Prompt and professional customer support can determine a company’s success. But in order to achieve this, businesses must have clear and effective communication — and that's something that a reliable Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone system can deliver.
Enabling businesses to conduct long-distance calls, implement remote workplaces, and enhance existing tech with seamless integration, VoIP has become an IT staple for businesses. Making the most out of the system, however, requires the right tools and techniques. We explore the best ways of optimizing your VoIP usage below, helping enhance your customer experience for the long term.
Select the right devices and service provider
The first thing you should do is to take a hard look at the nature of your company’s business calls. Perhaps they’re primarily focused on conducting sales activities, or you’re managing a 24/7 help desk team that deals with customer support requests. Maybe they don’t even play a key role in your operations, and employees now prefer communicating through other means such as instant messaging.
Whatever the case, understanding your company’s communication needs can guide you toward the specific providers and devices that best work for your situation. This also helps you avoid paying for unnecessary features or being stuck with a system that can’t keep up.
Have a plan for high call volumes
Effectively handling high call volumes is essential for a smooth customer experience, especially during busy hours. One of the best strategies is to set up call queues to manage multiple incoming calls in an organized manner. Businesses should also implement VoIP with automated attendant and call routing features. The former acts like a virtual receptionist guiding callers to the appropriate extension line or department, while the latter directly routes incoming calls to the right person’s device.
Another useful feature is offering a call-back option, which allows customers to simply receive a return call instead of waiting on hold. During busier periods, this feature can provide callers with greater flexibility and prevents keeping your customers in queue for frustratingly long periods.
Develop a clear usage policy
Proper policies and procedures are key to getting the most out of your VoIP system while maintaining consistently high standards of customer service. They should outline how employees are expected to use these tools, helping keep everyone on the same page about professional conduct and etiquette during calls. Employee training in this area may be a worthy investment, as it could grant your team the skills to use the system effectively while ensuring a friendly, professional demeanor with customers.
Consider integration with other business systems
Integrating your VoIP technology with your existing IT can streamline communication processes and improve overall efficiency. You could start by integrating VoIP with your customer relationship management software, which gives your team access to key customer information during calls such as past interactions, purchases, and issues.
Having all this information on hand makes it easier to provide more personalized service, helping them solve issues faster while avoiding having callers repeat information they already shared. Similarly, integrating help desk or ticketing systems allow customer service agents to seamlessly log and track issues during a call, maintaining every valuable piece of data needed even as the caller is passed on to different people or departments.
If customers are reaching out through other forms of communication (i.e., email or instant messaging), you should also consider integrating with unified communication platforms. These give your team the ability to switch between channels without losing context, and creates a more cohesive experience for customers no matter which medium they use to reach you.
Seeking a quality VoIP system? Kortek Solutions offers the latest technology to help enhance your online communications, providing enterprise-level phone services at competitive prices. Keep your team and your stakeholders well-connected through innovative telephony solutions — get in touch with our experts today.