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Siemens Gigaset and ACD Give Your Parts Desk Staff Added Mobility

Friday, March 11th, 2011

The Problem

Companies, who sell parts to the general public, may have parts desk employees who have a difficult time checking parts, processing calls and handling walk-in customers. Employees frequently have to leave the desk and place calls on hold checking for part availability. While they are away from their desk and phone, calls are left on hold for extended periods of time and other calls are missed. Potential customers, left on hold, may hang up and call a competitor. Unanswered calls may go to a competitor and waste the marketing money used to get the call.

The work environment creates stress on parts desk employees. As they return from checking on a part, they may be faced with customers at their desk and new calls ringing their phone while they are responding to the original caller. Upset customers may add to their stress and deter future business.

HostMyCalls Solution

HostMyCalls Hosted PBX Service offers several potential solutions for parts desks. Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) can stack waiting calls and distribute them in the order they were received to the next available employee. This process ensures calls are handled efficiently and encourages callers to be patient.

Our Hosted PBX Service also features the widely popular Siemens Gigaset cordless phones. These phones have a usage range of up to 175 feet from their base station indoors and 900 feet outdoors. Their range will allow parts desk employees to continue processing calls while they are away from their desk. Calls managed by the Hosted PBX ACD application can be delivered to the Gigasets.

HostMyCalls Hosted PBX Service also offers its Flexicall feature. Flexicall integrates mobile phones to ring simultaneously with desk phones. Mobile phones can handle calls similar to a desk phone. Flexicall allows employee access to company calls anywhere they can find cell service.

Customers are no longer put on hold while checking parts availability with the use of ACD, Gigaset cordless phones and/or Flexicall. In addition, calls can be answered while the parts staff are away from their desk. As they return, they are ready to answer the next call or walk-in customer. Calls spend less time on hold and are handled more quickly. Each employee can process more calls and generate more business for the company. Fewer callers are turned away to competitors by long hold and ring times. Quicker call processing leads to more satisfied callers and a less stressful work environment.

Hosted PBX services offer the ability to implement advanced solutions such as those mentioned above with little or no capital expenditure. In many cases, companies can save money overall on their telecommunications costs while implementing these solutions.

Tags: ACD, Cordless SIP, DECT 6.0, Flexicall, headset, Siemens Gigaset, Wireless
Posted in ACD, Cell Phone, Hosted PBX, HostMyCalls Services, Mobile PBX, VoIP SIP Telephone | No Comments »

Call Recording for Business Telephone Systems – Advantages and Benefits

Thursday, March 10th, 2011

Recording all business voice calls, once only deployed in large call centers and the financial sector, is becoming popular among an increasingly diverse group of industries. The following is a partial list of some of the many uses and benefits of recording calls:

Reduce Customer Conflict When customers and employees know that their calls have been recorded, they are less likely to embellish the details of conversations related to conflict. If an employee is accused of rude behavior, the call can be heard by management and sent to the customer or the employee for review.

Increase Employee Professionalism Employees will focus on handling calls correctly, if they have an expectation that their calls will be monitored by management. To build that expectation, managers should routinely comment on the recorded calls that they have heard. Managers do not need to hear every call, they only need to listen to one periodically for each employee and give some feedback.

Improve Customer Service Recorded calls are an invaluable tool for customer service training. Specific calls can be replayed with feedback. Superior call examples can be used in training classes as well as examples of what not to do. Skills assessments can be performed on calls to rate performance. And managers can determine which skills need training the most.

Legal Support Recorded calls can aid in legal proceedings. They are easily emailed to counsel or copied to memory stick devices. It is wise to make sure the calls were recorded in accordance with federal and state laws. If the parties were located in multiple states, make sure the laws of every state involved were followed.

Create Discipline for Making Calls Departments, like outside sales, are frequently required to make prospecting calls. One of the toughest jobs of sales managers is getting salespeople to make these calls. The problem can be exacerbated when the salespeople work out of their homes or other offices. Managers can listen to recorded calls to make sure each salesperson is making the required quantity and quality of prospecting calls. IP enabled phone systems and some Hosted PBX Services can record calls giving managers the ability to listen to calls of salespeople working from home or other offices.

