There are many benefits of using IVR (Interactive Voice Response) System in automating information distribution, but there is one benefit which I would like to discuss here.

There are many business activities where information keep changing and it is imperative to keep the updated information available to any customer, or caller. Some examples are :-

IVR Benefit : Updated Information always

1. Current trading price of a stock price of a company,
2. Current bill of consumer like mobile phone or electricity
3. Confirmation of payment made in Credit Card
4. Online tracking of courier dispatch
Many more!

IVR system can perform faster, better than human agent in such scenario where data update rate is quite high and accurate information is ‘perishable item’ as in vegetable. In a traditional system where there is no IVR, this updated information would be searched by human agent using a computer and then inform the caller.

Most of the time, the human agent may not be willing to search for the price of the same stock market again and again, and may inform the old price which may result in direct financial loss to the caller. An IVR would always retrieve the latest price automatically and provide the latest information.

Normally, only those people call up to an IVR for any information who actually need it. It is impossible to know who need the information at a given time, so, it is not desirable to send out information to all registered users anytime some changes take place in a stock price. IVR can always fetch the updated information for the caller anytime. Any unwanted information is a spam and this has resulted in NDNC ( National Do Not Call ) registry in any countries where ‘tele-caller’ companies are fined heavily if they make calls to NDNC registered phone numbers.

Since IVR application will always connect to a centralised database for retrieving the latest information, we have one more ‘check’ how IVR is being used by callers. If the IVR is retrieving the data, we can be sure that the caller had successfullt navigated to the menu where s/he gets the information. This can work as a measure of success of the IVR.

So, if you are a service providers where you need to provide updated information to your customers, IVR system is very useful to automate such calls/enquiries. IVR Application will automatically retrive from your updated data while providing information to caller eliminating your worry ‘how to provide customers with updated information’.

MLM ( Multi Level Marketing) can be defined as a marketing strategy where its sales force earns from their selling as well as from those sales generated by people whom they recruit to sell. So, essentially if a sales person creates many successful sales person under him, he generates enough revenue without himself involving in any direct sales! Amway is one of the most famous MLM companies in the world with many products which they sell through their members only.

MLM is also known as Networking Marketing as well as referral marketing, there are many MLM companies in India now a days.

IVR in Multi Level Marketing Companies

The reach of MLM companies is now not confined to city or town areas in India where internet penetration is high, but also to villages where there is almost no penetration of internet and computer, but mobile phones have reached. So, providing updated account information as well as other MLM activities like adding new recruit, lodge any complaints using an IVR may not only add provide added facility to MLM company, but also increase its service area.

What IVR for MLM Companies can do ?

Here are few tasks an IVR can perform for MLM Companies 24 hours a day, without any break and any manual intervention :-

1. It can register any enquiry of new member which could be immediately alerted to any existing member in the same area from where one has made the call.

2. IVR can be used to retrieve member account information like commissions earned by his sales as well as his down-line distributors or any new member additions to his network. These instant and updated information keep a member motivated all the time.

3. IVR can be configured to act as an outbound IVR that can be used to blast mass voice message to all its members any important news, new scheme, discount or any service disruptions etc.

4. IVR can be used to play back recorded voice message of the managing director or owner of the MLM company which builds confidence in its members. This can also be used to gauge member enthusiasm about the MLM company.

So, if you own an MLM company and not using IVR, most probably, you are missing a tool which can not only increase efficiency of your MLM company, but also increase its profitability as well as reputation.

5. IVR can be used as complete automated complaint management system for its members. IVR based complaint management system offers many benefits like lodging complaints using just a phone call without any human intervention by the MLM company.

Apart from these, IVR could b beneficial to automate many mundane and routine tasks performed manually which can result in decrease in operational cost, increase efficiency resulting in increased profitability.

Recently, while I was talking to one of my clients about a customised IVR solution for his office, he suddenly asked me,”What benefits would I have by installing this IVR thing in the first place ?”. Actually, I was startled! I was on a paid consultancy chat and I was actually surprised to hear that question! I always thought that benefits of IVR systems are obvious and almost all in industry are convinced about it! So I took some time to reply convincingly about benefits of having IVR in his office.

But I thought, I must write some points about benefits of having IVR system in your office :-

1. Extend your office automation to your caller/customer
You have installed sophisticated software to automate many activities in your office and are experiencing immense benefit of it, but have you extended the same benefit to your caller as well as customer ? If not, please install IVR system today and extend all those automation benefits to your the callers as well as to your customers. Provide all information about company, contact details categorically like marketing, technical etc.

2. Attending the call at the first ring
Saves time to any industry, both the caller, and for the industry. Should I explain how time is money, OK, let me! 3 rings use 8 seconds and if you receive 300 calls a day (8 hours), and picks up calls after 3 rings every time, you waste ( 300 X 8 = 2400 seconds) 40 minutes in total of your callers! As well as yours so, it makes 1 hour and 2 minutes! It may not be possible for a human to pick up a call in one ring, but trust me, an IVR system will pick up the ring without any failure, every time.

3. Multilingual greetings to the caller as per caller ID
An IVR can speak many languages and can decide which language to speak by the caller ID just like an intelligent human! Making a caller, who is a prospective customer, feel at home with a his native language would surely put you at advantageous position than your competitor!

4. Personalised greetings to known caller
Make your caller feel important, get IVR to greet him with his first name! Yes, IVR can do that if the caller is known to IVR by its caller ID. It can even greet him as per his sex, time of the day and even wish him happy birth day/anniversary if he happens to call your office on his birth day! Though all these may not be necessary, but it surely puts the caller at ease and gives out a good impression about your office.

5. IVR works 24 hours a day and it never greets a caller with tired voice!
Your office is now open 24 hours a day, manned by IVR to answer all calls without any tiring voice. It will also present all information, stores message, can alert to designated person in case of emergency, automatically! Depending on nature of the office, industry where IVR system is installed, it can even give out emergency instruction to the caller!

So, these are the general benefits of having an IVR in your office. Though, there would be many special advantages and benefits depending on the industry where IVR is being used. I would just give an example here.

Suppose an support engineer of an ISP ( internet service provider) visits a customer premises for attending a net connection down complaint. He finds that some settings needs to be changed at his server end. What does he do ? He calls up some person in hs server room and ask to change the required settings for that customer. And that fixes the net connection! But many things may go wrong, the person in server room may be talking to some other person, he may have to answer nature call, it may become that all people in server room have left for the day as it was Saturday! But, if it had IVR which could change settings as per customer ID, it could immediately do the job and field support engineer would make the customer happy with quick service! Saves money, time and earn good will and happy customer!

If you know some special benefit, please send me in!