Telecommunications

Flex time: The work perk employees can’t get enough of

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There are all sorts of things you want more of at work. You might want more pay (of course!) and maybe more experience. Maybe you even want more chances to manage others and move your way up in the company. But we’re diverse in what we want—most of the time. The one thing that many of us are not diverse in in wanting? Flex time. Turns out the majority of us just want it, period. We want to be able to set hours that aren’t standard 9 to 5. We want to be able to work at home, maybe. And we want the freedom to have work-life balance if it’s important to us.

 While the desire for flex time is more important to more employees, then the reasons are diverse. Some people don’t enjoy the politics that seem to come with an office culture. Some simply don’t like their commute. What else? This graphic gives some thoughts.

 

Just Calling To Tell You That Customers Aren’t Happy With Your Phone Service

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You may be surprised to see this post. After all, literal interaction with customers has slipped right down the priority scale, hasn’t it? Now, we’re all about social media and the best website to impress. THAT’S the way to make a success of what you’re trying to do. Isn’t it?

In many ways, online interactions are now crucial to success. This is how most customers shop. But, many businesses are getting on top here and still failing. Why? Because they’re failing to take into account that some customers prefer old interaction methods. High-street shops may be on their way out, but phone calls will always be relevant. Some customers just aren’t willing to Tweet and wait to hear back. They either don’t know how or don’t have the patience for it. And, to cater for those individuals, it’s essential you stay on top of phone-based interactions.

 

Yet, many new companies fail to take this aspect into account at all. It’s difficult to blame them when they have so much on their plate. But, to make sure customers don’t hang up on your business efforts, consider the following reasons for failure on the phone front.

Long waiting times

Given that instant gratification is the focus of modern business, it should come as no surprise that long waiting times are a no. There will be times when a small wait is inevitable, and customers understand that. But, anything over five minutes could lose you business. To make sure that doesn’t happen, consider your phone operations. Everyone in the office should have a phone by their side. That way, they can answer calls when the primary phone operators are busy. What’s more, you should head to sites like www.esudo.com and implement VoIP (voice over internet) capabilities. This will ensure that, even when out of the office, you staff are available to answer calls.

The wrong introduction

Even if waiting times aren’t a problem, answering calls in the wrong way will lead to disgruntled customers. As can be seen from sites like www.thebalancesmb.com, it’s essential to answer in a warm and enthusiastic manner. You should also state your name and company. And, you should brief your staff on these pointers, too. Much of this is common sense, but don’t assume they’ll do this without your asking. Take time to train each new employee on this issue.

Customers can’t understand you

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Wikimedia Image

Not being able to understand what someone’s saying down the phone is frustrating. And, this is an issue which many companies struggle to overcome. But, if customers can’t understand what your colleagues are saying, they aren’t going to buy. They’ll simply grow frustrated and put the phone down. To make sure that doesn’t happen, put efforts in place to make your phone calls as clear as possible. Give staff members headsets to block background noise. Make sure, too, that they know to pronounce every word well. These small steps will make a massive difference to the customer experience, and could seal you that deal.

Are You in the Business of Selling VoIP?

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voipIf you’re in the business of selling VoIP phone service, then there are some important facts your business should know. Besides, thoroughly describing all the facts and benefits VoIP provides will help increase sales.

Here are just a few helpful and beneficial facts about VoIP:

Call Routing

When selling VoIP services, it’s important to put benefits front and center. One such benefit is the call routing feature that most VoIP services offer.

With call routing, your clients can create a list of numbers that their office calls are redirected to before going to voicemail.

Many business owners are on the go, which makes call routing of the utmost importance. Instead of missing a call at the office, calls can be redirected to your client’s smart phone as well as their home phone.

The fact that most VoIP services offer this feature is a huge selling point for businesses of all kinds.

Communication Flexibility

It’s important that your clients know VoIP services offer communication flexibility.

Make sure your clients know they can use their existing office phones – all they need is an easy to use USB VoIP converter. VoIP converters allow your customers to use all the same features of their existing telephones, which reduces upfront costs.

As the following article notes, flexibility and scalability are just 1 of 3 facts your company needs to know about selling VoIP services.

Your clients can increase or decrease their call capacity on a weekly or monthly basis. This is great for companies just starting out as well as businesses that are expanding offices.

Call Reports

Businesses want the ability to track their calls as well as their data usage. VoIP services offer call reports that help improve bandwidth utilization as well as inbound and outbound calling practices.

Call reports allow businesses to view data usage by specified dates.

Likewise, with detailed inbound and outbound call reports, businesses can also track their call histories, including costs, call durations, and call origination locations.

All of this helps your clients optimize their communications.

Easy Integration

Many of your clients probably use other applications in unison with their phone service.

VoIP takes the idea of integration a step further with full integration of existing applications including social media, email, and instant messaging services.

With VoIP, your customers can integrate calling services into existing applications in a number of different ways.

For example, your clients can use a click-to-call feature on their website, deliver voicemails through email, and even include call icons on their social media pages.

Automated Menus

The automated calling features that VoIP provide are advantageous to your clients in a multitude of ways. For example, automated menus allow customers to call your clients’ businesses and choose from a list of helpful options and extensions.

This not only saves your clients time and money, it also makes their businesses seem more established and professional.

If your VoIP service provides automated menus, make sure your clients know – it’s a major selling point. When you’re ready to successfully sell VoIP; the facts and benefits above will make your service that much more attractive.

About the Author: Adam Groff is a freelance writer and creator of content. He writes on a variety of topics including small business and VoIP.