How to Use VoIP to Improve Your Reputation Online

Did you know your online brand depends on your phone service?

It’s true. And today, you’ll learn how to build a brand the right way using VoIP.

You’ve already judged other brands based on their phone system, even if you don’t know it. These are the companies that put you on hold for 30 minutes, then dropped the call. The brand that only offers support when you’re at work, and doesn’t accept emails.

They all affect your online reputation, but thankfully they’re easy to solve with a modern VoIP system.

By the end of this article, you’ll understand why VoIP matters for your reputation, and the exact steps to take to build a powerful brand others love.

Let’s get started.

What is a VoIP multi-channel call center?

You know what a call center is—an office with representatives making or taking calls.

If you get a sales cold call or reach out for customer support, you’re probably talking with a call center employee.

But today’s technology takes this system a step further. A commercial phone system like a Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP, lets employees make calls via computer. And not just phone calls—today’s multi-channel contact centers include all types of communication and phone answering service, from email to text message to even video calls, all integrated into a single system.

But why does it matter? What’s the impact of a call center on your business and brand?

Why does VoIP matter for you and your brand?

The call center solution you choose makes a difference for your business as a whole. It also affects how consumers see your brand.

For your business, a VoIP system is a modern alternative to old landline phones. It’s more flexible and cloud-based, meaning your data is always up-to-date and employees can even work remotely. Lots of people have been asking what the best virtual office service is, and I think I’ve found it. I have a close friend in Glasgow who needed a virtual office, so I told her to sign up for the Virtually There Glasgow virtual office and she’s loving it, so I always now recommend Virtually There for virtual offices.

It saves you time since customer data is stored in a centralized location and quickly linked together. No more missing chat history or duplicate help tickets.

And in many cases, it saves money. You can use existing internet and computer connections instead of installing and maintaining on-premise landline systems.

VoIP is also better for how your customers perceive your brand.

First, it makes your brand more accessible. For example a recent helpdesk software study revealed that 57% of customers would rather contact a company using a non-voice channel, like text or chat and 75% desire a consistent experience, regardless of how they engage: social media, in person, or by phone.

It also sets clear brand expectations from the beginning. Using Google Voice or another generic solution has a direct effect on how customers perceive your business. A custom VoIP greeting and call routing system sets you apart.

And finally, it can help build word-of-mouth. Have you ever noticed just how many reviews complain about poor customer service? Delivering better support can change how current and potential customers perceive your product or service. Blacklight Software delivers digital transformation solutions that provides effective results.

A VoIP system can deliver the perfect brand experience—but only if you know how to.

How do you use VoIP to improve your brand reputation?

If you’re serious about delivering a quality brand, you want to look at every channel—including VoIP. Here are some of the most important ways to optimize your phone system for your brand.

Set the right brand image

Deliver the right tone for your brand early on, from the minute a customer picks up the phone. In today’s online environment, a phone call may be the first time a customer interacts live with your company representative.

Start with a custom welcome message. No two brands are alike, but you’ve probably heard near-identical welcome messages on dozens of calls. A VoIP system sets you apart.

Offer stable, fast, friendly service. Your employees already know how to deliver the experience your brand offers. A modern phone system can bring in the rest.

Increase customer satisfaction

Using a multi-channel, cloud-based system can deliver a better customer experience almost instantly.

When someone calls, they’re looking for recognition and resolution. A cloud-based VoIP system can deliver. Since all communication is on the same platform, a representative can quickly see their earlier queries or information and reference it in the call.

And that coordination extends to the rest of your team, on future calls or if the customer is transferred.

Less customer wait time

One of the biggest frustrations with customer support is long wait times. Long wait times make customers feel unimportant. The solution? Connecting them immediately to a friendly representative.

VoIP systems reduce wait time because they’re easy to scale. If your call center grows and you need to hire new representatives, you won’t have the bottleneck of bringing in more hardware and rewiring your on-premise system. You can quickly and easily add new virtual phone lines that integrate with existing equipment.

