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Social media platforms are filled with millions of posts where customers often tag brands to complain about bad service or experiences. This is particularly true for experiences delivered through voice calls and contact centers. Unresolved complaints, bad telecom networks, dysfunctional payment gateways, and aggressive sales pitches are some of the most common customer complaints.
A survey conducted by Truecaller revealed that 93.5% of all spam calls in India were sales or telemarketing calls, as tagged by users. The survey data also revealed that KYC (Know Your Customer) calls remained the most common scam in the country with fraudsters pretending to represent banks or digital payment services and asking for KYC documents, account numbers, card details, and one-time passwords.
Fraud that results from spam calls have made the modern-day customer not only lose trust in the business but also question its security and privacy measures. Lack of contextual communication can also give rise to a disjointed customer experience resulting in high churn rates.
Many marketers believe that “telecalling” can be a double-edged sword in a brand’s armory, depending on how and why it is used. This medium can provide context and branding and be a powerful tool to help solidify the relationship with the customer. On the other hand, the same medium can easily cause the destruction of a brand’s reputation.
The long wait times, the constant rerouting, and the not-so-occasional dropped calls (requiring the customer to start the process all over again) can really make customers question if they want to continue to do business with that company..
But there are solutions that can make voice via VoIP a very efficient part of your omnichannel strategy.
VoIP is an acronym for Voice over Internet Protocol. It’s a digital technology that allows users to make calls using the internet, rather than a regular landline. VoIP is also commonly referred to as internet telephony, IP telephony, or Voice over IP.
VoIP works by converting analog voice calls into digital data that travels over the public internet or a private internet protocol (IP) network. Using VoIP, you can make phone calls over the internet to landlines, mobile phones, and even computer-to-computer—anywhere in the world where an internet connection is available.
Besides audio calls, you can use VoIP for services such as video calls, instant messaging, and file sharing. The right VoIP system can help businesses become more organized and capable, at a fraction of the cost of large corporate phone systems. When cost savings are combined with increased performance, brands are bound to be on the path to rapid growth.
VoIP can be leveraged for the growth of your brand. When used correctly and with the right tech stack, there are six ways that voice calls can boost your growth.
1. Free Up Funds to Invest in Marketing and Branding
Most VoIP solutions result in immediate cost savings. Voice calls are cheaper and exorbitant long-distance and international calling fees are no longer an issue. Even if your business doesn’t make a lot of long-distance calls, you’re still likely to save money.
You can apply those cost savings to sales, marketing, and branding initiatives that will help expand your operations and grow your revenue.
2. Build Delightful Customer Experiences
Happy customers stick around, spend more, and refer their friends to use your services. And it’s no secret that customer satisfaction isn’t only about what happens when someone buys from you. The engagement they have with your company before and after their transaction is a critical part of the overall experience.
VoIP helps contribute to customer satisfaction by utilizing communication techniques that help clients while also making them feel valued. For example, a VoIP system could use an intelligent chatbot to handle routine customer inquiries. This technology works to immediately address an issue or concern while also leaving your human staff to handle more complex issues.
When your VoIP system is integrated with your customer database, you can take this communication a step further. When a customer calls, your system will immediately display their information on your screen. You’ll know their name, see their profile picture, and be able to view their entire transaction history.
3. Make the Most of Your Current Relationships
You’ve heard the stats about how it can cost 5 to 25X more to acquire a customer than to retain an existing one*. A strategy that companies often overlook, however, is maximizing the amount of revenue they can generate from their current customers.
Take a look at your average customer lifetime value and determine the factors that influence it and where a customer is in their lifecycle with your brand. A VoIP system that’s integrated with your client database will prompt you to address any relevant opportunities while you have the customer on the phone. There are also automated procedures you can implement to remind clients of appointments, collect payments, and more. If you stack some of these tactics on top of each other, you can grow your business even further.
4. Never Miss an Opportunity
The statistics about unanswered phone calls are scary. Small business owners, for example, don’t answer 62% of their phone calls.* Assuming the call goes to voicemail, you now have to rely on a customer to leave a message and your staff to respond before the potential client decides to contact another business for their needs.
But what if you could immediately respond to missed calls with an SMS message letting the person know you’ll call them back at a certain time. And, what if you could invite them to begin the conversation via text? This feature can work 24/7, and all of the correspondence would be directly from your office line, not a third-party answering service. You can also customize the messages to match the friendly tone of your office. Imagine how fast your business would grow if that happened!
5. Get Insights from Call Analytics
Do you know how many people should be working at your front desk and at what times? If you don’t have a clear answer, then you could be wasting money on extra staff or missing opportunities to take more calls. An integrated VoIP system will give you insights about overall call volume, customer vs. prospect traffic, and more.
A great VoIP system can also create custom lists that allow you to see which customers have overdue payments, how many clients have birthdays this month, and more. From your dashboard, you should be able to contact the customer immediately. No switching between screens, devices, or notebooks.
6. Use Word-of-Mouth to Your Advantage
Nearly 95% of customers read online reviews before making a purchase.* Getting more reviews is vital to the growth of your business. But how do you go about getting more of them?
Some VoIP systems may have the capability to send an SMS message to satisfied customers, inviting them to leave a Facebook or Google review. You’ll quickly establish yourself as a trusted provider in your community, attracting more future customers.
If you book an Uber, there are three ways to contact your driver: sending a text message, using the Uber in-app chat feature, or calling the driver using your phone. But Uber added a fourth option in the form of VoIP communication (Free Call option).
VoIP calling adds convenience/reliability as it relies on an internet connection rather than crowded phone networks. It also doesn’t cost anything extra like a standard call can because it only uses data from your existing plan. If you’re traveling outside of your home location, this cost saving can really add up.
More importantly, it adds privacy for both riders and drivers. Making contact over VoIP means you don’t have to share your phone number with a stranger.
One final benefit for Uber is VoIP adds another way to keep everything inside the app. Neither driver nor rider needs to switch to making a call or sending a text on their device.
Because we believe in building customer experiences that both inspire trust in your brand and grow your user base, we’re in the final stages of adding VoIP to the CleverTap platform. Watch this blog for news on when it launches!
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