All You Need to Know about AHT (Average Handle Time)

Acefone Editor

Author

Operations

May 25, 2021

8 mins read eye

Table of content

Modern-day customers are an impatient lot.

They expect instant gratification and if your agents aren’t available when they call, you can expect your customers to forget your brand regardless of the quality of your products and services. Keeping them on hold or making them wait until you find an effective resolution is even worse.

According to Microsoft, 58% of Americans switch companies only because of poor customer service. Being available for your customers makes all the difference.

You can well imagine the importance of being on your toes if you want to retain them for the long haul.

When it comes to assessing the quality of customer service and support, Average Handle Time is a crucial metric—tricky to understand and measure—important enough to not overlook.

So, it makes sense to learn all about AHT and the role it plays for call center solutions. Let us understand it in detail.

Average Handle Time

Average Handle Time (AHT) is a call center metric used for measuring the average time spent by your agents on resolving caller requests or issues. The time begins when the customer initiates a call and ends after the agent completes all the call tasks and is ready to take the next call.

The on-hold or in-queue time for the customer is also included. The metric helps you improve customer satisfaction and track the support team’s productivity.

It is vital to maintain an optimal AHT. If it runs too high, you have a serious problem with the productivity of the support team. Conversely, a low average handle time may also not be favourable.

It could mean that the team is rushing with queries, which could risk customer satisfaction. You must understand the optimal value and the steps you need to take to achieve this value.

Calculating Average Handle Time (AHT)

Before calculating the AHT figure, you must know the parameters involved.

Total talk time is the average time spent on a call until they reach a resolution eventually
Total hold time is the average amount of time a caller spends on hold during a call
After-call time is the time spent by the agent on paperwork and other essential operations after the call ends

To calculate the AHT, the total talk time is added to the hold time and after-call time, and the sum is divided by the total number of calls handled by the agent.

AHT = Total talk time + Total hold time + After-call time/ Number of calls

Typical call center solutions also include other forms of customer support apart from just calling. There are emails and chats, so you need to calculate AHT for them as well.

The formula differs for these forms of support because there is no hold time for chats, rather you have to track the follow-up time. For emails, you need to consider the time spent on resolving customer requests and queries.

Chat AHT = (Total talk time + Total follow-up time) / Number of chat requests

Email AHT = Time spent on customer requests / Number of cases resolved

Now that you know the basics of calculating AHT values for different support channels, you can take the right measures when it deviates from the standards.

Industry standards for Average Handle Time (AHT)

Calculating the AHT score for your business is only half the work done. You need to find out whether or not it is good enough. If not, you need to create a roadmap to improve the metric because it determines both customer satisfaction and agent productivity.

But how much is too much? It all boils down to the industry standards. Generally, experts recommend that the Average Handle Time should be around 6 minutes, regardless of your industry.

However, you cannot only rely on this when deciding the optimal time for your business.

Essentially, each call is different, and so is every caller and their issue. You cannot rely on a stat to decide the exact time for the resolution. For instance, your agent can resolve a simple billing issue in a couple of minutes, while a system malfunction may take a lot longer.

The efficiency of the system is another factor that might affect the AHT value. A slow and inefficient one makes things harder for the agents. They may have to perform several tasks manually or even switch between tools.

At times, the system may even freeze, wasting valuable time. Further, agent speed and efficiency also influence the average handling time. While you can use the industry standard as a benchmark, the optimal value depends on your customers, agents, and systems.

Strategies to improve Average Handle Time

At this stage, you are in a good position to understand where your AHT stands and whether it is good enough. If it isn’t, you must pick a plan that works. Here are some strategies to get your AHT on track.

