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14th February 2023 blog

Understanding South Africa 087 Numbers

13th February 2023 blog, Sales

The Ultimate Pre-Call Checklist [+Free Download]

7th February 2023 blog, Sales

A Guide to Telecom Compliance in the US and Globally

10th January 2023 blog, Call Management

13 Ways to Manage High Call Volume

Guide to International Phone Number Ordering Requirements.

6th January 2023 blog, International Business

Guide to International Number Ordering Requirements

5th January 2023 blog, International Business

What is International Local Presence?

The most common mistakes businesses make when expanding internationally.

20th December 2022 blog, International Business

8 Global Expansion Mistakes and How to Avoid Them [2024]

Understanding South Africa 087 Numbers

Kim Sayers 14th February 2023 blog

087 numbers are a great way to establish a national presence in South Africa. So, if you’re looking for a phone number for your South Africa-based business or if you’re interested in expanding to the SA market, this may be the solution for you.

In this article, we’ll discuss the basics of these South Africa numbers, their benefits, how to get one, and FAQs.

What are South Africa 087 Numbers?

087 numbers are national numbers from South Africa that start with the country code +27.

Example of South Africa 087 number format: +27 (0) 87 xxx-xxxx.

These types of SA numbers are not associated with a specific geographic area. Instead, they are assigned to the country as a whole. For this reason, 087 numbers are referred to as non-geographic numbers and act as an alternative to toll-free and local phone numbers in South Africa.

Typically, 087 numbers are reachable from anywhere in the world. But, this largely depends on your chosen provider.

How Does 087 Service Work in South Africa?

Many 087 numbers on the market use VoIP technology to successfully connect calls. In other words, they use the internet to transmit voice calls and are not tied to physical phone lines or SIM cards.

This means your business can use cloud-based SA numbers like these to establish a nationwide presence in South Africa, even if you’re not physically present in the area. Simply forward incoming calls to any phone number, PBX, or other VoIP app. And when making outbound calls, business agents can show a local South African caller ID.

Since 087 numbers are national phone numbers, the caller (customers) and the receiver (business) share the cost of the call. So when customers within South Africa call your business, they incur local calling rates, even if your business is located overseas.

Benefits of 087 Numbers

Getting 087 numbers from a cloud phone service provider like Global Call Forwarding offers many benefits for those looking to do business in South Africa. Let’s look at the top advantages for your business:

Establish a national presence in South Africa, irrespective of where your business resides
Reduce communication costs by sharing local calling costs with callers
Improve coverage by being reachable from inside and outside the country
Expand to the South African market without increasing your overhead costs
Access with less strict documentation
Experience advanced cloud communication features for improved call management
Invest in Africa’s growing economies with minimal risk.

Local vs Non-Geographic Numbers in South Africa

When looking for the right type of international number for your business, you’ll come across three common virtual number types in South Africa:

local geographic numbers
toll-free numbers, and
non-geographic 087 numbers.

Now, toll-free numbers are free for callers to call and operate differently from local numbers and 087 numbers.

But, geographic and non-geographic numbers are similar in nature. So, to better understand the difference between South Africa local and non-geographic numbers, let’s compare these two phone number types:

	South Africa Local Numbers	South Africa 087 Numbers
Definition	Assigned to specific local, geographic areas such as towns or cities	Tied to an entire nation or country
Costs	Charged at local calling rates, paid by the caller	Charged at local calling rates, but costs are shared between the caller and receiver
Coverage	Receive calls from within the country and some neighboring countries	Reachable country-wide and from anywhere in the world
Pro	Allows businesses to establish a local presence	Easier to obtain than local numbers
Con	Requires strict documentation to acquire	Less recognizable and familiar to local customers

Frequently Asked Questions About SA Numbers

Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions regarding South Africa numbers:

Q: How many digits do South Africa 087 numbers include?

A: There are 10 digits in national SA numbers. Example: (087) xxx-xxxx.

Q: How do you call 087 numbers from outside South Africa?

A: To call a 087 number from an outside country, first dial the international call prefix (or dial out code) of the country you’re calling from. Then, type the country calling code of the country you’re trying to call – in this case South Africa (27). And finally, dial the national phone number of your desired destination.

So, if you’re calling from the U.S. you would dial – 011 27 087 xxx xxxx

Q: How much do South Africa numbers cost?

A: Global Call Forwarding offers South Africa numbers starting at $12.95 per month. We offer five different cloud phone number plans for toll-free, national, and local numbers. Each plan comes with monthly minutes plus an additional per-minute rate.

Q: What documents are required to get 087 numbers?

A: Depending on your provider, you may have to submit different types of documentation when ordering an international phone number. The most commonly requested types of documentation are proof of address, proof of ID, proof of business, and a letter of intent.

How to Get South Africa 087 Numbers from Global Call Forwarding

To get a South Africa phone number from Global Call Forwarding, you can either speak with one of our representatives or purchase online on our website.

To purchase your numbers online, watch the above video or follow these steps:

Visit our Pricing page.
Select your new number from the left dialog box.
Choose South Africa, National, 087 prefix, and number available.
Then, enter the necessary information in the right dialog box to have your calls forwarded.
Note: You can forward calls to any location or VoIP/SIP system.
Click on View Rates and choose from our five different plans.
Add premium services, if desired. We offer Call Recording, Outbound Calling, and Rollover Minutes.
Submit your order and wait for your service to be activated.

Want to learn more about South Africa numbers and which number type is right for your business? Consult with our global telecom experts today. Call us or chat with us online!

The Ultimate Pre-Call Checklist [+Free Download]

Meryl D'Sa-Wilson 13th February 2023 blog, Sales

With sales driving business growth, there is a lot of pressure to perform well on B2B sales calls. And while selling comes naturally to some people, it is always a good idea to prepare for each call.

A pre-call checklist for sales calls will help you organize your conversation and cover all key points. Additionally, it acts as a guide you can rely on to continue the conversation forward. Let’s have a look!

Need a copy to share with your team? Scroll down and download the PDF!

Preparing for Sales Calls

So, how can you best get ready for sales calls? This preparation generally starts with getting to know the prospect, both the individual you will talk to and their affiliated company.

That aside, it also involves personalizing the conversation to meet this particular prospect’s needs. For this, you’ll look at

solutions and services that help them
questions they might have
objections that may dissuade them from purchasing, and so on.

And since all of this happens before you make the call, they reside in your pre-call checklist.

Who Can Benefit from a Sales Pre-Call Checklist?

A pre-calling checklist will help you prepare for different trajectories the conversation may go. At the same time, you can make sure you’ve discussed everything you need to before ending the call. And so, this checklist is useful for anyone who interacts with prospects as a way of converting them; this includes:

Sales professionals – sales leaders, managers, and sales reps
Outreach specialists
Market research and survey professionals, and so on.

