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An automatic phone menu is a vital asset for your business.
Offering a menu to callers helps significantly reduce their hold time and gets them to the department they need to be as soon as possible.
We know how important customer service is, and offering callers a menu can reduce their wait time and give them a better over-the-phone experience.
Chances are, your business probably already has at least one telephone line. A telephone line is the first vital step in setting up your business with a phone menu.
There are two different options for your business telephone line:
A traditional ISDN line uses the UK's PSTN network to make and receive voice calls. Learn more about lines and calls
VoIP uses your existing internet connection to make and receive your business calls. It is typically cheaper than ISDN, but does require a stable internet connection. Learn more about VoIP
'Auto-attendant' is your virtual receptionist. A telephone system from Commsplus has auto-attendant capabilities, whether it's a Mitel, Samsung or Hosted.
Auto attendant is the software that provides your caller with a call menu. If you're unsure whether your telephone system has auto-attendant capabilities, one of our team will be able to help on 01934 882200.
Most businesses have a 'main' phone number. This is the phone number that is advertised across your website and on your promotional material etc.
Most businesses also have a DDI range or 'extensions'. This is a range of numbers that are assigned to individuals that can be used to contact them directly.
It is likely that your business already has these build into your telephone system - if you're not sure, you can give us a call on 01934 882200 and we'd be happy to find out for you.
This is the most important stage for setting up your businesses automatic phone menu. Defining your groups means putting individuals into categories that will be called when the user chooses an option.
Examples of common groups are:
These groups, often referred to as 'hunt groups', can be defined using an individual's DDI. This means that when a caller rings your business, they can chose to call the 'sales' group, or the 'support group' and by choosing a group, it then calls all the DDI's in that group.
TIP: People can also be in multiple groups at the same time. You can also have calls 'overflow' between groups, so the call doesn't go unanswered if all your staff are busy.
The final stage for setting up your businesses automatic phone menu is to record the greeting and menu messages. These are the recording that are presented to callers when they call and often start with a "Hello, and thank you for calling *Company*. Please listen carefully for the following options"
Other greetings that businesses use in call menu messages are:
Once the initial greeting has been played, you can issue the caller with options. For example, "Please press 1 for sales, 2 for support". We could even set up submenus, so a caller who chooses (1) for sales, could then be offered with another menu, for example "Please press 1 for our South West sales division, 2 for the North East sales division."
A lot of people don't like hearing a voice recording of themselves, so our engineering team are more than happy to do a recording for you - should you require it.
TIP: We can also allow menus to 'overflow' to a receptionist or default group, so that if a caller does not press any options, you will not loose their call.
Once you've set up your menu, you can just wait for calls to come flooding in. Once they start, your team will be able to easily and quickly answer calls, knowing that they're talking direct with someone who requested their department.
You'll find that both call wait times and call queues decrease and that your customers have a better over-the-phone experience when calling your business.
Another benefit that comes with setting up an automatic call menu is increased sales. Having a "Did you know that we're offering 20% off all our..." can alert customers to ongoing deals and help drive your sales.
If you're interested in setting up an automatic phone menu, or would like to chat about your telecommunications, please give us a call on 01934 882200 and one of our team would be happy to chat through your requirements - no obligations, no fee.
Or, you could email is at sales@commsplus.co.uk for more information.