Record and save all calls: The best way to start is by recording all calls, both incoming and outgoing. Call recordings can help you assess the productivity of individual agents and the issues affecting the output. Saved versions also help managers to review the calls when they want to.
Streamline the workflow: A linear workflow goes a long way to optimize the productivity levels of agents, reduce inefficiencies, and curb factors that increase the processing time for the calls. You can definitely secure the benefit of AHT improvement with this measure.
Rely on a comprehensive knowledge base: Another effective measure to speed up call handling is by empowering agents with adequate knowledge. They will end up working effectively and efficiently if they have a comprehensive knowledge base at hand. It will enable them to pick relevant answers to tough issues and satisfy callers quickly.
Use robust call technology: It is best to invest in high-end call center solutions with robust technology because they can help in more than one way. High-tech systems and infrastructure make agents faster and more efficient as they have solutions at their fingertips. Ensuring that phone lines must be operational also helps.
Leverage IVRs: Cloud telephony’s IVR solutions make an excellent investment for a business as they automate simple queries and optimize AHTs. IVR helps with collecting necessary customer information and providing answers to common questions. If the query gets complex, it can route the caller to the agent. Overall, the system enhances caller satisfaction to a considerable extent.
Accelerate caller greetings: Caller greetings are a vital element of the system as they create a welcoming and positive customer experience. However, they must be brief and friendly or they might end up increasing the AHT without any valid reason. Irrelevant greetings can also irritate the time-pressed callers.

Conclusion

It is crucial to make your customers feel valued and appreciated to ensure long-term loyalty and retention for your business. But not providing them good customer support can drive dissatisfaction and disappointment. To treat them well, ensure that the AHT is as low as possible. Fortunately, you need not worry much about optimizing it as long as you choose the best call center service.

With Acefone as your call center partner, you can rest assured that your agents are at their productive best and handle the calls within an optimal time span.

Optimal AHTs are a measure of the success of your customer support team. Let us help you with achieving it.

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Give us a call on

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Acefone Editor

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Acefone provides a broad range of cloud communication services to businesses of all sizes, which includes Hosted Phone Systems, Free Phone Numbers, and Cloud Contact Center Solutions. Being the UK's leading provider of VoIP service provider, we always strive to provide excellent customer service and high-quality custom solutions to our customers.

Benefits of UCaaS in Healthcare Sector

Yukti Verma

Author

Contact Center

May 24, 2021

8 mins read eye

Table of content

Unified Communications as a Service, refers to a suite of applications that brings together the entire communication network of an entity or organisation onto a single platform–– ‘unifying’ them in the process.

Also known as UCaaS, these solutions enable communications via IP. They’re complemented by a host of systems and tools such as a hosted phone system, network management tools, conferencing and collaboration tools, management portal, and much more.

The advantages of consumer-based VoIP services have led to the development of UCaaS. It is a cost-effective solution for small and large businesses across various industries such as IT and retail. The latest entrant in this list of industries is the healthcare sector.

The need for high-quality healthcare services has become paramount, especially considering the pandemic that has ravaged the world for the past year and a half. While there have been several technological advancements in the healthcare sector, especially in diagnostic and prognostic services, there still exists quite some room for improvement.

Today, effective treatment is a function of time and collaboration between multiple stakeholders including doctors, hospitals, diagnostic centers, medical device manufacturers, and pharmacies. Quick diagnosis and accurate prognosis depend on the fast and seamless sharing of important information between these stakeholders.

Additionally, a reduction in waiting time shall improve the overall experience for patients and their caretakers. It would also help the workforce, considering it is already burdened by an increasing patient base. Thus, there is a strong case for the various players in the healthcare industry to adopt UCaaS solutions.

UCaaS solutions offer the following benefits to the healthcare sector:

1. Financial benefits

It allows organisations to bundle their voice and video communication requirements over a single cloud connection for fixed monthly operational charges. This eliminates high and varying infrastructural expenses associated with on-premise hardware of the legacy telephony systems.

Furthermore, advanced models have come up in the market, combining additional services like security, integration, and analytics into a single package. This considerably reduces the expenditure, by spreading the cost of a single offering across multiple services.

2. Operational efficiency

UCaaS can unify the various disparate forms of communication channels, including voice, video, email, messaging, etc. The cohesive interface allows medical teams to stay in touch with each other irrespective of location and time, thus ensuring a quick exchange of information and ideas.

This also means that multiple cases can be handled and resolved in less time through multi-party collaboration—increasing the overall efficiency of the workforce. Faster delivery of medical information such as prescriptions and reports positively impacts patient satisfaction.

3. Seamless integration

A major roadblock towards the adoption of any new technology is the fear of a complete overhaul or specific customisations, which can lead to downtime—resulting in a bad customer experience.