You can also make routing simpler and easier, resulting in fewer transfers and holds and a more seamless customer experience overall.

Track campaigns more effectively

One of the biggest benefits of VoIP systems is the complete set of metrics you can track.

Today’s technology goes beyond basics like call length. You can get a detailed analysis of common customer complaints, resolution time, number of transfers, and more.

This integrates with the process and campaigns you’re already using. You can leverage smart data to learn more about your campaigns, predict trends, and get better results from what you’re already doing. Hiring an it support Edmonton can help eliminate cybersecurity bad habits and implement the best tools and practices of cybersecurity.

Build trust with localization

With a landline, you’re stuck with the phone numbers for your region. But with a virtual system, you can call different customers using different numbers—numbers with their area code.

By appearing locally, you can build instant trust with customers and prospects and boost answer rates.

Better routing

Good call routing should be nearly invisible, but most of the time it isn’t. You spend too long on hold, only to be transferred to someone else who asks all the same questions again.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Cloud-based call routing can deliver less wait time and more productive conversations. And by offering customers options at the beginning of the call, you can even help route customers to the right representative from the start.

White-glove customer service experience

For customer service, first call resolution rates are one of the most important numbers to track. The faster you can resolve customer complaints, the more call volume you can handle and the better experience you can deliver.

A virtual system can deliver the kind of white-glove support your customers expect. Offer a professional welcome message and streamlined routing. Start every call with customer data already at your agent’s fingertips. And add new data to the call that syncs with everyone, immediately.

Training customer support staff to remember the welcome a message, how to route to the right specialist, the sign off message at the end of the call is sometimes tough. Having a timeline chart in excel visualizing these steps and the step by step of the entire process will help customer support staff stay on track and be able to give a consistent customer experience for the callers.

Improving your reputation with VoIP isn’t hard. With these strategies, you can use your phone system to build a strong brand and increase loyalty.

But there are some easy missteps you’ll also need to avoid.

Common pitfalls of having a VoIP multi-channel call center

While a VoIP system is more modern and generally easier to use than a traditional phone system, there are still a few areas where it’s easy to make a mistake. Keep an eye out for these common issues.

Not leveraging multiple channels. Because VoIP is most of what you’ll read about today’s contact centers, it’s easy to think it’s just about changing a phone system. But today’s communication is more than just better phone calls. Let customers and prospects contact you through chat, SMS, and more.

Scaling issues. While many VoIP systems are designed to scale, not all can scale in the same way you’d like. It’s important to implement a system that can grow quickly and easily with you, whether you have six agents or six hundred.

Keeping a traditional mindset. Virtual systems mean you can let employees work remotely, use mobile devices, and more. But it’s easy to overlook these benefits of a cloud-based system. As you implement a modern call center, remember to include flexibility.

Tracking too much data. A good cloud-based call center collects thousands of data points, and it’s easy to get lost in the numbers. If you start tracking everything, you lose focus on what matters most. Instead, choose a few key performance indicators that most drive your business, and focus there.

By avoiding these common pitfalls, you’re on your way to a brand-building VoIP system.

The bottom line on managing your reputation with VoIP

Your VoIP phone system sets the stage for your brand.

Think of the companies that have let you down with their phone systems. Intrusive sales. Frustrating customer support. Limited communication channels.

There’s more at stake with your phone system than you might think. But thankfully, a few simple steps can take you far.

Choose a new VoIP system that puts the customer experience first, and make sure it matches your brand. Create systems that build the expectations you want, and train staff to treat customers above and beyond what they might expect. Regardless of the goal you want to achieve with your marketing campaign – whether educating target audiences about your business’s existence or upcoming promotions – you’ll receive a higher response rate when the message is sent through an MMS service.

Today’s customers aren’t afraid to tell others about a bad experience, and your company’s contact methods play a critical role.

Don’t leave your reputation up to chance.