Sales Pre-Call Checklist

So, without further ado, here’s a pre-call checklist for your inside sales team, we’ll cover the following:

Research Your Prospect
Know Who You are Speaking to
Decide What You Will Say
Establish Realistic Goals
Prepare Key Questions to Ask
Consider Objections and Questions the Prospect May Have
Keep Sales Enablement Resources Nearby
Prepare to Call

1. Research Your Prospect

To pitch effectively, you need to understand who your prospect is; this means, research. Often with cold-calling sales, people tend to just call without doing their due diligence. Customers can easily tell when you haven’t done your research and nothing dissuades them faster than someone faking it. After all, how can they trust the business you represent, if they can’t trust you?

To improve your chances:

Research your prospect’s business and industry — What do they do? Where do they stand in the industry (experts, start-ups, newbies)?
Browse their website and core pages — Look at company values, mission statement, ‘About Us’ and ‘Our Team’ pages, products and services, etc.
Review their social media pages — What are they talking about? What is top of mind for them?
Check press releases and news about the company — Mergers, new features, awards, new locations, CSR initiatives, etc.

2. Know Who You are Speaking to

Next, take time to identify who in that company you are talking to. This will help you make your pitch more relatable and relevant to them.

Review your CRM platform, sales spreadsheet, or Sales Engagement Platforms (SEP) list
Understand this prospect’s relationship and past interactions with your company
Research the individual you will speak with — What is their job profile? Potential pain points? What do they care about? Look at social media profiles and posts
Determine where they land in the sales funnel — Are they aware of your product or still in the research phase? Map out their journey
Look for any overlap in professional networks that can connect you to the prospect.

3. Decide What You Will Say

Then, with all this customer information in the background, decide how you will approach the prospect and what you will say:

Review your script and the solution you will pitch
Consider adopting a “talk tracks” approach (more on that below)
Determine how to discuss the product or service’s strengths and weaknesses
Prepare your value proposition by persona — how is your product different from others for this particular prospect and industry
Plan out and practice your voicemail, in case the prospect does not answer.

Our Sales and Marketing Manager, Luke Genoyer recommends: “I’m a proponent of using “talk tracks” versus scripts. This is when the salesperson tries to uncover certain things in the conversation by asking open-ended questions, following a certain track, and nurturing the conversation naturally instead of adhering to a rigid script.”

He also highly recommends planning out and practicing personalized voicemails a few times before jumping in on the call.

4. Establish Realistic Goals

Next, determine what you want from this call. In other words, what are your goals for this call? This depends on where you are in the sales cycle and where your prospect is in the buying journey. Choose 2-3 goals before going into the call so you can manage your expectations effectively.

Understand the prospect’s company and challenges (questions to consider below)
Get names of important contacts to can connect with the right person
Qualify the lead to decide whether it is worth going after this prospect
Make a presentation
Provide informative brochures or data sheets
Educate the prospect and book a demo
Sign up for a free trial
Set up follow-up calls or interactions
Determine a sales timeline with a close date, keeping their journey in mind
Consider sales performance goals (duration of call block, number of calls, and number of positive outcomes).

5. Prepare Key Questions to Ask

Another important strategy to include on your pre-call checklist is preparing questions to ask your prospect. Asking the right questions will help you better understand what is important and relevant to them. It will also show them that you understand what they do, how they operate, and their role in the industry. All of this, in turn, will help you sell your product better.

Note that these questions should work as a guide and not as a script. Additionally, they should be thoughtful questions that can start a conversation instead of simply using a one-size-fits-all method.

Here are some examples:

As a network engineer, what’s your most important priority right now?
What features do you wish [an operation] had, that it doesn’t currently have now?
What’s the biggest problem that you want to solve or fix?
From your conversations, it seems that your biggest roadblock is . . . Would you agree?

These questions differ based on the buyer’s journey, product development, customer research, and so on. However, you can always practice active listening to generate thoughtful questions.

6. Consider Objections and Questions the Prospect May Have

As you list down your questions to ask, you also want to anticipate questions or objections your prospect may have. Common reasons and types of sales objections include the lack of need, urgency, trust, or money.

With this and your research of the prospect in mind, you can be proactive in pitching the right solutions and explaining the need and relevance. Here are some ways to prepare:

Think of common objections your team deals with during sales calls
Review other obstacles such as stakeholder buy-in or undeveloped products/features
Determine ways to highlight credibility
Go over how you may negotiate contracts or pricing, if applicable
Create/use an objection handling sheet

7. Keep Sales Enablement Resources Nearby

Finally, you’ll need your resources and sales content to share during or after the call. This includes but is not limited to:

Sales deck or demo video
Product data sheets
Brochures for different stages of the buying journey — awareness, consideration, purchase, retention
Case studies or customer stories
Research reports
Compliance documentation
Relevant videos, blog articles, how-to guides, and so on.

You want to keep all these within reach so you can grab what you need quickly without having to waste time looking.

8. Setting Up Your Space

With all the above done, you’re ready to make the call. The last item on your sales pre-call checklist is setting up your space. This is a crucial step in ensuring that you’re in the right mindset to make this call. Here are our favorite pre-call practices:

Create a distraction-free zone — Close chat and email, and silence notifications
Open your CRM platform
Keep resources close by
Visualize outcomes — Generate a positive mindset and remember that your solution helps people

Start Calling with the Right Sales Tools

And with that, you’re ready to go!

Pre-call planning can seem daunting, especially with a checklist that looks this long. However, over time and with practice, this process will become second nature for you. And it will seem less tedious and more rewarding when you cover all your bases beforehand.

Remember the key takeaways: Know who you’re talking to, why your product will help them, and what you want out of the call. Everything else is there to support you and help you reach your goal.

Happy calling!

And, don’t forget to keep our handy downloadable sales pre-call checklist on hand.

Download Your Free Sales Pre-Call Checklist Here

Download Our Free Pre-Call Checklist
Download this handy pre-call checklist for your next sales call.

Pre-Call Checklist

What is B2B Sales?

Meryl D'Sa-Wilson 7th February 2023 blog, Sales

Sales are what drive B2B companies to achieve target revenue and growth. But new technology, customer preferences, and competitive markets mean that selling is becoming more and more difficult.

This is why it’s important to understand how exactly B2B sales can support your business. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll discuss what B2B sales look like and how you can leverage various strategies to your advantage.

In this guide, we’ll cover:

What is B2B Sales?
B2B vs B2C Sales
Who is a B2B Sales Rep?
B2B Funnel
B2B Sales Process
Challenges
B2B Selling Techniques and Tips
20 Sales KPIs

Let’s get started!

Understanding Sales for B2B Companies

Business-to-business (B2B) describes a relationship between two business entities. This could include professional services (like consulting or market research), digital software and services (like VoIP, CRM, ERP, project management, and cloud computing), raw materials (like steel to manufacturing companies), etc.

And a B2B business—whether you run a brick and mortar or sell online without a storehouse—or will utilize sales and marketing functions to bring in new customers along with customer service employees to support these new customers.

Let’s look at B2B sales in particular.

What is B2B Sales?

B2B sales or business-to-business sales is the process of selling products and services to other companies rather than individual consumers.

B2B sales are typically conducted between:

a manufacturer and a wholesaler,
a wholesaler and a retailer,
two businesses without any intermediaries.

