Category Archives: Helpful Tips

Yelling at the Sky – More IVR Challenges

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When you think about it, what simple tasks in life couldn’t be frustrated by a poorly-designed IVR system? The folks at Burnistoun, a comedy on BBC-Scotland, begin to explore just that question:

An IVR system that is incredibly (and impressively?) obstinate is pretty rare these days. But IVR frustrations are well-documented, and we’ve all probably felt just as helpless while trying to deal with stubborn technology at one point or another.

So let’s draw a few lessons from the experience of these poor guys:

Embrace Opt-Out Options

If there was only just a chance to press a button to get to the 11th floor, the two guys in the video would be well on their way up (and, sadly, depriving us of the comedy). In any IVR system, the last thing you want to do is leave users stuck in a maze of commands and questions with no way out.

When ever possible, make it easy for callers to opt-out of the automated voice recognition system and speak to a real, live, breathing human being. It can make all the difference in the world.

Expect Diversity

Whether it’s Scotsmen or recent immigrants or proud mumblers (like myself), a successful business means a wide, diverse range of customers calling with a wide, diverse range of accents (hey at least you re probably not facing the IVR language challenges that some do in South Africa). An inability to handle their accents can result in anything from simple frustration to disillusionment with your company and system to callers feeling utterly insulted.

At Acclaim Telecom, our IVR systems are designed to be both as flexible and accurate as possible for all range of callers.

Go the Extra Mile

If your IVR system is targeting a very specific group say, businessmen in Aberdeen go that extra mile to make your system receptive to the accents, colloquialisms, and vocal tics of that group. Not only will it smooth the process, but demonstrate an understanding and empathy for the caller as well.

Contact us for more information about our turnkey IVR solutions.

Not just your best; what is required!

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Winston Churchill once said, “Sometimes doing your best is not good enough. Sometimes, you must do what is required.”

In a world still marked with a degree of financial uncertainty, changing and unpredictable government policies, and increasing competitive forces, business must still go on.

Cloud computing, Software as a Service, and interactive mobile applications are prime examples of changes in technology that are impacting how our clients do business. That is especially true in areas of customer service, customer relationship management (CRM), and call center operations. To ignore these changes and technological advances may go beyond foolish; it may well put you at a strategic disadvantage or perhaps even drive you out of business.

As a long term, established (since 1993) firm providing IVR hosting, IVR Speech applications, and IVR extended life maintenance services, we have had to change, adapt and lead our company in response to economic changes as well as technology advances. Some challenges have been easier to address than others. Services which once contributed the lion’s share of our revenue are now but a fraction of their original level. Had we not adapted and correctly predicted areas of change in our industry, we would have ceased to exist.

We are no different than our clients in that respect.

Acclaim Telecom recently attended NACDS Marketplace 2010, a large trade show for the pharmaceutical industry to showcase our latest product release, Smart Mobile RX. This product incorporates two of the leading IVR industry trends; a hosted services offering in a Cloud Computing environment combined with smart phone / mobile application deployed as a Software as a Service offering.

The marriage of these two services accomplishes what in most cases can be a very difficult task: simultaneously drive down operational cost, improve customer service and satisfaction levels, and enhance the convenience factor of the user experience.

If you are still using legacy IVR technologies within your call center, CRM or customer service applications, you could be putting your company at risk. A very real risk of losing customers to competitors who have implemented more progressive methods of servicing their clients in either a pre or post-sales support role.

We are constantly impressed with how our clients develop creative uses and solutions using IVR and smart phone technologies. They are not doing this with the intent of “doing the best they can”, they are doing it to make their company number one in their industry.

So as previously stated, “You must do what is required” if your business is to grow and flourish.

Savor IVR Simplicity Customers Will Thank You (in 10 Different Tongues)

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Say one for English, two for Afrikaans…. or 11 for Zulu. Speak clearly, please.

Think designing a clear, user-friendly, cost-saving IVR system for your customers is tough? Just consider what some businesses are facing in other parts of the world:

“IVR was introduced to the South African market more than 15 years ago as a replacement to touch tone calling. While many companies use the technology, it may not necessarily always be the best option in a country with 11 official languages.