Reduce Personal Calls Personal calls not only distract the employee from their work, but they may also take up valuable office resources including use of telephone lines and long distance minutes. Recording calls virtually eliminates all personal calls from the company’s telephone system.

Capture Threatening Calls Threatening calls can be recorded for further analysis or be passed on to law enforcement.

Verify Order Details Companies that take orders by telephone may record calls to verify order details. Inaccurate orders can reflect poorly on customer service, damage customer goodwill, lose business and increase delivery costs including product manufacturing and shipping. Calls can be reviewed randomly or systematically to ensure each agent’s order accuracy and improve customer service.

Reduce Management Managers can more efficiently supervise and train their employees with call recording. More efficient managers can either handle additional employees or focus on improving the productivity and skill of each of their workers.

Regulatory Compliance Some financial service industries are now mandated to record calls. Other industries may not be subject to a required call recording, but doing so has become a defacto practice of the respected companies in that business sector.

Once only available to companies with large wallets, technology advancements have made call recording and storage economically available to many businesses. Hosted services such as Hosted PBX systems have bridged the gap to the small business. Regardless of the company’s size, call recording offers efficiency, accuracy and protection.

Tags: call center, Call Recording, management training tool
Posted in ACD, Hosted PBX, Hosted VoIP, HostMyCalls Services | No Comments »

Improve Your Business by Legally Recording Calls

Thursday, December 23rd, 2010

Companies need to record calls for a variety of reasons. The reasons may include monitoring quality of call handling, reducing conflicts with callers, having a record of threats and teaching. Depending on needs, recording calls can become complex. Here is what you should know before you begin the process of evaluating potential solutions:

1. Know the laws of the state where the calls are being recorded. Different states have different laws on call recording. Some states require that all parties are aware of the recording while others only stipulate one party. Using an announcement message that advises incoming callers that call recording is being used can offer protection to the company. Regardless, at a minimum, have documentation that makes it clear that call recording operations are known by all employees.

2. Calls can be recorded by 3 types of solutions: telephone system, station device and call logger. Telephone systems offer the least capability, usually recording calls into voicemail boxes. Station devices offer some higher end benefits with more call coverage for a reasonable price. Call loggers can be centralized, sophisticated and expensive.

3. Understand your company’s recording needs. Knowing your needs determines the type of solution to evaluate.

* Recording occasional calls selected by the user can be handled by some phone systems. If your phone system does not record calls, then either look at station devices or maybe it is time for a new telephone system.

* Supervisors can select calls to record of individual stations with Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) package of some phone systems. Call loggers can provide this feature as well.

* Recording all calls for a specific user’s station or a small group of users is best handled by a station recording device.

* All calls for a department can be recorded by a station device (if the department is approximately 12 or fewer users) or by a call logger for larger applications.

* Call loggers are best for larger applications including recording all company calls.

4. Know whether the call records need to be stored centrally or with the user. Telephone systems usually store in a user’s voicemail box. Station recording device can store on the user’s PC and some on a central server. Call loggers always store on a central server.

The benefits of recording calls can vary widely and frequently outweigh the initial costs of purchasing the system. Knowing your goals and needs before you start shopping will make the process easier and less confusing. Begin the process of evaluating potential solutions by knowing your states laws, whose calls need to be recorded and where best to store the calls.

Tags: Call Recording
Posted in ACD | No Comments »

7 Ways to Get Your Calls Answered Right

Friday, November 5th, 2010

Receptionists frequently provide the first impression of a company. Callers speak to them first on the telephone and visitors see them first when they come through the door. Receptionists can be pulled in many directions between handling multiple calls at once, greeting visitors and handling extra duties. (more…)

Posted in ACD, Busy Lamp Field, Hosted PBX, Hosted VoIP, Mobile PBX, SIP | No Comments »

6 Steps to Selecting a Hosted PBX or Hosted VoIP Provider

Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010

Hosted PBX or Hosted VoIP services are quickly replacing traditional telephone systems in the business community. In addition to lower telephone bills and getting away from 1960s phone line technology, the benefits are wide and far ranging. They include virtual local numbers, telecommuting, connecting multiple locations together through voice, Personal Telephone Numbers, Mobile PBX, Private Faxes, Unified Communications and many more.

