Call Flow

Choose Your Own Adventure

When I was a kid, I read RL Stine’s Give Yourself Goosebumps books. Anyone who was born in the mid 80’s will know what I’m talking about. If you weren’t, these books fell into the ‘choose your own adventure’ category. Fast forward to present day and I’m reminded of these books every time I call my bank – I choose my own adventure and it often turns into a nightmare!

Don't let your IVR become a nightmare for callers.

Don’t let your IVR become a nightmare for callers.

So how do you ensure your phone system’s menu (or Interactive Voice Recording) doesn’t become a nightmare for unsuspecting callers? Keep reading to find out.

Problem #1

The biggest mistake companies make when recording their menu prompts is choosing a staff member to record them. Sure, this is quick and easy – but often times that’s how the recordings sound to incoming callers. What’s more, over time these get rerecorded by other team members and end up a mix-match of varying voices and quality.

Solution?

Have a professional Voice Artist recording your messages. This will ensure you have a consistent sound across all levels of your phone system. A professional Voice Artist will also deliver a pitch perfect, measured read which provides your callers with a clear easy-to-follow menu system.

Problem #2

When a client or potential lead enters your menu system, they’re most likely thinking about several things at once. “What’s for lunch?” “What I’m going to do when I get off the phone” “What time is that meeting?” So when you throw 5 to 7 menu options at them, they get flustered and forget what their options were in the first place! The result? They hang up. *click*

Solution?

Try keeping your menu levels to a maximum of 3 or 4. We also recommend placing the command (Press 4) at the end of the subject (For account payable
) as this helps the caller navigate your menu and reduces caller drop outs. Our copywriters are experts in this field.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg! If you’d like to discover more helpful hints on improving your IVR menus and avoiding IVR nightmares, check out our Call Flow Tips Infographic here.

– Lachy