However, UCaaS has the ability to seamlessly integrate with any existing system owing to its simplicity. It also needs minimum modifications to be able to work in tandem with the existing systems for smooth functioning. These capabilities aid healthcare entities in quickly setting up with negligible lag time.

4. High security

The 21st century is a digital book and in this age, data privacy is an important concern. Rules pertaining to data security are especially important for hospitals and other medical institutions, owing to the sensitive nature of patient data.

Keeping this in mind, hospitals need to be prepared against potential cyberattacks and data leaks. UCaaS providers offer high-end cloud-based security that secures patient information and meets all the required legal compliances.

5. Mobility

UCaaS offers flexibility and mobility. This means that doctors and healthcare workers aren’t tied to their workspaces. They can work from anywhere and at any time via the UCaaS platform.

This feature further facilitates quick case handling, which becomes an important factor in emergency cases. Swift action, based on instant dissemination of information, can often be the deciding factor in a critical case!

In the end, healthcare is like any other industry that needs sound infrastructure for smooth running. We have enumerated the various advantages that a UCaaS platform can offer to the industry––it can empower clinicians, administrators, and frontline workers to deliver the best possible results.

Let us now discuss some real-life use cases that can be driven by the adoption of UCaaS:

1. Increased collaboration between stakeholders

These days, healthcare teams are increasingly mobile and varied—from paramedical aides working on the ground, to doctors and nurses attending to their patients in the hospital. This is further accentuated by private practitioners as well as smaller healthcare centers, leading to numerous healthcare teams working in different locations.

Quite often, treatment requires multiple inputs from different healthcare experts. The current dispersed structure of these teams makes it rather cumbersome to share information and collaborate effectively. This is where UCaaS platforms help.

These solutions can be coupled with commonly used productivity and collaboration tools like G-Suite apps, Gmail business accounts, Zoom accounts, etc. With these integrations in place, the teams can call or message their co-workers and access features like call recording, video calling, and even document sharing and tagging.

2. Improvement of the patient experience

A positive patient experience is an important indicator of an efficient healthcare system. Any kind of correspondence between healthcare professionals and patients leaves an impact on the latter’s psyche. Hence, it becomes imperative to reduce patient waiting time and direct them to the relevant medical expert in the least possible duration.

With UCaaS, hospitals can adopt virtual receptionists that can guide a patient to the right professional or medical department. Further, diagnostic results can be immediately dispatched to patients as well as their respective physicians and an automated alert system can notify them about future appointments or prescription refills.

3. Telemedicine (or telehealth)

Telemedicine (or telehealth or teletheraphy) refers to the practice of consulting a physician over a long-distance call. The video conferencing tools in a UCaaS platform solve the issues arising from remote geography or in the case of pandemic-induced lockdowns.

It also helps provide timely and correct treatment to emergency patients living in remote rural areas where quality healthcare might be inaccessible.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw this technique being followed quite uniformly across the world. Physicians all across the world could guide their patients via video conferencing tools, thus preventing additional load on the already overwhelmed health infrastructure.

4. Internet of Health Things (IoHT)

The Internet of Things has brought in a revolution through Internet-connected devices such as temperature and light sensors. The technology improves efficiencies, reduces manual effort and lowers operational costs.

IoT devices are now entering the healthcare sector and are referred to as the Internet of Health Things. These range from blood pressure monitors to smart MRI scanners and the FitBits on your wrist!

IoHT devices are capable of collating huge volumes of data which can then be used by medical experts to mitigate various challenges. Currently, they have wide applications in the area of telemonitoring a patient’s vitals as well as hospital assets.

Patient wearables can be used to detect anomalies in blood pressure or pulse rate, and all of this information can be stored in the cloud for further evaluation by physicians. Further, these wearables can alert the patient to take their daily medicine, maintain their hydration levels or keep their doctor appointments!

Conclusion

The extent of the real-life applications of UCaaS in healthcare is limitless. The need for reliable and on-demand healthcare services will only grow with time. To ensure flexible and comprehensive service to patients, it shall become imperative to adopt UCaaS solutions.

The adoption of this technology has a clear benefit for all the stakeholders within the healthcare industry––from clinicians to nurses to technicians. And most of all, it benefits the patients.