In Africa, dictionaries are not really up to the standard where everybody would be comfortable to use it. For example, a mobile network provider has to cater for a number of different languages, and the dictionaries for those languages are not 100% reliable yet. That is why it is so important to consult customers before switching to voice recognition, Schönfeldt stresses.”

Sure, designing speech-enabled IVR applications for an American customer base doesn’t present quite the same challenges. But we can still take one very important IVR lesson from our friends in Africa:

Simplify. Simplify. Simplify.

Especially when you consider America s own ever-evolving demographic makeup as a diverse, multi-ethnic nation filled with immigrants from around the world. While we don t have 11 official languages, we do have more than 300 million people, each with unique backgrounds, accents, and potential for becoming confused. Multinational corporations face this challenge even more plainly. The last thing you want to do is leave callers feeling flustered, frustrated, and abandoned by your customer service team because of an overly-complicated system or use of language.

In practice, this means avoiding no-nos like:

  • Slang and idiom.
  • Assumptions about a caller s preexisting base of knowledge about what they need help with.
  • Unnecessary, redundant, or confusing steps in the system s infrastructure.

Instead, err on the side of clarity and simplicity,and put yourselves in the shoes of the customer when writing and designing the IVR system. Then thoroughly user-test the system with a diverse group of test subjects in order to spot any potential areas of confusion. While getting it wrong can lead to a loss of customers, getting a speech recognition system right will highlight your company as professional, adaptable, and customer-oriented.

IVR Applications and The Human Challenge

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New times, new technologies-but the oldest rules of business in the book still apply. Be what your customers need you to be, and they’ll return. Develop trust. Build a relationship. Reward their good faith. Make them feel like they’re much more than just a figure on the bottom line.

In other words, be human – especially when it comes to IVR applications.

An IVR system should, in fact, be more than just a (tremendously) cost-saving measure. If you do it right, many customers will actually be thankful for the clarity, simplicity, reduced risk of miscommunication, and dependability that come with an effective IVR system. The information they are calling for is presented to them in a clear and orderly manner that actually helps illuminate their options and choices-and always with an easy option to talk to a human representative.

But if it’s not intuitive, communicative, and personal -or if it makes customers feel like you’re intentionally making it difficult for them to get the help they need over the phone, there can be nothing more aggravating and alienating. And now more than ever-in an era of Twitter, Facebook and Yelp – a poor customer experience can cost you dearly.

According to TMCnet:

“One of the shining silver linings from the economic slump is that it forced companies to quit taking customers for granted. For if these outfits tick buyers off they will go elsewhere, tell the world about it via the new social media sites, resulting in fewer others that will be suckered in to replace that lost business.”

The smart companies are getting it: that the loss of revenue from turned off existing and potential customers exceeds the cost savings from overeager IVR deployments.  They and their suppliers are turning their attention at last to their IVR systems by making them into constructive tools that can actually improve customer service and retention as well as lower expenses and boost productivity.”

So here are three ways to keep it real:

1. Human Intuition

You can imagine the potential for confusion – not every client or customer calls knowing exactly what they need. An effective IVR system lets them know that you cared enough about them to think about their potential needs, potential communication issues, and potential solutions in advance. This also means going to the extra mile with user-testing before implementation.

2. Human Communication

Strike the right tone from the start. Even though the fact that they’re speaking with a computer will never be fully lost on customers, the right tone, grammar and language can make a big difference in the user experience. Make sure your customers realize that you’re happy to hear from them, and that the IVR is there to serve them. This also means keeping the IVR application concise and simple, and avoiding excessive marketing pitches and “up selling” opportunities (this is about their needs more than your wants).

3. The Human Option.

Give your customers the option to speak to live agents, and make it easy for them to quickly opt out of the automated process at any time and reach a real, live, friendly human.

The money you will save through the use of IVR applications is not worth the clients you’ll lose if you do not effectively and efficiently service their needs.

Contact our IVR experts for more information on effective customer IVR design practices.