Whether your team works from the office, home, or on the road, business phone challenges like dropped calls and lengthy voice recordings slow productivity. But a modern phone system offers crystal-clear calling and advanced features that help you and your teams get more done.
Look for crucial business phone system features like voicemail-to-email and AI capabilities. Also, consider how user-friendly a business phone system is and how well it integrates with CRM, email, and collaboration tools.
Voicemail transcriptions
Voicemail transcription is a phone service feature that converts an audio voicemail into text. Using speech recognition software, it identifies sounds in the audio file and matches them to words and phrases. Then, it generates a text representation of the message, which you can view on your device.
Besides boosting productivity, voicemail transcriptions can help you keep important information in the correct format, working genius and improve customer experience. For example, it’s easier for agents to look up essential details in a transcription than searching through an audio file and replaying multiple messages.
Whether you use a standalone visual voicemail app or a unified communications platform like Dialpad, voicemail transcription will make it easy to go through your messages and respond to customers promptly. This is especially useful for businesses that have a lot of calls and are often on the move.
Caller ID
Branded caller ID lets businesses include their name on outgoing calls, improving answer rates and overall customer communication. Typically found on landlines and mobile phones, this feature displays a caller’s phone number and name on the screen and can be modified via a web interface by the recipient.
Aside from improving customer experience, branded caller ID reduces the risk of scams and robocalls by making it easier for consumers to identify the company calling. This, in turn, can lead to more productive and successful interactions and outcomes for businesses that rely on calls for sales or other critical business operations.
In addition, phone service for small enterprises with call queues enables employees to manage calls more efficiently and reduce the amount of missed or voicemail calls. Queues inform callers of the estimated wait time and provide them with a callback option, which helps prevent frustration and reduce the chance of abandonment.
Call barging
Call barging and whisper modes allow supervisors to listen to a live call and intervene remotely. This helps to improve agent performance, reduce escalations, and boost first-call resolution rates.
It also allows managers to coach agents and resolve tense calls quickly so customers can get the answers they need in one call. This creates a positive customer experience, which can help to build brand loyalty.
But managers mustn’t use call barging if it will harm the customer experience or doesn’t add value to the call. After all, no one likes having their calls interrupted by an unexpected third party! So, business leaders must provide clear guidelines on when call barging is appropriate. This includes ensuring supervisors are appropriately trained in this process and how to use it respectfully.
Queuing
A call queue system reduces wait time by evaluating customer Interactive Voice Response (IVR) input and following preset call routing rules. It also provides helpful information while the customer waits for an agent to become available.
When customers feel their time is valued, they are more likely to return to a business. Long waiting times can evoke frustration and trigger complaints. An online queuing solution, however, sets realistic expectations by displaying estimated wait times and prioritizing customers based on the principle of Last In, First Out (LIFO).
The management dashboard of an online queue management system offers real-time performance metrics for imperative operational purposes. It helps managers detect long queues, intervene promptly, and step in to improve service delivery. It also enables businesses to track employee performance.
Hot desking
Hot desking is a popular option for coworking spaces and can also boost productivity for office workers. It provides flexibility to employees by allowing them to choose where and with whom they work. It can also promote collaboration by letting employees work with teammates across departments or on projects.
Some employees can resist hot desking, however, as it can reduce their sense of ownership and security in the workplace. Additionally, it can lead to privacy concerns for team members who need a private area to concentrate on sensitive projects or work with clients.
To mitigate these issues, companies should encourage employee buy-in and promote awareness of benefits through clear communication and training. In addition, companies should make it easy for employees to use their devices when working at a shared workspace with solutions features.