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Yukti Verma

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Yukti is a content marketing enthusiast with a soft spot for Saas. She loves weaving complicated concepts into simple stories. When not at work, she is found reading books or watching movies.

Migrating to the Cloud? – Here’s What You Need to Know About it’s Major Security Controls

Himani

Author

Contact Center

May 21, 2021

8 mins read eye

Table of content

Did you know there is a hacking attempt on computers with Internet access every 39 seconds?

To mitigate such a risk, various businesses, law firms, and organisations are migrating towards cloud-based software.

In today’s world, when companies are making an enormous shift to the cloud, they majorly focus on cost savings, improved agility as well as higher scalability. But in this eagerness to enjoy instant cloud migration precedence, almost 85% of organisations worldwide experience spear-phishing attempts and data breaches.

Securing your data on the cloud is incredibly important because companies big and small are falling prey to common misconfiguration and misperceptions. On top of this, the side effects of a global pandemic have ramped up remote workforces, making trespasses for cyber attacks.

In such a scenario, would you be willing to compromise your company’s data and incur massive costs for regaining it? In reality, Cloud security is a whole different ball game that includes a completely new set of risks. If a company wishes to keep its data safe and secure, then its IT teams must perform two actions:

They must make sure that the cloud solutions have the right security capabilities.
They must ensure that the cloud solutions are compatible with security measures deployed across the distributed network.

The company should also understand the shared responsibility model. This model states that while cloud providers ensure the security of the company’s infrastructure, the company’s security team is responsible for data security assurances.

You can’t totally rely on the cloud provider for data security, because with evolving technology comes evolving hackers. Your best defence is to stay vigilant and implement these cloud security controls.

What are cloud security controls?

Cloud security control refers to a set of security controls that keeps the cloud environments secure against cyberattacks and also reduces the effects of data breaches.

These security controls not only protect the cloud environment against vulnerabilities but also include measures to eliminate various types of malicious risks to safeguard the data and applications stored on the cloud.

The recovery of business continuity plans, controlling access to the cloud, and encrypting data are all security controls.

Cloud service providers offer companies a wide range of cloud security tools and services to address, evaluate and secure a company’s sensitive data. It’s critical that the administrators of a company understand these services and ensure the implementation of the necessary cloud security controls.

Misconfiguration of cloud security controls can offer cybercriminals the opportunity to steal confidential data from a company.

In fact, Gartner estimated that through 2025, 99% of the cloud security failures would be the customer’s fault just because of the device misconfiguration.

Let’s put it down simply. A cyberattack doesn’t just put data at risk, but can also damage the company’s reputation and cost them compliance penalties.

Therefore, it becomes essential for organisations to use cloud security controls to protect their business and customers from the unforeseen damage the hackers can cause.

There are several forms of cloud computing security. Below you’ll find the top three security controls that every organisation must use to thwart the most advanced data threats out there today.

3 cloud security controls that you must use

For IT teams that are overseeing the shift to the cloud, here are the 3 cloud security controls that you must use in order to avoid misconfiguration as well as data leaks.

1. Control your cloud service access

Many companies struggle to control the accessibility to their cloud services.

According to research from RedLock’s Cloud Security Intelligence CSI team, almost 51% of organisations have accidentally exposed at least one of their cloud storage service (for example, AWS S3 storage drives) in the public. However, Amazon and various other cloud providers send warnings to the companies to prevent storage bucket content from being exposed on the internet.

Another most common mistake made by companies is allowing SSH (Secure Shell) connections directly from the internet. This simply means anyone who knows the server location can bypass the firewall and access the company’s data without any major difficulties.

If you want to control the access, you can use the identity and access control tools provided by the cloud providers. You can control who has access to which data and when. While creating the identity and access control policies, allow the minimum set of privileges that are needed and grant permissions temporarily whenever required.

You can also use tools like CloudKnox that let you set access controls as per the user activity data.

2. Keep your data secured

As mentioned above, securing data on the cloud is of paramount importance to make sure that only authorised personnel like you and your employees have access to the files and documents stored in the cloud.

Many companies have unencrypted data stored in the cloud which gives hackers easy access to the information. One example of this is voter’s information and confidential government files that are exposed because the data was not encrypted on the cloud. Also, the servers are easily accessible to unauthorised users.

