An IVR system, when created right, can positively influence office productivity and efficiency. You can improve caller experience while distributing calls effectively and evenly with an automated system. However, there are some common mistakes often made when designing an IVR system and we’ll highlight them in this post.
Designing an IVR System
An IVR system or interactive voice response system is meant to ease the burden on the caller and the receiver. This is especially useful for companies that have large incoming call volumes. The interactive voice system, if executed properly, can reduce wait times, assist callers in completing tasks themselves, and also transfer the call to the right agent or department.
Thanks to growth in telecommunications, IVR technology has advanced to the point that it can be fully automated and operate without an agent needing to interfere. It will answer calls by using prerecorded messages and prompts to help callers navigate and find a resolution, to help them help themselves. And yet, there are some areas where you may fail when designing the system. Let’s look at the top 3 along with some other common mistakes.
1. Making the Prompts Too Complicated
When callers contact your business, it is usually to make an inquiry or have an issue resolved. And so in such cases, the sooner they can get assistance, the better. If your prompts are too complicated or too vague, callers may have trouble navigating the automated IVR system. It may prove hard for them to find the right answer for their concern. Additionally, if your prompts are too detailed and long, chances are, they may forget the options due to zoning out or not paying enough attention. This will result in misplaced calls and generate more frustration.
Solution: Provide only necessary information, keeping it simple.
Consider the value of each statement and see if you can redo it to provide basic information in less than two sentences. Remember: less is more. And reducing wait times is important as well.
2. Providing Too Many (Irrelevant) Menu Options
When designing your IVR system, keep in mind that while you want to provide as many options as you can, you do not want to overwhelm your callers. Confused callers will select the wrong option and end up in the wrong department which defeats the purpose of having an automated system.
Solution: Arrange menu options in easy-to-follow categories.
Consider the most common issues or concerns that arise and create menu options accordingly. This way, callers won’t get confused and will find what they are looking for quickly. Check out our article about IVR strategies for ideas on how to map out your system.
3. No Satisfaction Survey
It is important to know how your IVR system is doing and how callers are interacting with it. The whole point of such a system is to improve caller experience and increase customer satisfaction. Therefore, it is essential to study if your callers are satisfied with your customer service efforts.
Solution: Include a customer satisfaction survey.
You may choose to include an automated survey at the end of the call or send followup email or text messages. Remember to first ask your caller if they’d be interested in providing feedback before sending them IVR survey material.
Some Other IVR System Mistakes to Consider
- Recordings that are unclear or of poor quality
- Not enough language preferences
- Poorly organized information
- Long wait times or no approximate wait times
- Jarring hold music or voice volumes
- No call-back options
- Hard to reach live representatives (in the case of fully automated IVR systems)
- Outdated information
Create Your Ideal IVR System
Testing and feedback are two important aspects to take into account when setting up your IVR system. You want to make sure that it creates an easy-to-follow and comfortable experience for your caller. To learn more about IVR and how you can get the service, call us at 1 (888) 908 6171.
