It is also referred to as an Interactive Voice Response? (IVR). A call flow/ IVR is a sequence of actions to be executed when a call is received.  (Learn more).

Interactive Voice Response systems allow for the re-routing of incoming customer calls to the most appropriate agent or department – and because they were initially designed to automate the management of hundreds of calls daily, the general perception is that they are mainly beneficial for bigger businesses.

This is not exactly the case. All businesses can obtain valuable benefits from implementing an IVR solution into their infrastructure, here are some of them:

Most businesses usually have only one receptionist, and not enough time to attend properly hundreds of calls every day. Using an IVR system automates this process and makes it significantly less prone to human error for example; directing a customer to the accounts department instead of the purchasing department.
The correct segmentation and filtering, eased by the IVR system, will ensure that each call ends up in the right department, and more importantly, in the hands of the right agent – without making the customer wait or be passed between departments.

Getting attended by an employee who doesn’t know how to help you neither who would be the most suitable agent to solve your issue can be a really frustrating experience.  An IVR system is an excellent tool for increasing first contact resolution, directing the customer to the most appropriate department. This way, the agent who receives the call will be significantly more qualified to solve the issue, and there will be no need for a call transfer or unnecessary waste of time.

The IVR can allow you to personalize the caller experience –  this technology also allows for the collection and identification of specific data to help the company address the customer properly. Language options can also be set up depending on the client and his native language.

One of the biggest IVR benefits for companies is that it helps them manage better their call volume by automating various otherwise manual processes. For customers, in addition to being paired with the most qualified agent, selecting their preferred option from a short menu usually happens quickly and easily.

An IVR system provides a great deal of convenience for both companies and their customers, as it performs its task 24/7 without interruption. You can set up pre-recorded messages for cases when a customer calls outside of office hours, on holidays, and even in days of limited employee availability, to let him know that you will get in touch as soon as possible – or directly to let the IVR solve the issue when possible (in occasions like calling to consult your phone bill or account balance.

For small businesses having an IVR menu improves your company’s reputation and gives the finishing touch of professionalism when it comes to customer service. An IVR system not only creates the illusion that your businesses is bigger than it actually is, but it also shows that you care about your customers enough to provide a structured and personalized response to their calls.

In the end, it all sums up to a high-quality customer service, helping you establish a better company image.

By providing a systemized way to handle large volume of calls, Interactive Voice Response lets you optimize operational costs and focus your time and human resources on more important things.
Every minute that a caller spends on the phone costs your company money – and even if it doesn’t look like a considerable amount compared to other costs, it quickly adds up to your expenses. The faster your customers get to the right department, the cheaper it’s for you – and an IVR is a great way to achieve that.

A well-developed and advanced IVR system is a great tool for customers to complete simpler transactions or consult information quickly. If not done well or just missing, this function can stop someone from completing a transaction and spend money with your business.

By implementing an intuitive and robust IVR, you can prevent frustrated customers from hanging up on you and abandoning the transaction.

With call routing, a business can significantly improve productivity. Instead of wasting time on discussions with colleagues to find the right answer or locate the agent who can provide it, programming an automatic rerouting does that for you. This increases productivity and enables you to manage a higher volume of calls than usual.

IVR becomes a powerful tool for customer support excellency, quick dispute resolution, obtaining instant feedback from users, and quality control – all while complying with security regulations.

The benefits to using an IVR are clear and the associated costs are relatively low. It is therefore a sound investment with huge ROI. Talk to us on support@mteja.io on how to get set up on Mteja.