Since these include sales between two business entities, you can usually expect:

Higher price points
More complex sales cycles
In-depth product knowledge and custom solutions
Contracts and/or recurring subscriptions
Inside sales at various touchpoints, and more.

B2B versus B2C: How are they Different?

B2C sales or business-to-consumer sales are made from a company to a consumer. B2C sales are usually smaller than B2B sales.

To put this into perspective, Forrester’s B2B e-commerce forecast found that US B2B sales had a record-breaking growth of 22% year-over-year (YoY) in 2021. This is mainly because B2B companies work with other businesses that make large profits and revenue. And these companies have more targeted marketing opportunities and bigger budgets.

Additionally, the decision maker in B2C sales is the individual consumer. On the other hand, in B2B sales, the decision makers are the multiple stakeholders of a business. This means that B2B buyers go through a longer sales cycle than B2C buyers.

Who is a B2B Sales Rep? Job Description and Responsibilities

B2B sales representatives engage with prospective buyers and encourage them to make a purchase by providing information, personalized demos, and more.

Currently, corporate buyers tend to do their own research before reaching out to a business for a product. This research involves understanding different solutions available, conducting a cost analysis, reviewing competitor offerings, and more.

The B2B sales rep then helps the customer understand why their company’s product is the best solution. To this effect, they work closely with the customer, identify pain points, provide solutions, and more. This is where sales skills like active listening, being respectful and goal-oriented, and building relationships come into play. And all of this encourages the customer to make a purchasing decision.

Common B2B sales rep responsibilities include:

Make and receive calls
Manage sales emails
Set up meetings
Conduct product demos
Prospect for new business
Build rapport
Overcome objections
Follow up, and more.

B2B Funnel

To sell effectively, you need to understand the buyer’s perspective and what your B2B customer journey looks like. And using a visual tool like the funnel is a good place to start.

A B2B funnel is the visualization of a prospect’s journey from discovery to post-purchase. The different stages of the funnel depicting the B2B buyer’s journey include:

Awareness
Interest
Consideration
Action / Purchase
Loyalty / Retention
Advocacy

With that in mind, here’s what the buying journey looks like:

Identify pain point(s).
Research potential solutions, check out review sites and social media, ask for recommendations, and find a vendor(s).
Talk to the salesperson to understand how the product can solve their issue and understand the implementation process.
Take this information back to the decision-maker at the company and evaluate the vendor.
(if all goes well) Make a purchase and implement the solution.

As you can see, the buyer’s journey isn’t straightforward. But, understanding how it works will help you develop your company’s sales process

B2B Sales Process

B2B sales, in particular, is a complex process that uses various sales techniques for different buyer personas, use cases, and selling situations.

First, to lure these buyers in, the company’s marketing and sales teams do what they do best. Organizations are finding more success when their marketing and sales teams work together to boost lead generation. This involves offline and online marketing, cold calling and outreach, and more.

Once the lead is in the door, the B2B sales rep nurtures the lead.

The B2B selling journey, therefore, may look like this:

Preparation and research
Prospecting and lead or demand generation
Discovery and needs assessment
Product demo and sales pitch
Objection handling/negotiation
Follow up
Closing
Onboarding and customer success management

Keeping this in mind, the B2B sales process is usually split into the following functions:

Sales development — identifying and engaging decision-makers, nurturing leads
Closing deals — helping prospects make a purchase
Onboarding — bringing new customers on smoothly
And customer success — checking in with existing customers and helping them make the most out of your product.

Challenges to Keep in Mind

Your business can utilize B2B sales to create a better and more efficient customer journey. But part of developing a B2B selling strategy is to be aware of challenges that might impede progress. The most pressing concerns include:

Limited-to-no training
Misunderstanding or unawareness of key goals
Sales and marketing misalignment
Outdated sales culture
Slower adoption of supportive call center technology
Operational inefficiency

Keeping these in mind, let’s look at some ways your business can overcome these obstacles.

B2B Selling Techniques and Tips

About 77% of customers say that their buying journey was hard or complex — from searching for the right solution to getting stakeholder buy-in.

So, your B2B sales process must include techniques and strategies to connect with prospects effectively at all of these touchpoints — from awareness, consideration, purchase, and retention.

Here are 5 strategies to broaden your B2B sales approach:

1. Research and get to know your prospect: The most important step to any successful sale is researching the customer. Who are they, what do they need, and what are their pain points? Take time to talk to them or use available resources to understand their needs better.

2. Collaborate with other departments: Work with marketing, product development, and tech support to get a single and wholesome view of customer data. This collaboration will help you understand what messaging is important, what resolutions are useful, which features are popular, and so on.

3. Consider AI and automation: Use AI and reporting technology (with RAG fine-tuning) with key insights and forecasting to drive your sales. Furthermore, use automation solutions to help salespeople focus on more complex tasks instead of spending time on mundane ones. Also, more and more B2B customers are opting for seller-free buying. So, while you optimize your B2B sales process, consider including self-service solutions that let lower-end customers purchase your product sooner.

4. Be proactive and responsive: Nurturing corporate customers takes time and patience. So, make sure your sales reps are accessible whenever your prospect might need additional support. Train reps to proactively solve problems, make recommendations, and respond to queries quickly. Being available goes a long way in building trust.

5. Focus on building relationships: Instead of racing the clock on closing the sale, encourage sales reps to build meaningful relationships with customers that promote trust and loyalty.

20 Key B2B Sales KPIs

Another important B2B strategy is measuring performance. Analytics help you understand if your teams are close to achieving key sales goals.

You can track a variety of KPIs to measure sales performance, productivity, revenue, and more. In fact, the list of business KPIs and metrics continues to grow as new reporting software is introduced.

But let’s keep it simple.

Here’s a list of the top 20 B2B sales KPIs to measure:

Lead generation

1. Leads — number of leads coming in monthly or annually
2. Source of leads — where leads are coming from
3. Lead quality — to determine the likelihood of prospects becoming paying customers
4. Performance of qualified leads — likelihood of qualifying leads that convert
5. Lead-to-opportunity ratio — how many leads turn into sales opportunities
6. Avg lead response time — measure time needed to follow up with a prospect

Sales productivity

7. Sales pipeline velocity — time taken by a prospect to move from lead to customer
8. Sales close rate / percent of closed deals — percentage of your closed-won deals every month
9. Time spent running demos — how much time is required to demonstrate the product’s usefulness
10. Time spent on the phone — time spent on closing phone deals
11. Win-loss ratio — calculation of won deals over lost ones

Revenue tracking

12. Sales volume by location — to understand where demand is growing and/or lacking
13. Percent of sales discounts — which discounts are most efficient
14. Customer acquisition cost — how much is spent on each lead that converts to a paying customer
15. Return on investment (ROI) — effectiveness of marketing and sales activities
16. Monthly recurring revenue (MRR) — understand recurring revenue
17. MQL vs SQL conversion rate — ratio of marketing leads that convert to sales leads
18. Cost of marketing — effectiveness marketing strategies in boosting sales
19. Customer satisfaction — important customer success metric
20. Customer lifetime value — how much net profit a business can make from one customer over time

The Future of B2B Selling

Since the global pandemic, industry experts are seeing more hybrid sales roles as well as customers preferring remote and self-service interactions themselves. This means that your business needs to rethink how it sells to customers in a virtual space. Some strategies to consider as we embrace a different path forward:

Focus on the customer and adopt customer-first strategies
Diversify your communication and selling channels
Collaborate with other departments to understand what customers want from your organization in this day and age
Upskill and promote your existing sales reps and provide access to resources and training
Include cloud communication technology that makes it easy to sell from anywhere.

