The Whats and Hows of Adding a VoIP System to Your Ecommerce Business

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When it comes to running an ecommerce business, one of the biggest hurdles is standing out from the competition who are often huge, trusted companies such as Amazon. A big part of this is the assumption that because a company is bigger, there will be better resources for customer service as more money can be invested in it. 

As a result, your customer service is very important. Providing a good service can help build trust between your business and your customers, and ensure that they bring their business back a second time. 

In a physical store, customers have the luxury of directly asking workers for assistance. But with ecommerce, they have to rely on virtual forms of communication. If you’re still relying on a landline for your customer services, it might be worth considering introducing a VoIP system. 

What is a VoIP system?

VoIP stands for voice over internet protocol – or, in other words, phones that communicate via the internet rather than a physical wire. It is a popular business-phone system that is replacing landline telephones due to many perks that come along with the flexibility of using the internet. 

This could include three-way calling, call routing, and video conferencing, and the software can be accessed on any device. As a result, you can offer a much more diverse customer service that can be customized according to the complaint/issue at hand. 

Not only is a VoIP more flexible, but it’s cheaper than landlines, while also not compromising on the quality of the call. You can save money with free internal calls, cheaper operational costs and cheaper external call costs, and possibly even international phone calls. It can also help you to integrate your technology, which can enable more effective customer experience analytics. 

It can also be used alongside an AI-based customer service solution for responding to written queries – a combination that can be particularly useful during the busier periods such as the holiday season. 

But let’s look into the benefits of VoIP in a little more detail. 

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1. Improving your customer experience

Providing a good customer experience is always the goal when it comes to customer service. You want people to leave feeling satisfied that their query has been answered and dealt with effectively. Because of this, VoIP can help streamline customer service calls by directing people to the person the customer wants to speak to quickly and effectively. 

This can reduce time wasted by customer service employees having to manually redirect calls to a different department. VoIP also has queuing systems, which means that just because your employees are busy, the customer won’t be automatically cut off when it rings out. They will have to wait and listen to the hold music – but they will at least get some help when it becomes available. 

The quality of the actual phone call is also worth considering. When choosing a VoIP, you want to consider whether you want employees to use a softphone or a deskphone. The main point of consideration is how important flexibility is to you. A softphone can be installed on any device, so customer service employees would not be tied to the office desk in order to respond to calls. 

2. Building trust and improving your company image

Being easy to contact and communicate with is essential as a business. If a customer hasn’t heard of your business before, they may be skeptical. But by being open and available, you can lay down the groundwork for trust. 

It goes without saying that contact information also plays a role in your company image. If a customer Googles you, and no phone number or email address (at the very least) comes up, they will question your legitimacy. Instead, you should establish yourself as an industry authority from the very first interaction. Then, when the customer has a query and reaches out, they will be greeted with a streamlined and effective approach. 

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3. Integrate your technology

VoIP systems also have the added perk of enabling you to integrate all of your technology. Many VoIP systems allow you to connect your social media accounts to your call system, meaning that all forms of customer communication can be found in the same place. 

It might also be worth dedicating some time to automated business process discovery as there may be opportunities to reduce your customer service team’s manual load, which can dramatically improve the quality and efficiency of the service you offer. 

4. Remote working and mobility 

As previously touched upon, VoIP systems can be installed on any device, meaning your company can open its mind to remote and flexible working structures. 

While many are beginning to return to the office, there is an expectation for remote working to be allowed to continue on at least a part-time basis. 

This is an important consideration as many people are still not comfortable returning to the workplace or experiencing the crowded trains for their commute. As a company, you should be prioritizing your customer service employee wellbeing, in order to help your employees provide the best service possible. 

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5. Keep business and personal separate

A common mistake for new and small businesses is using the same phone or number for personal use, and business. This is a huge mistake because the last thing you want is international calls popping up in the middle of the night asking for a refund! 

VoIP creates a distinct line between the business and personal and enables you to have procedures in place so that if your employees are unavailable, an automation service can take over. 

Get Connected

Do your research and compare different VoIP providers before committing to any one service. Consider the above perks, which ones are most important to your business, and use this to guide your investment choices. 

Overall, you can expect a VoIP to make your workload more manageable, and significantly reduce your outgoing costs. 

Jenna Bunnell
Jenna Bunnell is the Senior Manager for Content Marketing at Dialpad, an AI-incorporated cloud-hosted unified communications system that provides valuable call details for business owners and sales representatives. She is driven and passionate about communicating a brand’s design sensibility and visualizing how content can be presented in creative and comprehensive ways.

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