It’s highly irresponsible and risky if a company stores sensitive data in the cloud without putting the appropriate controls to avoid access to a server and protect the data. Encryption must be used to protect a company’s data at rest and transit.

So make sure that your cloud services provider encrypts your data and ensures security.

A company must maintain encryption keys wherever possible. This mighty task becomes easier when the organisation provides access to the keys to the cloud service providers, although the responsibility of securing the data lies with the company.

Encryption is a safe failure; it’s imperative because even in case any security configuration fails and an organisation’s sensitive data gets leaked to unauthorised users, they cannot misuse it.

3. Secure the credentials

In 2017, OneLogin breach showed that it’s not unusual for the AWS access keys to be leaked on the internet. These access keys can be exposed on their websites, repositories, unprotected dashboards and any such forums.

A company must treat the AWS access keys as the most crucial gem of a crown. They must make their developers aware of the security controls to prevent the leaking of such access keys in any public forum.

Organisations must ensure that they create unique keys for every external service and restrict access to minimum privileges. Companies must also ensure that the access keys don’t have any broad permissions. These keys can be easily used to access highly confidential data and company’s resources if fallen into the wrong hands, for data breaches.

If you’re leading a company, you must create IAM roles to allot some specific privileges, just like API calls. Also, ensure to rotate the access keys regularly in order to prevent attackers access to the compromised keys and allowing it to enter the cloud environments miscellaneously in the face of privileged users.

Avoid using the root user account, not even for administrative tasks. However, you can use root user to create a new user and assign limited privileges. Simply, lock the root user account by adding MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication) and use it for specific tasks. For other tasks, use provision users with restricted permissions.

MFA offers an extra protection layer apart from username and password. It makes it tougher for the attackers to steal your company’s data. The company administrators should enable the MFA to restrict access to dashboards, management forums as well as privileged accounts.

Lastly, continuous monitoring of user accounts is essential for cloud computing security. They must be regularly checked and filtered to disable the one’s which are no longer in use, failing which the attackers can use them as a potential path to steal the company’s sensitive data.

Conclusion

As cloud adoption grows, it becomes important for organisations to think diligently about the cloud security controls that must be implemented to lower complexity, while ensuring comprehensive security.

Companies ultimately need to partner with reliable cloud service providers who have an exceptional record of providing full-fledged security and the resources that ensure that the data is completely protected. After all, cloud security is not a trivial matter.

Cutting-edge cloud security controls like those outlined above will ensure that your firm, enterprise, or service is prepared to face more advanced and complex security challenges as businesses embrace digital innovation.

Acefone is a leading cloud hosting service provider that offers cloud-hosted solutions with strong data security. To make your business more secure, call us at 1888-859-0450 .

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Himani

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Himani is a content writer at Acefone. She is an avid blogger and Youtuber as well. She loves to explore the miraculous world of technology. Connect with her on Linkedin

[infographic] Differences between UCaaS and CPaaS

Saurabh Sharma

Author

Infographics

May 19, 2021

8 mins read eye

Table of content

Businesses are moving on from on-premise systems to cloud-based communication platforms. Once they ascertain their communication needs, companies can select a service that they think suits their organisational goals and caters well to their target audience.

Unified Communication as a Service (UCaaS) and Communication Platform as a Service (CPaaS) are cloud communication solutions that offer different benefits and services to enterprises of all kinds and sizes.

Unified solutions are an ideal option as they integrate various modes of communication into a single platform to improve customer experience. UCaaS combines team messaging, video conferencing, chat, email, and cloud phone into a single application.

A communication platform is a cloud delivery model that integrates real-time communication (voice and video) into business applications by deploying APIs. Organisations can personalise their communication stack based on their business and security needs.

Acronyms related to cloud-based communication technology often feature “aaS” as a suffix. The term “aaS (as a service)” can be SaaS (Software as a Service), VCaaS (Video Conferencing as a Service), CCaaS (Contact Center as a Service). Businesses can opt for these services based on their requirements.

Let’s learn a little more about UCaaS and CPaaS and how they differ from each other.

UCaaS and CPaaS are both flexible cloud communication systems. UCaaS allows unifying communication applications like voice, video, chat, and email into a single dashboard. On the other hand, CPaaS allows developers to make real-time communication applications without creating any back-end interface.