Our Sales and Marketing Manager, Luke Genoyer offers his insights:

Salespeople have less time with buyers, so they need to make their interactions more valuable — especially since there’s a lot more “noise” for salespeople to cut through
Encourage collaboration with marketing and product to improve website/marketing assets and customer experience
Sales professionals should invest in their own online “brands” to promote credibility.

With these tips in your pocket, your business is gearing towards entering a new phase of B2B selling. Good luck!

To learn about our cloud communication solutions for B2B sales teams, chat with our experts online!

What is Web Callback?

Kim Sayers 30th January 2023 blog

There’s a good chance that your prospects and customers are sick of waiting on hold for an available live rep. So to prevent subpar caller experiences and potential customer loss, consider offering alternative communication methods. This may include providing omnichannel support channels like chat and email or simply offering a web callback option.

In this article, we’ll define web callback, how it works, and its benefits so you can decide if it’s a good fit for your business and customer needs.

Web Callback: What it is and How it Works

Web callback allows visitors on your website to request an instant call back from your company by entering their contact information online.

This feature’s name varies depending on your chosen provider. For instance, it is sometimes referred to as CallMe Click or a call page. However, the main function is the same across the board.

Additionally, web callback is customizable to your business’s needs. But, it generally appears as an interactive button or forms labeled with the words “Request Callback,” “Call Me Back,” or “Call Now.” You can place these buttons and forms on pages like landing pages, digital ad campaigns, homepages, contact forms, and more. This way, you boost your company’s reachability while improving prospect engagement, leading to more sales opportunities.

How Web-Based Callbacks Work

Web callback uses Computer Telephony Integration or CTI technology to connect website visitors to live representatives through a click of a button. Let’s break down this process further.

When website visitors click on your callback button, it automatically opens a window prompting them to enter their contact info including name and phone number. Then, the service alerts your company by dialing a representative. After that, it calls the requester to establish a two-way voice connection between both parties.

As you can see web callback is straightforward, and the setup process is just as easy since it doesn’t require advanced programming or a complex VoIP infrastructure on your end. Simply, add an HTML code snippet to your website and a callback button will appear on your desired pages.

8 Benefits of Implementing Web Callback

This feature is not only beneficial to your business, but also to your customers and prospects. As we mentioned earlier on, web callback increases reachability and prospect engagement. But, that’s just the start.

Let’s take a look at all the benefits it has to offer:

1. Increase sales – Place callback buttons on high-traffic web pages to capture visitors’ attention and drive conversions.

2. Collect prospect info and generate leads – Obtain lead data from visitors by asking them to enter info such as email, phone number, name, etc.

3. Boost accessibility/reachability – Provide users with an alternative way to contact your business. Website visitors can engage your business at no cost, no matter where they are in the world.

4. Offer flexible and convenient communication channels – Allow users to contact your business from any location or IP-enabled device at no cost to them with web callback.

5. Decrease hold times – Make the most out of your visitor’s time by offering them a way to bypass lengthy wait times and request a callback instead.

6. Improve CX – Reduce customer effort and help prospects and customers avoid frustration due to long call queues. Additionally, increase satisfaction levels by providing a free way to contact your business.

7. Easy to set up – Implement the web callback service by simply including an HTML code snippet on your website.

8. Customizable to your needs – Tailor text, logo, branding, and dialog window fields and accommodate different languages and time schedules all through your provider’s online control panel.

Where Can You Get This Service?

Many cloud communication providers, like Global Call Forwarding, offer web callback services. But with a variety of options on the market, it can be difficult to choose. So, how do you know which provider is right for your business?

To start, research multiple providers and review their offerings. Make sure to look at:

Pricing plans
Setup or hidden fees
Available services and features
Network reliability and uptime guarantee
Activation times
Customer support offerings and so on

Then, compare each provider to your business’s needs and goals. Take your time with this evaluation as your provider contributes to the quality, security, and reliability of your desired service.

Web Callback from Global Call Forwarding

Global Call Forwarding offers the web callback feature to businesses of all sizes. This service is generally customized to your business website and overall needs. So, to get the right solution or learn more, call +1 (561) 908-6171 or chat with our telecom experts online!

A Guide to Telecom Compliance in the US and Globally

Meryl D'Sa-Wilson 27th January 2023 blog

As a global business, maintaining regulatory compliance can be a major challenge; especially when it comes to telecommunications.

Most businesses are unsure where to start and how to navigate the ever-changing regulatory landscape. Some may even wonder if it is their responsibility or their provider’s. And although providers and carriers are well-versed in global telecom compliance and regulations, it helps to know what you need to use your phone service securely.

While understanding and managing telecommunications compliance can seem like a daunting task, this article will help you understand the core concepts you need to know. Let’s have a look!

Understanding the Basics of Telecom Compliance

Whether you’re buying international phone numbers, global SIP trunks, or local calling from a carrier, it is important to understand what regulations go into creating a safe and reliable service. This is especially critical for global communications as international laws can often interfere with your service.

Phone number regulatory compliance and telecom regulations are designed to protect voice and data transmissions and, by extension, safeguard your business. But, if somehow, you end up on the side of non-compliance, your business will experience service interruptions, downtime, and even legal issues.

Keeping this in mind, let’s look at the basics of telecom compliance:

Know Your Customer (KYC) Requirements
Number Activation Requirements
International Emergency Regulations
Lawful Interceptions
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the EU
Federal and State Laws

1. Know Your Customer (KYC) Documents and Requirements

KYC information helps your telephony provider validate and verify your business. For this reason, they will require documents proving your identity, such as:

Proof of identification — This includes your legal IDs, such as a passport, driver’s license, government- or state-issued ID, and documentation related to company authorization.
Proof of business address — Official document with company name and address. Information should relate to the company and not the individual person. In other words, your personal address won’t work. You may even be asked to provide business registration and ownership documents.

You can find out what specific documentation you will need to provide from your provider.

2. Number Activation Requirements

Next, different phone number types from various countries will have varying requirements for activation. It helps to research before purchasing a phone number, so you know what to expect. You can also ask your new provider’s sales representative how long it takes them to activate your desired phone number.

Learn more in our international number ordering requirements guide.

3. International Emergency Regulations

Governments around the world require phone service providers (even virtual number providers) to have the ability to make emergency calls to respective emergency services. In other words, every in-country number should allow users to call local emergency services.

Examples of emergency numbers include 911 in the US, 100 or 112 in India, 110 for police or 112 for ambulance/fire in Germany, and so on.

