods. Instead of having to go to the company’s office for their concerns, they can do so right at the comfort of their very homes through their telephones. And, since the company’s off-site customer support service through the telephone is available 24/7, customers can get service support anytime they need.
Reduce cost. The IVRs can be programmed to respond to simple customer concerns and queries and they can attend to more than one call at a time. This means that companies do not need to beef-up on personnel for off-site customer support.
Given these advantages, having an IVR system in place in a company’s communication system can really help improve its operational efficiency.