With literally a thousand or more providers in the industry, selecting a Hosted VoIP provider can be a confusing and frustrating process. This article is a detailed plan and structured process to selecting the right provider for your business. You should follow the 6 steps and familiarize yourself with all of the linked articles that apply for your business. Doing so increases the chances of selecting the ideal vendor so that you can enjoy the powerful benefits that Hosted PBX services have to offer.

1. Determine Your Needs and Pick Providers That Solve These Needs

The first and most important step is to understand your company’s needs. Your needs are the focal point of all questions and decisions throughout the process. If you have some specific requirements that have brought you to this stage, now is the time to write them down. In addition, here are some additional areas that should be considered:

a. Does the company have multiple locations including employees working at home? Combining multiple office locations and telecommuters into a seamless communications system can improve efficiency and customer service while saving the company thousands of dollars in overhead. Read my article “How to Stop the Waste When Operating a Business in Multiple Locations” for more information.

b. Where are the most costly places to call? What areas get called most often? Take this information into account when selecting a service and calling plan.

c. Do any departments such as inside sales or customer service frequently have callers waiting on hold while other callers are assisted? If the answer is “Yes,” then you may need Automatic Call Distribution. Read “Pissed Off Callers Cost You Revenue: Fix It with Automatic Call Distribution” for more information.

d. Do any staff members roam the building who need to take calls? One or more cordless phones can help these workers.

e. Do any employees travel out of the office including sales people, managers and service personnel? Mobile PBX may be the answer to handling their calls.

f. Are there paging requirements either through the desk phone or external speakers?

g. Do any staff members share a phone with a need for individual Direct Inward Dial (DID) numbers?

All of these needs that are applicable should be written down along with any others that you listed. Not all Hosted VoIP providers can deliver solutions to solve these issues. Make sure you use them to find the most qualified services for your situation.

2. Know the Quantities of Phones, Other Hardware and Services That Your Business Requires

In order to get an accurate quote and make sure there are no surprises on future invoices, survey your business and determine accurate quantities of:

a. Desk Phones

b. Fax machines that will connect through provider’s network and Virtual Private Inbound Fax Numbers

c. Analog ports for cordless phones or other analog devices

d. Virtual Published Numbers and Unpublished Numbers

e. Automated Attendant Greetings (day-time & night-time)

f. Voicemail boxes in addition to those associated with phones

As a side note, VoIP telephones plug into your LAN outlets. Check for an available LAN connection at each phone location. If LAN outlets will be shared with other devices such as computers, choose a VoIP phone that has an integrated Ethernet switch. If no LAN outlet exists in one or more phone location, new cabling will need to be run.

3. Understand Available Calling Plans

Calling plans for Hosted VoIP services can be confusing. Unfortunately, sometimes that is intentional. In order to avoid some nasty surprises on your bill and to make the most informed decision, it is necessary to understand the available calling plan and how the charges will affect you.

You should avoid services that charge by the minute for local and domestic long distance calls that are not on their network. Although the cheap prices that these services offer may be very attractive, their bills can be impossible to predict and shocking. The simplest calling plans are always the best. Select a service that offers unlimited local and domestic long distance calling to any telephone number.

In determining the right calling plan, know what the calling areas include and compare to the information you gathered in step one. If you are evaluating a variable pay per minute plan, 750 minutes can be used as the average business desk phones use per month for local and domestic long distance calls.

4. Compare Potential Vendors’ Pricing Plan Using the Same Quantities of Hardware, Services and Minutes for Each

Although this may seem like an obvious step, it is rarely done correctly. Comparing potential vendors using quantities that are the same for each proposal can be challenging. Do not consider a proposal that does not match up with the others. Modify each vendor’s proposal until they all are equivalent. Get the proposal with correct quantities in written form. Do not accept verbal information. Once the proposals match, they can be accurately compared.

5. Avoid the Top Mistakes Made When Selecting a Hosted VoIP Provider

At this point, probably one or two potential Hosted VoIP providers are standing out among all the rest. Now it is time to read my article, “The Top Mistakes Made When Selecting a Hosted VoIP Provider.” Read the article and avoid these mistakes.