Difference between UCaaS and CPaaS

UCaaS and CPaaS enable cost-effective and user-friendly business communication. However, there are certain differences between both solutions. Let’s look at a few:

UCaaS	CPaaS
UCaaS platforms function as pre-configured, comprehensive solutions for your communication needs. You get a predefined suite of features, including voice over internet protocol (VoIP) calling, video conferencing, instant messaging, and integrated collaboration tools.	CPaaS solutions prioritize developer-centric functionalities. They act as modular building blocks by offering Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and Software Development Kits (SDKs). With these tools, your developers can integrate communication functionalities seamlessly into existing applications.
UCaaS platforms generally offer limited customization. The features and functionalities are predetermined by the provider, and you have access to what is included within their chosen plan.	CPaaS solutions are highly customizable. Your developers have the flexibility to select and integrate only the required communication features. This enables you to tailor communication experience according to your workflows.
UCaaS platforms prioritize ease of use. Deployment is typically quick and straightforward, often requiring minimal technical expertise.	Implementing CPaaS requires development expertise. Your developers must thoroughly understand the APIs and SDKs provided by the CPaaS platform and have the necessary skills to integrate them seamlessly into existing applications.
UCaaS platforms primarily target everyday business users, including employees from non-technical backgrounds.	CPaaS solutions primarily aim at developers with higher level of technical skills, who are tasked with building custom communication experiences.
UCaaS pricing structures are often based on a per-user or per-feature model.	CPaaS pricing models can vary. Some providers charge based on usage (e.g., per call, per message sent), while others might have tiered pricing plans with different feature sets.

Both UCaaS and CPaaS solutions have their benefits, but the answer to which is better depends on what your business is looking for from your communications.

If you need a more flexible way to communicate with clients and customers and have the technical know-how to build apps to provide innovative ways to communicate with your customers, then a CPaaS would be for you.

If you are looking to boost internal communications and are looking for a simple solution which provides feature-rich telephony at low costs, UCaaS is for you.

Benefits Of UCaas and CPaaS

Both CPaaS and UCaaS have revolutionised the way businesses operate over the cloud. Companies can avoid the stress of managing back-end infrastructure, and focus on growth and building customer relations.

CPaaS and UCaaS offer similar benefits to an enterprise. They are as follows:

Easy to use: The implementation is straightforward and users can access these solutions as easily as traditional tools.
Scalable and cheap: You can access both technologies through the cloud, and scale up and down based on your needs. CPaaS adds new features while UCaas removes additional hardware.
Growth: These solutions include unified communication apps, chatbots and more. These tools are also easy for businesses to leverage.
Opportunity – In UCaaS, companies can work across a range of networks and devices for businesses.

Difference Between UCaaS and CPaaS[Infographic]

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Saurabh Sharma

Author

Saurabh is a content writer at Acefone. He is a fan of standup comedy, football, and Hindu mythology. He is fond of travelling to unexplored places, meeting new people, and having newer experiences that enrich his soul. Connect with him on Linkedin

Why is Voice Broadcasting a Boon for the Insurance Industry?

Acefone Editor

Author

Business Communications

May 17, 2021

8 mins read eye

Table of content

Organisations all over the world need to communicate to establish their presence. Businesses need to constantly reach out to new prospects while managing existing clients.

Additionally, communications are necessary to maintain internal business processes as well.

When it comes to insurance companies, communication attains another level of importance. The very nature of their service requires agents to go out and personally contact businesses to close the sale. However, as the COVID-19 pandemic hit India, insurance agents have had to rely on technology to reach new clients.

This is where voice broadcasting became an unmissable tool for insurance agents. Coupled with the ever-decreasing attention span of customers, voice broadcasting helps amplify the little time companies have to make their pitch.

If one is unable to make a physical pitch, then a customisable voice message can do the trick. Also, if a firm is selling to a large customer base, one can’t constantly redial missed connections. The simple solution—voice broadcasting!

Voice broadcasting for the insurance sector

Quite simply, voice broadcasting is the process of recording a short message and relaying it to your customer base. This could be done to advertise a new offer, plan or service, along with talking a little about the company. The uniformity and precision of a voice message can also boost your marketing pitch. It is good to go over the long list of regulations that you must comply with before you record your voice broadcast.