So, as part of global telecom compliance, virtual telephony numbers must be configured in the in-country database with the correct user identification and physical address. This emergency service access ensures employees in a business can find help during a crisis.

Now, every country will have different requirements to activate emergency services for their numbers. Most carriers will bundle emergency calling along with number provisioning during your number activation phase to make this process easier.

This is what the general process looks like —

You purchase a number and provide the necessary documents > Your provider verifies your identity and business > Your provider/carrier will upload the necessary information to an in-country, non-real-time database.

4. Lawful Interception (LI)

Lawful interception is legally sanctioned access to voice, email, and chat conversations for police or security purposes. This security process requires carriers to provide law enforcement agencies access to individual or business communications. To comply with this, businesses using cloud communication solutions across workspaces and locations must ensure their carrier can support LI requirements in their target countries.

5. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the EU

Another key telecom compliance regulation is the GDPR. Put into effect in 2018, the GDPR is a data security and protection regulation that charges fines against companies and institutions that violate its privacy and security standards. According to the GDPR Article 5.12, its core principles are lawfulness, transparency, data minimization, storage limitation, accuracy, confidentiality, and accountability.

Whether your company resides in the EU or does business with EU citizens and residents, the GDPR applies to you. So, any business that is a data controller or collector must show that they are GDPR compliant.

6. State and Federal Laws

In addition to the above, you’ll also want to be aware of the necessary national (federal) and state laws your business must follow with regard to telecommunications. This will differ from country to country and also from industry to industry.

You can find this information with a simple Google search for “[country] telecom regulations.” However, it is a good idea to speak with your legal counsel and look at business resources to help you fully understand what compliances are essential to run your business.

Be Proactive About Regulatory Compliance

Don’t let telecom compliance be an afterthought. Set your business up for success by considering and preparing for critical and necessary regulations. Do your due diligence to ensure your business is not lacking in any way. This will not only protect it from liability and non-compliance but also build credibility and trust among your customers.

Prepare for the PSTN and ISDN Phase-Out

While the world relied on PSTN’s ability to help us communicate effectively across continents, we’re now heading towards newer, more reliable technology. With the advent of advanced cloud communication solutions, PSTN and ISDN tech is becoming less and less relevant.

In fact, Europe is on the path to completely replacing the PSTN by 2025, while other global nations plan to phase out PSTN by 2030. This phasing out of outdated communication technologies means we’ll see a growing migration to IP networks and cloud communications.

And businesses switching to new technologies — with advanced services and features — will need to re-evaluate their compliance regulations. This is because new tech and solutions, like VoIP, come with new regulations.

Regulatory Compliance Checklist

When evaluating your company’s compliance with telecommunications regulations, there are a few things to keep in mind:

Take time to research and learn about telecom compliance regulations (specifically for VoIP) in countries you operate in or want to expand to.
Understand compliance requirements for your specific business type, industry (Dodd-Frank or MiFID), and data collection and submission.
Make KYC information easily available to your provider/carrier.
Choose a provider/carrier that understands telecom compliance requirements and can help you comply accurately.
Speak with your legal team to better understand how these regulations can affect your business.
Set up emergency service access as required by each country you operate in or plan to expand to.

Work with a Provider that Understands Telecom Regulations

The best way to ensure your business maintains telecom compliance in the US and globally is to work with a provider that knows the importance of regulations. You can then lean on this provider to stay in compliance and use your phone service without any hiccups.

As part of finding the right provider, ask them how their service complies with global and local regulations and how they can support your business. To learn how Global Call Forwarding works, call us or chat with our global telephony experts today!

13 Ways to Manage High Call Volume

Meryl D'Sa-Wilson 10th January 2023 blog, Call Management

Lengthy hold times frustrate your callers – leading to poor customer experiences and low satisfaction rates. And after just one bad experience, 61% of consumers report they would stop purchasing from that company.

But, what if your business faces high call volumes? How do you handle unexpected spikes in order to prevent long wait times and poor caller experience?

These high-traffic periods are when your business gets the most out of its customers. But if you can’t handle the volume of calls, you may end up losing valuable customers.

In this article, we’ll dig deeper into fluctuating call volumes, why they happen, and 13 ways you can manage them. This way, you can quickly prepare for volume surges and resolve customer queries with call management tools and tips.

Issues with High and Fluctuating Call Volumes

Call volume is a metric that measures the number of calls received in a given period of time. As such, a high call volume is when a significant inbound call spike occurs that exceeds the amount you’re accustomed to or capable of handling.

The industry standard for high call volume begins when your business experiences a 10% increase from your normal rate. But, it’s important to note that it may start sooner or later, depending on your organization’s size and available resources.

While they might mean an increase in sales, fluctuating call volumes can also cause major issues for your business and teams, including:

Extended wait times for callers
Stress on agents and teams
Increased customer frustration and poor caller experience
Higher call abandonment rates
Inflated average handling times
Loss of business and revenue
Damaged brand reputation, trust, and loyalty.

Why Do These Spikes in Call Volume Occur?

So, why are you experiencing spikes in your call volume? There are many factors that contribute to a fluctuating call volume, including predictable and unpredictable causes.

Predictable Influxes

At times, spikes in your call volume may be foreseeable, allowing your business to prepare for a surge before it begins. Examples of predictable reasons for fluctuating call volumes include:

Holidays and seasonal fluctuations
New product launches
Product updates or upgrades
Marketing campaigns and initiatives
Promotions, discounts, sales, etc.

These situations are all within your business’ control. You typically know when these events begin and end. And thus, you have plenty of time and opportunity to develop a game plan.

Unpredictable Influxes

On the other hand, other situations may arise unexpectedly. This means your business and teams must react to the rise in calls with little to no warning. Reasons behind unpredictable spikes in call volume include:

Service disruptions
Infrastructure maintenance
Faulty products or mass recalls
PR crisis
Emergency situations and call center disasters
Inclement weather
Repeat callers

While these are unexpected scenarios, some may offer your teams a short preparation window. For example: If a hurricane is forecasted to hit one of your Florida branches, you can quickly prepare for potential power outages and branch closures. However, even with a little preparation time, unpredictable spikes in your call volume are primarily out of your control.

Overall, understanding the reasons behind spikes in call volume can help businesses plan for and manage them more effectively.

13 Ways to Handle High Call Volume and Traffic

Depending on the type of business you run, your employees may deal with varying levels of call traffic. This means a high volume of calls at certain times of the day or certain days of the week. Or, high call traffic during holidays and when your business runs promotions.

These high call volume periods bring a lot of customers to your business. However, if you are not equipped to handle high call traffic, then your business can lose out on potentially valuable customers.

So, what are some proven ways to better manage a high volume of incoming calls?

