As one component of your financial
ledger, VoIP (Voice over Internet
Protocol) phone service has th potential to positively affect the bottom
line.
John Curry, founder and president of
Curry IP Solutions, has been providing telecommunications expertise to businesses
and individuals for more than 30 years. He
has been in the forefront of VoIP, analyzing
how best to deploy VoIP for improved business operations while minimizing overall
telecommunications costs.
Smart Business spoke with Curry about
how technology can be better utilized and
its impact on the bottom line.
How important is it for a small to mid-size
company’s telephone system to emulate a
large company’s telephone system?
The goal is to make communications flow
easily and to not create any bottlenecks.
Your phone system can be used to direct
and funnel customers to the appropriate
department or channel.
I dislike calling a large company that has
a complex auto attendant system that after
the fifth selection disconnects me or does
not recognize my selection. What if my
selection is the repair department and not
the tech support and the employee does not
know how to transfer the call to the right
extension?
No matter how large or small the organization is, the system needs to be designed to
overcome any awkwardness experienced
by the caller. You should also coach your
staff to listen for complaints from consumers trying to maneuver around your system. I am not suggesting you keep a phone
vendor on staff, but I do suggest that your
initial contract should allow for modifications for a period of time while you become
accustomed to the new technology.
How important is every call getting to the
right person, quickly and professionally?
It’s very important. Let’s face it. We all
have busy lives and we don’t like to wait.
We have become an instant society. We
want it now.
I believe every business recognizes the
need to serve its customers. To do this, you
need the consumer to get to the right person in the most efficient manner. You also
need your staff to know how the system
works for their and the company’s benefit
as well.
I am keen on automation. I feel my contact
information should be a part of the information I communicate to my doctor, dentist,
insurance company or to anyone I do business with on a regular basis.. When I dial a
phone number, wouldn’t it be helpful if my
caller ID — which is part of my contact
information — would direct me to the agent
or sales representative or pulled up my
patient information on the computer screen
at the doctor’s office? These features can
really work well if implemented properly.
Does the sophistication of a telephone system impact a company’s bottom line?
In some ways, it may eliminate an
employee or two. Many companies like the
personal touch to have all callers greeted by
an operator. Due to this, servicing all callers
in a timely manner may take two operators.
Newer systems are tied into the operator’s
desk, which may show an icon for each person in or out, online or offline. This increases the efficiency and information at hand by
the operator, who can now say, ‘John Smith
is not in at the moment. Would you like to
speak to John Doe, his associate in sales?’
or, ‘I can transfer you to his voice mail.’
Some vendors offer a buyback or upgrade
program.
How can a telephone system increase productivity for a positive bottom-line impact?
The newer phones have been simplified
to provide some direction on call transfer,
call forwarding and conference calling. I
still sometimes have difficulty splitting a
conference call and dropping the right person. The new systems have solved that
problem by provided directions for their
features.k a phone? ‘Meet-me bridges’ are
also available, that provide the ability to
schedule meetings in advance.
Do IP systems have any other advantages?
A few years ago, if I were in a remote
office, I would need to have a phone line in
my office along with a data connection.
This phone line would run about $75 per
month; fax would be about $50 and the data
line would be about $75. When a call was
placed to or from the home office, there
would be a usage charge. If someone wanted me, he or she would need to know my
home office number as well as the corporate number. So, on average, my home
office cost the company $250 per month,
and in a way it became an island unto itself.
With the newer systems, I would just need
a high-speed Internet connection at my
home office, which is about $25 to $50 per
month. The phone number that is displayed
on my home service is the corporate phone
number. If I’m working remotely or on a
business trip, I still can be reached by someone dialing our company’s main number
and my extension and the system finds me
by ringing either my cell phone or the the IP
phone wherever I am located.
JOHN CURRY is founder and president of Curry IP Solutions.
He has been providing telecommunications expertise to businesses and individuals for more than 30 years. Reach him at
(412) 307-3600, ext. 9007 or [email protected].