How an Automated Phone System Can Hurt Your Business

How an Automated Phone System Can Hurt Your Business

Share:

As a business owner, you have to make decisions about how you present your business to the public. Here’s one important decision: Who’s going to answer the phone when a customer calls? Your choice will affect the relationships you have with your customers.You might think using an automated phone system will save you time and increase efficiency. But in many cases, the negatives outweigh the positives when it comes to automated phone systems.

Here are four ways an automated phone system could be hurting your business, and what to do instead.

1. Automated Phone Systems Can Be Confusing

Automated Phone Systems Can Be Confusing

Since they’re machines, automated phone systems can’t carry on a conversation. An automated phone system will only understand the simple voice commands it’s programmed for. If the calling customer can’t figure out what to do next, they aren’t going to stay on the line. Instead, they’ll hang up. That could potentially damage your relationship with the customer, and you might even lose their business entirely. Neither scenario is positive!

The easy fix? Hire professional call center representatives. These are real people who are trained in customer service. Real people understand customer concerns, they can answer a wide variety of questions, and they understand tone of voice. A real person can understand if a customer is confused, upset, or unsure. They’ll know how to adjust their own behavior to help the customer.

2. Automated Phone Systems Waste Your Customers’ Time

Some people believe automated systems are time-saving. However, that isn’t always the case. Many times, automated phone systems give the caller information that they don’t need, causing them to wait through a long and unnecessary message. And, if a person misses something on the menu, they’ll have to listen through the options a second time, wasting even more time.

Sometimes a customer might be confused about what number on the menu they should press for their specific need. This could result in the customer pressing the wrong button, which would prolong the conversation the call even more. This is assuming that the customer doesn’t decide to hang up out of frustration—which is a very real possibility.

However, if you have a professional call representative answering your phones, your customers will save time. As soon as the call representative picks up the phone, the customer can explain their need and the call representative will quickly know how to assist them. Customers won’t feel as though they’ve wasted their time trying to communicate with a machine.

3. Automated Systems May Frustrate Your Customers

Automated Systems May Frustrate Your Customers

Automated phone systems can take an already-frustrated customer and escalate the situation. By the time your customer actually gets to talk to a real person, they may be so frustrated with the automated phone system that they resort to lashing out. No one wins in that situation. The person on the receiving end of the call will also end up getting frustrated, and the customer who’s calling probably won’t get the help they need.

On the other hand, with a real person answering the phone, you can quickly address any frustration and concern. Call representatives are trained to de-escalate situations when a customer gets frustrated or angry. By responding respectfully and helping to solve the issue, they’ll show that your company cares about its customers.

 

4. An Automated Phone System Doesn’t Help You Build Customer Relationships

Having an automated phone system damages your relationship with your customers. If the person calling you is a new customer or maybe even a potential customer, you’re distancing yourself from them. They might not feel inclined to do business with you because there’s no personal connection.

Even if the person calling is a loyal customer, you’re not showing them that you value their business. A real person is more welcoming, more personable, and able to provide a more personalized experience compared to an automated phone system. It’s one of those things that could set you apart from the competition and give you a reputation for caring about your customers.

The Bottom Line

Automated phone systems aren’t always the best option for your business. Show your customers you value them by using professional call representatives instead. With real people answering your phones, you’ll save your customers some confusion, time, and frustration while also showing them you care about them.

As you can see, there are so many benefits to hiring a call representative instead of using an automated service! Endicott’s professional answering service could be an invaluable part of your business. Contact us today to get started!