Schedule Agents and Employees
Add New Contact Channels
Route Calls Based on Time
Route Calls Based on Location
Design an Effective IVR System
Let Callers Know
Implement Call Groups
Focus on First Call Resolution
Offer Self-Service Options
Pay Attention to Call Center Data & Metrics
Offer Voicemail & Callback Options
Create a Knowledge Base or Support Center
Consider Outsourcing and BPOs

1. Schedule Agents and Employees

Well-planned schedules go a long way in enabling agents and employees to offer quick and responsive service. The way you distribute workload can determine how well your business or call center manages high call volume. If there are too few employees at a time, then they will be overburdened by calls and may not provide the best service. Similarly, if calls are not distributed equally, then some employees will work harder than others. Pre-planning schedules can help distribute the workload appropriately.

2. Add New Contact Channels

If your business is using only 1-2 contact channels and is unable to resolve interactions within the time promised, then you may need to consider adding new channels. For example, it is most common for businesses to offer phone, live chat, and email as customer channels. However, more and more businesses are using conversational AI or chatbots, trouble tickets, and video conferencing as customer service channels.

Offering more convenient and preferable ways to connect with your business not only helps manage call volume but also gives customers options to choose from. Not every customer prefers phone conversations. In fact, customers now expect live chat and chatbots to ease the process of inquiring about products or getting support. And so, your business can meet customer expectations while reducing the burden on employees answering phone calls.

3. Route Calls Based on Time

Call forwarding and routing options allow businesses to route calls based on the time a call is coming in. This is called time-based routing. You can set up time-based routing to forward incoming calls during specific time periods to different locations. For example:

Route calls to different office locations
Route calls to remote teams assisting in customer service efforts
Forward calls to voicemail where callers can leave a message or request a callback
Forward calls to an offshore BPO to assist with high volume of calls

This helps your business distribute incoming calls across different platforms based on predetermined rules. By doing so, your employees and customer service teams are better equipped to manage high call traffic.

4. Route Calls Based on Location

You can also route calls based on the location of the caller: location-based routing. This is a helpful feature for companies that want to adopt a follow the sun support model to provide global customer service.

You can set this feature up beforehand, just like you do with time-based routing. Then as callers call, they will be routed to the customer service team closest to them, in their time zone and language, as well. This can help reduce the stress that might otherwise fall on the main customer service office.

5. Design an Effective IVR System

A cloud IVR system can go a long way in effective call management. An IVR is an automated voice response system that interacts with callers to assist them either by transferring them to the right agent and department or by offering self-service options. Here are some ways an IVR system enables better call management:

Transfer callers to the right agents
Offer troubleshooting assistance
Offer information about the company (hours, locations, etc), key products and services, and more

A well-designed IVR system can help callers with common or simple questions as well as self-service options so agents and employees are available to assist customers with more complex questions and processes.

6. Let Callers Know

To prevent high call volumes, consider sending your customers email and text message blasts. This allows you to communicate emergencies, holiday closures, and more to your entire customer base simultaneously instead of fielding individual calls. Additionally, place a message on your website to make visitors aware of the issue or change.

With these explanations in place, customers are less likely to bombard your call center looking for answers. And this leaves more time for your teams to focus on complex issues.

Still experiencing high call volumes? Let callers know you’re experiencing a surge as well as the predicted wait time. And direct them to alternative communication channels, callback options, and support resources, if applicable. This helps minimize customer frustration and can even reduce the amount of calls you receive.

Here are some examples of scripts to get you started:

“Thank you for calling [business name]. We are currently experiencing high call volumes. We apologize for the inconvenience this may cause. Our estimated wait time is currently [wait time]. If you would like to avoid the wait, you may also reach out to us via email at [customer support email], or through our website’s live chat service. Thank you for your patience, and we look forward to assisting you.”

“Thank you for calling [business name]. We are currently experiencing high call volumes. Our estimated wait time is currently [wait time]. We apologize for this inconvenience. Don’t want to wait? You can request a callback option. All you have to do is provide us with your phone number and the best time to reach you, and one of our representatives will call you back as soon as possible. Alternatively, you can find answers on our website’s support and FAQ page. Thank you for your patience, and we look forward to assisting you.”

7. Implement Call Groups

Call groups, also called ring groups, enable you to automatically send callers to a specific group of lines based on the IVR option selected or the number dialed. These groups can include certain agents, entire departments, or multiple teams.

You can use this feature to streamline your call management efforts by effectively distributing calls and ensuring callers reach the most qualified reps.

And if callers swarm your ring groups, you can establish backup groups for overflow management and failover strategies. This assures that calls are answered, even if all other agents are unavailable.

8. Focus on First Call Resolution

If a customer’s issue isn’t fully resolved during their initial call, they will likely call your business back to follow up. When this happens, it leads to multiple calls, higher call volumes, and time wasted for both the customer and the call center. On top of that, it’s important to note that every time a customer must call a company about the same issue, customer satisfaction drops by 15%.

To minimize the impact of repeat callers, companies must focus on first call resolution by:

Providing clear and concise information
Addressing all of the customer’s concerns at once
Encouraging customers to use self-service options
Tracking customer history and previous interactions using applications like a CRM
Establishing quality control and follow-up procedures to ensure issue resolution and customer satisfaction.

9. Offer Self-Service Options

Another way to manage high call volume is to offer customers self-service options so they don’t need to call your business each time they need something. Some ways you can do this include:

Setting up an auto-attendant
Creating a support center
Allowing customers to submit trouble or issue tickets
Writing guides and how-tos on your blog that customers can follow
Developing online processes that are easy-to-follow
Using content and UX writing to make processes more user-friendly

The goal is to enable customers to help themselves by making clear and easy processes or by providing guides. This way, they don’t have to always rely on your customer support teams for assistance.

10. Pay Attention to Call Center Data & Metrics

Analyze data and metrics to identify when and where there was a spike in call volumes. Was there a promotion running or a new product roll-out? Did a feature have issues? Was it the holiday season? Which locations received the most calls? What times did your business experience high call volume? And so on. This data can help you better prepare for the future.

11. Offer Voicemail & Callback Options

As with other communication channels, it is a good idea to also offer voicemail and callback services. Some phone service providers offer a callback feature with their service. This could be a widget placed on your website or a button that customers click to receive a call or schedule an appointment with a representative.

For example, Global Call Forwarding offers a CallMe Click service. This is a widget that you can place on your website. Web visitors can click on it and include their contact information to receive an automatic call back from your business.

Voicemail and callback options help callers leave a message or schedule a time to talk with a representative. This is a good option during periods of high call traffic so customers know that your business will return their call or get in touch with them soon.

12. Create a Knowledge Base or Support Center

As mentioned above, a knowledge base or support center can help your customers use self-service options to resolve their issues. A knowledge base is a series of posts or articles published on your website that answer common questions, offer how-to-use guides and troubleshooting help, and provide any other assistance your customers may need.

By having this resource available, customers can help themselves instead of calling your business time and again, especially for small queries. This leaves room for customers with more complex queries to get through to your customer service team.

13. Consider Outsourcing and BPOs

Lastly, you may consider outsourcing your call center to an offshore BPO in order to support high volume. These services often have access to call center features and tools mentioned above that help them manage high call volumes for multiple companies.

