Please press one if you know the extension of the person you want to talk to.
Is there a more irritating response you can get when you really need some information?
Why does my cell phone bill have an extra $20 charge this month?
Please press one if you know the extension of the person you want to talk to.
When is the earliest I can get someone out to my house to service my air conditioner?
Please press one if you know the extension of the person you want to talk to.
Automated answering services are the norm in many situations. Whether you are calling a ticket center, a doctor’s office, a college admissions counselor, or a retail store, you will likely have to work your way through a set of automated responses before you talk to a real person. In many instances, speaking to a real person is not even an option. This is unfortunate because marketing research indicates that as many as 80% of people will hang up on a business if they hear a voicemail. Even though we are a society with increasing amounts of technology, when customers have questions or need service they want real human contact.
In fact, when customers have problems or questions about a product, their first instinct is to make a phone call. Unfortunately, many websites make calling for assistance nearly impossible. While a website for an airline service, for example, may make submitting a written complaint somewhat easy, it is often difficult to even find a phone number to call. Worse yet, once a phone number is located, the call is often automatically directed to an answering service with a litany of questions.
Customers Remember Outstanding Service
The best answering service is a real person. It should come as no surprise that they one thing that customers are looking for when they call customer service is a quick resolution to their question or problem. A 24 hour live answering service provides this. Even when you are busy and unable to answer your phone, a staffed answering service can provide immediate human contact.
And while paying extra money for answering services that are staffed 24/7 may seem like a major investment, the returns are immediate. In fact, 66% of consumers indicate that they are willing to spend more with a particular company following an excellent customer service experience. These return customers provide some of the best advertising a business can have. In addition to spending their own money, they often tell others about their positive encounters and those people may also become customers.
What do the answering services that your company uses say about you, your products, and your customer relations? Are your answering service options a long list of tightly scripted text, or are they real people who show genuine concern? The message you provide to customers with questions or concerns may determine their future relationship and loyalty to your company.