6. Select a Hosted PBX or Hosted VoIP Provider

The homework has been done and the chances of success are very high. Confidently select the service that meets your needs the best. Soon you will be enjoying the many powerful benefits that Hosted PBX services have to offer.

Posted in ACD, Hosted PBX, Hosted VoIP | 1 Comment »

How to Stop the Waste When Operating a Business in Multiple Locations

Friday, May 21st, 2010

Some businesses have employees that work out of their homes. Others have satellite locations across town or in another city or state. When a business does not have the luxury of having all employees report to the same office, several communication challenges can cause problems in customer service, sales and operations. Hosted VoIP providers have a service called Virtual PBX that can solve these obstacles and help companies improve the performance of each department and their bottom line.

Following is a partial list of issues from having a work force under more than one roof:

1. Calls can not be transferred between locations. Asking an outside caller to hang up and dial another number within an organization includes the risk that they will not call.

2. Many companies have redundant positions at each of their locations because they cannot easily transfer calls. Redundant positions may include call answering points, sales, customer service and accounting.

3. Communication among employees is strenuous as it is harder to get someone on the phone than it is to see them in the hallway or catch them at their desk.

4. Departments that are geographically spread apart cannot be grouped together for answering calls and incoming calls cannot be fairly distributed between locations.

5. Call answering positions do not know whether or not someone is already on the phone.

6. Key personnel who travel between offices frequently miss their important phone calls when they are away from their main desk.

7. Employees cannot page people in other locations.

Hosted PBX or Hosted VoIP services are the solution to all of these issues and more. Here are the ways they can help:

1. Calls can be transferred between locations as easily as they are transferred within the same building. Now callers can always get to the right person by calling the company only once.

2. Some premium Hosted VoIP providers offer Busy Lamp Field (BLF) which show who is busy on other phone calls.

3. Call answering points can be centralized into one location since calls can be transferred anywhere and BLF features show who is on the phone. Other redundant positions such as sales or customer service can be centralized, eliminated or reduced.

4. Mobile PBX option integrates the desk phone with the mobile phone. Employees can receive and process calls whether they are sitting at their desk or away from the office.

5. Camp On feature provides an alert when an extension becomes idle or is used again. Hosted PBX users do not need to hunt for each other as the phones will do it for them with Mobile PBX or Camp On.

6. Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) is furnished by some Hosted VoIP providers. ACD evenly distributes calls among several people within a department. It also stacks calls that are waiting to be answered similar to the teller line at a bank. People in comparable departments such as customer service that are spread apart in multiple locations can be included in the same ACD group and answer any of the department’s calls.

7. Hoteling allows a user to go to any desk phone, enter a code and that desk phone is now their main extension. Hoteling is beneficial for employees that travel between office locations and need to receive their calls no matter where they are. Since their extension is the same, call receptionists never need to hunt for them.

8. Overhead paging systems can be accessed in other locations. In some instances, multiple paging systems in multiple buildings can be used simultaneously.

Whether a business has single user multiple locations or stand alone satellite offices, Hosted VoIP services and Virtual PBXs solve many communication challenges. Separate phone systems will cause disjointed communication and the sales and customer service experience of the outside caller will suffer. Hosted VoIP providers deliver one cohesive telephone system for all locations. Businesses can save money by centralizing, streamlining or eliminating redundant positions while simultaneously improving the caller’s experience. In addition, advanced features such as ACD, Mobile PBX, Hoteling and Camp On will significantly improve the service a company delivers to its callers.

Posted in ACD, Busy Lamp Field, Hosted VoIP, Hoteling, Mobile PBX, Overhead Paging | 1 Comment »

Archive for the ‘ACD’ Category

Siemens Gigaset and ACD Give Your Parts Desk Staff Added Mobility

Call Recording for Business Telephone Systems – Advantages and Benefits

Improve Your Business by Legally Recording Calls

7 Ways to Get Your Calls Answered Right

Top Questions and Answers about Hosted VoIP/Hosted PBX Service

6 Steps to Selecting a Hosted PBX or Hosted VoIP Provider

How to Stop the Waste When Operating a Business in Multiple Locations

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