Category Archives: office phone system

Business Telephone Tips – Easy to Implement, Customer Pleasing, On Hold Messages

Ask any business what they’re investing in, and most will say their website. But even though internet sites and ecommerce are growing at an enormous rate, you may be surprised to know that “telemarketing” dwarfs the amount of sales generated by websites. That’s because consumers have generations of experience getting exactly what they want when they call a business. The phone is still faster that looking it up on Google and then trying to find the right answer on a website.

Right now, customer service provided by telephone is the dominant way for customers to reach businesses like yours. So before you invest everything in your website, consider how inexpensive it can be to increase sales and satisfaction with a few telephone tips for customer service representatives:

Answer the phone with a “live” person: “call centers” (especially the ones in India!) have an increasingly poor reputation. Just answering the phone with a live person starts you off on the right foot.

Don’t use a speaker phone! Pick up the receiver, or use a headset (they’re great for comfort and ease of use) and your caller gets a personal sound. We’ve all had our calls answered with a speaker phone: it sounds like they can’t be bothered, the audio quality is poor, and we end up shouting to be understood. Treat your caller like you’d like to be treated

Create a “phone answering script” that is personal and polite. Don’t try to say too much (Thank you for calling XYZ company, home of the widget. My name is Joe and I’m here to provide excellent service. How may I help you today?” Is that really any way to answer the phone?

If you use an automated answering system, limit the number of options: 3 or 4 should be plenty. And do you really need to have several levels of options? Put yourself in the customer’s shoes. They are the customer, right?

Train your customer service reps so they know more than the customer does! How many times have you called a call center to ask questions, and the rep has had to constantly “check their sources” for “additional information”? With just a little experience you can understand your “Frequently Asked Questions.” The 80/20 rule usually applies: 80% of your callers will ask the same questions covering just 20% of the information. Train, and test, your customer service reps. By the way: what are your customers’ biggest problems? If you don’t know, try working on the phones yourself. Then you’ll be able to train your reps better!

Staff your phones properly. We’ve all been told “We are experiencing a higher than normal volume of calls” way too many times. We all know that it’s not higher than “normal.” Great customer service builds great customer loyalty.

What if you do answer with an automated system, and your customers do have to wait (in a “queue” which is like waiting in line) for their call to be answered? What should your caller listen to? Some people like silence or music so they can do other things. I’ve had the experience of waiting in a queue for a few minutes and completely forgetting what I called for. Even when it was important. So consider giving your caller helpful information while on hold. Don’t make it a pushy radio commercial, and don’t try to record it yourself (it won’t sound professional).

Telephone Magic USB Message On Hold Player



A Message On Hold System can make all the difference in the world, as it plays CUSTOMIZED messages about YOUR business with appropriate background music. The latest digital On Hold Message player type utilizes USB Flash Media stick to easily transfer On Hold Messages from an emailed file. Telephone On Hold Messages will inform and entertain your clients when they have to wait On Hold for your business staff.

Try different recording for different groups of callers. For sales lines, feel free to talk about product features and benefits. “Cross marketing” can be very profitable (increasing you average order size) and helpful to the caller. Talk about product features, and educate your caller about how to understand the difference in features and what it means to them. Use the opportunity to show how you’re different (and better) than your competition. 

For customer service or tech support lines consider answering FAQ and offering advice on fixing the most common problems. Do you list this information on your website? Tell your caller exactly where to look. Don’t just assume they’ll hang up. They can just look while they’re waiting for help.

SV8100 Phone System – The ultimate in Unified Communications!

SV8100 phone system
The NEC SV8100 business phone system is the BOMB! There is officially NO GOOD REASON to keep hanging on to your old Nortel Norstar or Avaya Partner telephone system when you can trade-in and get a hard cash credit towards a new NEC SV8100 system. 
I just LOVE the new features like “Voicemail to Email” – when I am out of the office my voice mail messages show up on my smart phone! I can listen to them without wasting mobile minutes as it uses my data plan to deliver the messages as email attached audio files. I can then save or delete the messages and they automatically do the same back at my office! 
Another awesome feature is Mobile Extension – which allows your calls to ring on your office phone AND your smart phone – so your clients can reach you no matter where you are. When you need to stay in touch and want to avoid telephone tag, Mobile Extension is perfect for you – and here’s the best part – it’s built in at NO EXTRA COST!
The NEC digital phones and NEC IP Phones are incredibly well designed – with modular construction that allows you to add function keys, DESI-less displays, and even a Bluetooth wireless handset so you NEVER outgrow your phones.
SV8100 telephone system
Business today demands efficient, seamless communication to enable rapid decision-making and customer responsiveness. NEC’s SV8100 helps small to medium-sized businesses like yours succeed by placing your staff at the center of communications.

NEC SV8100 Telephone System

The SV8100 phone system is a unique IP communication solution for any small and/or medium businesses today.

Whether you are 5, 25 or up to 500 employees… just getting started or already established… have a single office, a home office or multiple stores/sites.

The Univerge SV8100’s expandability means it can work at any level, from a technically superb phone system, to a truly advanced unified communications platform.

The SV8100 phone system unifies your communications, providing your employees with a solution that lets them handle all their business communications on the device of their choice: their laptop, mobile phone, office phone or home phone — all this while using wired, wireless or broadband connections.

SV8100 phone system - Internet Telephony Product of the Year award
NEC Software Assurance

Suitable for growth: Modular construction

The UNIVERGE® SV8100 Communications Server is a key component of this foundation and is the ideal system for businesses that wish to compete and grow.. You can deploy a pure IP solution or any combination of IP and traditional circuit-switched technology with a single SV8100 system.

Free Mobile Extensions

System functionality straight to your mobile. The SV8100 Mobile Extension feature is like being in when you’re out. Treat your mobile like your desk phone and enjoy system features while you’re on the move. Best of all, Mobile Extensions are built in at no extra cost to the SV8100!

Customisable terminals and handsets

UNIVERGE® SV8100 terminals and handsets are like no other. Their modular construction means you can chop and change the design for exact business requirements. They can then be upgraded at a later stage without having to replace them – a great investment protection.

Serving Customers Effectively with Unified Communications

UC for Business helps unify an entire organization, enabling individuals, departments and locations to work more efficiently by ensuring seamless internal and external communications. Users can connect and show presence from wherever they are via phones, PCs, mobile devices, faxes and the web – effortlessly.

True Business Mobility

The SV8100 range of IP DECTs offers a more flexible way of working. Access to the main system features mean employees are more reachable, more quickly.

NEC Software Assurance for your SV8100 Phone System

With NEC Software Assurance, your SV8100 telephone system will NEVER grow old – it will always be up to date with the latest software version and features.

Summary

The SV8100 business phone system from NEC is flat out the best telephone system I have ever come across – and I have seen a ton of system come and go over the nearly quarter of a century I have been in this business. Call us today for a quote at Telephone Magic Inc. @ 905.356-9199. We will custom configure a system to your exact requirements.