Hosted IVR solutions help businesses automate call processes and manage their phone system effectively. In fact, it offers many benefits to any business – regardless of what industry your company falls under. And it is entirely customizable to your individual communication needs. As such, there are many reasons companies look into getting a hosted IVR. Let’s take a look.
Hosted IVR for Every Business
Whether you’re running a small business or a large corporation, hosted IVR helps improve the efficiency of your communication system. IVR is a highly adaptable solution that is perfect for managing call flows and high call volumes.
Streamline Your Business Phone System
1. Easy to Set Up and Use
2. Manage Your IVR From Anywhere
3. Use Hosted IVR to Reduce Business Costs
4. Balance Your Team’s Workload and Increase Productivity
Customize Business Voice Messaging
5. Customize to Match Your Business Model
6. Strengthen Your Brand Identity
7. Cater to All of Your Audience Segments with Multi-level IVR
Optimize Call Management
8. Automate Call Processes & Offer Self Service Options
9. Address Fluctuating Call Volumes & Avoid Missed Calls
10. Increase First Call Resolution Rates
Improve Brand Reliability and Trust
11. Remain Accessible at All Time
12. Improve Caller Experience
Recapping the Basics of Hosted IVR
Before we get into all the reasons to use a hosted IVR, let’s recap the basics of this tool.
Hosted IVR, or Interactive Voice Response, is a cloud-based communication tool for effective call distribution.
Other names for this tool include advanced IVR, cloud IVR, or auto-attendant. When customers call your business, an IVR automatically answers them and assists callers through interactive menu options.
Callers respond to these options either verbally or using their keypad. Based on their input, the caller is then delivered to their desired destination. This ensures that each caller reaches the appropriate agent or department.
Since this is a hosted feature, your business does not have to worry about maintaining or updating IVR software. That is taken care of by your provider. You simply design the call flows you need in an easy-to-use IVR editor or call flow designer accessible from your online portal.
12 Reasons to Use Hosted IVR
Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s dive deeper into the 12 reasons your business should use a hosted IVR solution.
Streamline Your Business Phone System
1. Easy to Set Up and Use
Cloud IVRs do not require a complicated setup, since you don’t need bulky hardware or additional software. To access this communication tool, you’ll need a trusted IVR provider, a network connection, and an internet-enabled device.
Then, simply log into your provider’s online portal and start designing efficient call flows. Additionally, you can modify your hosted IVR at any point, and these changes apply immediately. This flexible solution makes it easy to address your business’ evolving needs.
2. Manage Your IVR From Anywhere
Since IVR systems come with most virtual phone services, you get a single, centralized call control platform to easily control your phone system. And this is accessible from any device, making it possible to manage your system from any location and at any time. So if you manage remote or international teams, advanced IVRs can connect and support all of your staff – even at the same time.
3. Use Hosted IVR to Reduce Business Costs
Advanced IVR systems help companies reduce overhead costs by eliminating the need for additional personnel. Since a cloud IVR automatically answers and routes calls, receptionists are no longer a business necessity. And with self-service options and efficient call flows, you can operate with an essential team of agents.
An IVR system also helps lower your business’ average handling times (AHT) – requiring less labor per call. In many cases, a cloud-based IVR handles caller requests by itself, bypassing human representatives altogether. According to an IVR study, one financial institution saved around $100 million annually with IVR compared to the cost of handling calls with just live agents.
Not only does this tool deliver significant cost savings, but it is also highly affordable on its own. Virtual IVR rates are typically cheaper than any on-premise call management setups– as it requires no maintenance or extra equipment.
Ultimately, the cost of an IVR system depends on which provider you choose. Most providers grant users access to hosted IVR features with business phone number plans, SIP trunks, and so on. So, it’s important to research providers that fit both your communication and budget needs.
4. Optimize Your Team’s Workload and Increase Productivity
Given that IVR systems efficiently manage and distribute calls, it frees up agents to focus on complex cases that need a human touch. You can set up call groups and other call distribution methods to optimize your employee’s workload. This way, work is divided equally among teams, and no one on your team experiences burnout. (We’ll dive into call groups more below.)
Since callers reach the most qualified agent for their issue, your team can handle queries quickly and proficiently. Thus, decreasing average handling time (AHT) in the process. And with skill-based routing strategies, agents receive cases matching their specific skill set – allowing them to perform better and feel more confident.
5. Customize to Match Your Business Model
Whether in the marketing industry or healthcare field, hosted IVR works for every business model. This is because these systems are completely customizable to your specific communication needs.
Many advanced IVRs include custom phone tree designers and call flow builders. These editors give you more control over how callers move through your system. Additionally, a cloud IVR enables you to configure routing and forwarding strategies that are tailored to your framework. These tools allow businesses to optimize the call process, efficiently distribute calls to specific teams, and improve the caller’s experience.
Here’s a snapshot of IVR’s top routing capabilities:
- Time of Day – routes calls to another destination based on time
- Holiday – route or forward inbound calls during holidays or an entire holiday season
- Caller ID – route and prioritize calls based on the caller ID
- Location – route to a nearby office based on the caller’s phone number and area code
You can also set up IVR Scheduling which allows you to create multiple call paths within the same IVR and automatically activate them based on time, day, or business hours. This allows you to run different call flows for regular hours, after-hours, weekends, or holidays—without manually updating your IVR each time.
IVRs offer customizable greetings, voicemails, and other voice messaging. Using this feature, your business can promote new products, inform callers about any business continuity issues due to disasters, and much more.
