Phone Automation - How it can hurt sales!

Over the last decade or so, technology has evolved by leaps and bounds. Phone automation has also taken advantage of the advancements in technology, but that’s not necessarily a good thing when it comes to top-notch customer service.

When you consider how important first impressions are, it's essential that you put real human customer service at the forefront of your business priorities. Don’t frustrate your potential customers by having them listen to a computer voice telling them to punch numbers to navigate through multiple levels of complex digital menus. There is no replacement for a warm, helpful voice answering their question, and leading them into your sales funnel.

The Disadvantages of Phone Automation

Phone automation has gotten a fairly bad rap over the last few years, and here's how phone automation can hurt sales:

• Automated Systems Can Confuse Customers - With automated phone menus, customers have to focus and pay close attention to their options, before being prompted to press a particular button. Failure to do so could put them through to the wrong department or result in them hanging up the phone and going through the entire process again.
• Customer Satisfaction is Affected by Phone Automation - According to a study conducted by The Wall Street Journal, when outsourcing work-related jobs and using things like phone automation, 150 companies in North America saw their American Consumer Satisfaction Index score decline between 1998 and 2006. Feeling alienated can push customers away, so hire humans, not robots.
• Limited Options - Interactive Voice Recognition (IVR) is an alternative option that eliminates the pressing of buttons, but communication can be affected with this. Customer options may also be limited with automated communication.
• The System Might Malfunction - Imagine you were on the brink of making a sale or resolving an issue that a customer was facing, only for the system to malfunction unexpectedly? This could aggravate customers and may push them to do business elsewhere or write a negative review about your company's customer service. Even the slightest delay can make someone want to hang up the phone, so bear this in mind.
• Maintenance Cost of Equipment - Sure, there’s a cost associated with a human answering your phones, but the price of maintaining phone automation equipment could be higher. Furthermore, in the event that something breaks, business operations must be put on hold while an engineer deals with the technological error.

Although there are certain advantages of automated phone systems,taking out too much of the necessary human interaction can greatly increase costs via lost business due to frustrated clients and potential customers. With a personalized approach to customer communication, customers will feel as though you really care and long-term relationships are developed and better maintained. This can ultimately benefit your business in relation to reputation and standing out in your specific niche.