Be Proactive with Call Management

One of the best ways to handle high and fluctuating call volumes is to plan ahead. Understand where your call spikes are coming from and put plans into place to prevent and support these call volumes.

Global Call Forwarding offers various call management tools for businesses like yours to manage call volumes and offer a better caller experience to your customers. Speak with our representatives today to see how our call flow builder can help your business communicate better!

Guide to International Number Ordering Requirements

Luke Genoyer 6th January 2023 blog, International Business

International phone numbers allow businesses to establish a local presence in other countries.

Incoming calls can be routed to any phone, PBX, or SIP destination worldwide. Users can also make outbound calls with their phone number shown as the caller ID.

To provide these numbers, Global Call Forwarding must adhere to international phone number regulations. We comply with these regulatory requirements to minimize the risk of disruption to your numbers and service.

This guide to international number ordering requirements was created to make this process as easy as possible.

Which Countries Require Documentation?

Countries around the world are becoming increasingly strict when it comes to telecommunications regulations and compliance. These regulations vary from country to country.

The following popular countries require documentation to order a number:

Singapore
UAE
France
Spain
Germany
Bahrain
Austria
Belgium
China
Denmark
Hong Kong
Thailand
Japan
Malaysia
Saudi Arabia
Turkey
Vietnam
Taiwan
Poland
Netherlands
Finland

These are some examples of countries but it is not a complete list. For more information, please contact a Global Call Forwarding representative.

What are the Acceptable Types of Documentation?

When ordering international phone numbers, your provider may request different types of documentation. In order to make the process of number provisioning as fast as possible, we need your help gathering and providing the necessary documentation.

The most commonly requested types of documentation are proof of address, proof of ID, and a letter of intent.

These documents should be sent to our customer service department.

Acceptable Proof of Address

Acceptable Proof of Address can be one of the following:

Utility bill (gas, electric, or fixed-line telephone bill) within the last 3 months
Bank statement within the last 3 months of a lease/tenant agreement

In some cases, especially for geographic numbers, proof of address is required from the same city in which the number is located.

Acceptable Forms of Identification

Acceptable Forms of Identification can be one of the following:

Passport
Driver’s license
National ID card

In some cases, our provider will request a selfie with the end-user holding their identification.

What if this Information is Sensitive?

We take our responsibility to safeguard your sensitive personal information very seriously. We apply technical controls when processing this data, and all our staff undergoes training on the proper handling of this data.

How Long Does it Take for Documents to be Approved?

In most cases, it can take between 3-5 business days for documentation approval.

While we do our best to activate your numbers as quickly as possible, timelines can vary depending on the country origination.

Our vendors reserve the right in their discretion to deny phone numbers or request additional information at any stage of the process.

How Can I View the Status of my Submission?

Once your documents have been approved and the order has been processed, you will receive an email confirmation with further details. You can check the status of your submission at any time by contacting our customer service team.

International Number Ordering with Global Call Forwarding

Global Call Forwarding has been a reliable global telephony provider for over 26 years. We have extensive experience navigating international telecommunications regulations and providing reliable services to multinational clients.

Let us help you navigate through compliance requirements for purchasing international phone numbers and make this process as smooth as possible.

What is International Local Presence?

Luke Genoyer 5th January 2023 blog, International Business

Local presence is one of the most powerful features of our cloud-phone service.

With local presence dialing, agents can connect with between 4-10x more prospects by showing a local number as their caller ID.

Most telephony providers only offer local presence dialing for domestic phone numbers, but we can help your sales and support teams establish a local presence internationally.

How International Local Presence Works

Global Call Forwarding provides local and toll-free numbers from most countries in the world.

These numbers can be used to receive incoming calls and also to make outbound calls with a dedicated caller ID. This means that customers can show a local caller ID for outbound calls that corresponds to the destination they’re calling.

International Local Presence Example

Say, agents are dialing prospects in London. They can show a +44 204 phone number. Or, if they’re calling customers in New York City, they can show a +1 646 phone number. They can do so, no matter their location — India, Australia, Canada, USA, etc.

When to Use Local Presence

Local presence dialing has many potential use cases. Here are some of the times when local presence dialing proves most effective:

Cold calling prospects in other cities.
Making international calls.
Leaving a voicemail asking the prospect to call you back.

Benefits of International Local Presence

Cold calling is tough business. With spammers and robocallers on the rise, prospects are less likely than ever to answer cold calls. This is why local presence dialing exists.

Improve Connection Rates

Establishing a local presence is especially important when making international calls. Prospects are far less likely to answer calls from other countries:

People are four times more likely to answer calls from local numbers.
Almost 75% of Americans won’t answer calls from unknown and non-local numbers.

The stats above prove that businesses will increase the return on their outbound calling efforts by using local presence dialing. When more people pick up, time spent dialing becomes more profitable, as agents are more likely to have productive conversations.

Route Calls Back to the Right Rep

It’s common knowledge that many inside sales calls go unanswered. This leaves the called party with a missed call notification or a voicemail, along with the number that called them.

International local presence dialing enables agents to show their own local numbers as the caller ID. This means that if the called party returns the call, it will be routed back to the agent that called them.

Types of Local Presence

You can use different types of local presence dialing with Global Call Forwarding:

Call Masking with an International Phone Number

While number masking might have a negative connotation, it is a powerful tool used by businesses around the world. Call masking refers to the technique of “masking” or showing your business phone number for outbound calling.

It helps you keep your actual number private and lets you show a dedicated business phone number instead. You can also use number masking to call internationally with a local phone number.

Using Privately-Owned Numbers

Some companies already have phone numbers that they want to make calls with.

They might already have contracts with existing carriers, but want to use our international voice service to call globally. In most cases, this provides major cost-savings for international calling, in addition to better call quality and stability.

If customers can prove ownership of these phone numbers, we allow them to use these numbers as their Caller ID.

Get Calling With Local Numbers

We would love to help you get started with local presence dialing. Sign up for a local phone number today and start making calls anywhere in the world.

8 Global Expansion Mistakes and How to Avoid Them [2024]

Kim Sayers 20th December 2022 blog, International Business

While global expansion efforts often yield significant benefits for businesses, the transition to a new market may also include significant challenges and uncertainties.

For this reason, this article will discuss the top global expansion mistakes to help you avoid common setbacks. This way, you can properly prepare for the transition by building an effective expansion plan, ensuring your business’ international success.

What Expanding Internationally Really Means For Businesses

The first global expansion mistake businesses make is thinking the work is done once they successfully enter a new market.

By definition, global expansion refers to when companies extend their operations to new markets and regions. But, this process involves much more than simply selling your products and services in your target countries.

In fact, sustained international growth requires tons of coordination before, during, and after you enter a new market. So, it’s essential to reflect on your business and if expansion is the next best step.

Is Your Business Ready for Global Expansion?

Global expansion isn’t right for every business. And if you try to expand before your operations and teams are ready, it could result in failure. So, before planning to expand globally, it’s important to first evaluate if you’re ready to transition internationally.

