Hosted VoIP is known for its ability to level the playing field for companies. Gone are the days when small startups had to rely on a manual team to man their desks and manage their calls. With a Hosted VoIP platform, they can exude the same sense of professionalism as a major blue chip corporation and be available to customers 24/7.
Among the more popular features of Hosted VoIP are the auto attendants. Auto attendants serve as an alternative to a human receptionist. They can help facilitate call transfers without having to rely on a human operator. Additionally, auto attendants have proven to be especially useful for companies that want to be available whenever customers need to reach them.
That said, if your company isn’t already using a Hosted VoIP platform equipped with auto attendant features, it’s about time that you sign up for one. If you already have one in place, are you sure that you’re following the best practices for auto attendant use?
Check out this short list of how you can make the most out of your auto attendant:
1. Make sure your auto attendant follows a logical and natural call sequence
Delivering great service is intrinsically linked to your ability to provide a great customer experience. That starts with one of your first points of contact, which, in many cases, are your phone lines. Make sure you have a clear understanding of how your customers are interacting with your auto attendant. Learn how they navigate through your sequence and adjust it so that they enjoy a more streamlined flow whenever they call.
The most frustrating thing for a caller is getting stuck in a confusing and illogical phone sequence. If you leave them listening to a long list of menu options that aren’t relevant to their needs, you might as well have hung up the phone on them.
Remember, an auto attendant can only serve as a time and cost saver if it is implemented with the caller’s user experience in mind.
2. Always remember that less is definitely more
You must prioritize your customer’s time. If they took the time to call you, make sure your auto attendant offers as few options as possible. Long-winded and repetitive options should be avoided. Instead, provide short, concise directions with a clear option to speak to an actual operator or member of your staff in case there’s any confusion.
3. Make sure your team is prepared
Providing an ideal customer calling experience is just one part of the process. Training your employees to handle the calls and equipping them with the tools they need to provide a consistent and productive conversation with customers is critical.
It helps if your Hosted VoIP provider is also able to provide additional features that will facilitate better coordination and service delivery. For example, with Jive, the platform is equipped with call queuing and monitoring features that allow coaching.
Any company that has to interact with customers and clients always needs to put their best foot forward. Setting up your auto attendants following these best practice guidelines can certainly help with that. If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch with us to find out more about what we can do for your business!