Start by asking yourself:

Why do you want to take your business to a global level? What goals are you trying to achieve?
Do you have enough resources and people power to expand globally while maintaining the success of your domestic/current markets?
Does your company have the financial means to sustain international growth? Have you considered moving, labor, shipping, equipment, and other costs?
Is there a stable demand for your products or services in the markets you plan to expand to?
Is your management team prepared to meet international demands and challenges?

Take time to decide if this is the right move for your business and learn what factors to consider. Read more in our ultimate guide to global expansion.

8 Global Expansion Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

When properly approached, a global expansion strategy holds many benefits for businesses, including:

Increased ROI, sales, and revenue
Access to new markets, skilled talent, and a broader customer base
Exposure to foreign investment and growth opportunities
Improved company reputation and global market perception
Enhanced competitive edge and more.

So, what are the common roadblocks that may be fatal to your expansion plans, and how do you avoid them? Let’s discuss the 8 most common mistakes businesses make when expanding internationally and how to avoid them. This way, you can dodge these pitfalls and successfully grow your business on an international scale.

1. Entering New Markets Without Researching

Entering a new market without data to back your expansion decision is a recipe for disaster. There will inevitably be markets that are not a good fit for your business. So, without proper market research, you subject your business to unnecessary risk. And this could lead to major problems such as diminished reputation, over-saturated markets, loss of revenue and time, etc.

To ensure a smooth expansion, conduct thorough local market research and test your product throughout your target regions. These tactics will help you determine:

Demand for your product or service
Target audience segments
Consumer perceptions and expectations
Competitive pricing
Direct and indirect competitors
Unique selling proposition
Government regulations
Effective sales, marketing, and advertising methods
Local language, culture, and so on

Using this information, you can adequately plan your international expansion and ensure you enter the right markets for your business goals.

2. Using the Same Marketing and Sales Strategies

No market is identical. As such, the same marketing strategies and sales tactics that work in your domestic market may be less effective in others. Everything from how customers place purchases to their preferred communication channels varies throughout different regions.

This is because a country’s cultural and economic background impacts purchase frequency and customer lifetime value (CLV). So, failing to adapt your strategies could result in decreased conversions and, ultimately, a failed global expansion.

To avoid this mistake, it’s vital to adapt your marketing and sales strategies to the needs and preferences of each market.

3. Not Taking Advantage of International Talent

One of a business’s biggest assets is its people. And growing internationally gives your business access to a larger talent pool than ever before. This not only allows you to diversify your teams but also your range of skill sets. On top of that, local talent already has an in-depth knowledge of your new markets. You can use their know-how to enhance your local efforts and better engage with customers.

As you can see, hiring international talent holds many benefits for your business. So, failing to do so would be a critical global expansion mistake.

4. Neglecting Content Localization Strategies

Conversions become increasingly harder to achieve when your global customers cannot understand what you’re offering. And while translating content is a good start, even this strategy can lead to misinterpretations. Or worse, your content can come across as offensive to customers.

Businesses are now turning to content localization as a solution, which includes:

Accommodating local language needs and preferences
Opening physical offices
Observing regional traditions and cultures
Supporting local businesses and talent
Providing global customer support, etc.

This strategy not only helps meet the language requirements of your markets, but also considers cultural customs, specific market preferences, local practices, and so on. The result is a more globally accessible and credible business with improved customer satisfaction and sales.

Always localize content before expanding or entering a new market for the greatest effect.

5. Not Getting a Local Business Phone Number

How your teams will communicate locally is another factor often overlooked during a global expansion.

Using the same phone number you use in your home market is a bad idea for 2 major reasons:

Low response rates – Customers are less likely to answer unknown or unrecognizable phone numbers.
Expensive for callers – If overseas customers choose to contact your business, they will have to pay high international calling fees.

Enter: Local phone numbers.

Buy local phone numbers for each of your target markets. This not only increases connection rates but also charges local calling rates, which are relatively inexpensive.

And, if you sign up with a global telephony provider, you can forward your incoming calls to any location or device. This means your business doesn’t have to be physically present in these new markets to provide services to global customers.

Case Study: CROSSNET launches in new markets with local numbers from GCF

6. Overlooking the Value of Expert Advice

It goes without saying, there are many best practices for successful international expansion. With so many moving parts, it’s easy to make mistakes or miss something important, especially if you’re treading in unfamiliar territory.

This is why expert advice is extremely valuable for companies looking to grow. They can help you understand all business-related requirements, local legislation, and other important factors in your new market including:

Standard payment methods
Employment and payroll laws
Tax regulations
Foreign exchange rates
Contract laws
Corporate and securities regulations
Transfer pricing, and so on.

While expert advice can be expensive, the results are well worth it. These experts help your business avoid risks and better understand the inner workings of the target market.

7. Only Offering Phone Services in Home Market Language

Since adding new target markets means gaining new customer bases, each comes with its own needs. Among the most critical of these needs is language. And while content localization is a good starting point, it’s not enough. To satisfy these new customers at a basic level, you must also offer phone services in their language.

Let’s say you own a US company. One of your new customers in South America is browsing your localized support page, trying to find a solution to their issue. But since their issue is complex, they have to contact your business directly for an answer. So, they call your business to find that your call system operates only in English. Somehow, they reach the support department to find only English-speaking support reps again.

What happens next?

This customer will most likely grow frustrated and hang up. They might even cancel their service if they can’t find a fix and sign up with one of your competitors that meets their language needs.

To avoid this, consider setting up a multilingual IVR that caters to all of your incoming callers’ language requirements. On top of that, it’s a good idea to hire reps that speak each of your target markets’ languages, particularly for sales, support, and other customer-facing roles. This way, customers always feel supported and taken care of when communicating with your business, leading to improved customer satisfaction.

8. Disconnected Team Communication

Communication affects many aspects of your business, including efficiency, productivity, employee trust, innovation, collaboration, turnover rates, and so on. When miscommunication occurs, it directly affects these factors in addition to other business metrics.

In fact, results of a study showed that miscommunication costs companies with 100 employees an average of $420,000 annually. And, the chance of miscommunication only increases as you expand your business and add more offices and employees to the mix.

With a VoIP service, you can connect teams distributed across multiple locations through one business phone system. This service is accessible from any location or IP-enabled device, making it a great solution for remote teams, too. You can also scale your VoIP service, as needed. Simply, add or remove users as your business expands globally.

Additionally, cloud phone providers typically offer advanced features with their services that help boost team communication and collaboration, like free in-network calling. And it’s all easily manageable through an online portal.

So, you can centralize business communication, connect distributed teams, access advanced features, and save on traditional phone system costs – all through one solution.

Expand Globally with Global Call Forwarding

Now that you know the top mistakes businesses make when expanding globally and how to avoid them, you’re ready to expand!

Global Call Forwarding can help you transition into an international business. We offer reliable global voice services in 160+ countries, which covers over 90% of the global economy. You can get local, toll-free, and international numbers in each of your target countries to add global coverage to your phone system.

We also offer free in-network calling, centralized call control, multilingual IVR, and more to fit your global expansion needs.

To learn more about how we can help you establish a global presence, call us at +1 (561) 908-6171 or chat with us online!