As a service, voice broadcasting maintains a database of recorded voice messages and phone numbers. After a department’s contact list and pre-recorded messages are uploaded, the system can then make multiple calls to prospective clients all at the same time.

Additionally, it is also a great tool to offer discounts and deals on insurance rates, cross-sell products to customers, deliver reminders of premium payments or simply carry out short surveys.

How can insurance companies benefit from voice broadcasting?

In a general sense, voice broadcasting can help manage your communications. The best feature is the simplicity it offers in communicating with one’s customer base. Additionally, voice messages ensure uniformity and do away with the element of human error on live calls, providing a professional touch to your brand.

There are several reasons why voice broadcasting can prove to be of value to the insurance industry in particular. Here’s how:

Send to the masses, with ease:

Voice broadcasting systems offer a text-to-speech feature, where you can just upload your text message to be converted into a neat voice clip. This is useful for situations where you might not be able to record a clip that is high-quality, due to a lack of equipment, or if you are simply pressed for time.

Reach newer leads

Voice broadcasting allows you to target and tap into a much bigger pool of clients. You can easily get in touch with more prospective buyers even with fewer agents. Voice messages also have a better chance of lead conversion, as they are less intrusive than agents.

You can have the voice broadcasting service take care of the bulk of calls while your sales team can build on lead generation and conversion. Now here’s a plan you can pitch to your company!

Master of all

Voice broadcasting can help your organisation take care of a wide range of tasks. Want to customise your advertising message or alter a pre-recorded message? Check. Need to run multiple campaigns at a time? Check. Want to filter your do-not-call numbers in the leads database? Check. This is a tool that helps you optimise time and money.

Robust Customer Service

Good customer service is indispensable to insurance, and nothing retains customers and adds new ones like quick problem resolution does. With voice broadcasting and other cloud telephony solutions, you can upgrade your customer service interactions. Imagine the following two situations.

The first is when customers need to get in touch with the company for a quick resolution. After the query is raised, immediate responses can be provided via a voice message or an IVR which can redirect them to a specific agent.

The second situation arises when the company needs responses in the form of feedback or ratings. Customers can be informed of a feedback call through a text message and be guided on the next steps.

You can also broadcast reminders pertaining to pending payments. The specific amounts can be altered according to each case, and the message dispatched without a hitch.

With voice broadcasting, you can mine insights from the recorded customer engagements. For instance—how did the customer react to a certain proposal/offer? Or, what was the level of satisfaction of a client when a solution was put forward by an agent?

Structure and design your messaging in a manner that is sure to satisfy your clients and fulfil your goals.

Recommended Read: Voice Broadcasting Solution for Customer Surveys

After-sales messages and better lead conversion

After-sales communication is just as important as pre-sales communication. Here, voice broadcasting equips you with an automated system for relaying a ‘thank you’ message to your customers post-sale. This invokes a sense of personalisation to the interaction, which may lead to customer retention.

Like any other industry, success in the insurance sector also depends on conversions. Thus, you must follow up on promising leads in innovative ways. For instance, departments can relay voice messages offering prospective clients the choice of connecting with an agent.

In case they are unavailable at that time, the voice message can give them the choice to set up a call later. Additionally, automated redialling, which helps maximise reach further, is an essential feature to look for when zeroing in on a voice broadcasting solution.

If you are thinking about adding the power of voice broadcasting to your organisation, look no further than Acefone. With a curation of industry favourite features, Acefone can take your communication and lead conversion to the next level.

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How to Secure Your VoIP Calls Using Firewall

Acefone Editor

Author

Voice - VoIP

8 mins read eye

Table of content

VoIP or Voice Over Internet Protocol is a telephony system that plays an important role in taking charge of communication for businesses. One major advantage of VoIP telephony is that it does not need any additional hardware, like telephone lines, to function.

Calls over VoIP only require stable Internet connectivity. This allows businesses to have a reliable and economical business communication system as there is no need for extensive hardware setup.

Furthermore, they support scalability and portability. That is, even if you relocate, you can still operate your business with the same number. You can even expand your business without any hassle. Just contact your VoIP service provider, and they will set up the communication system for you.

With so many advantages, don’t you think it is important to secure this telephony system? This is where the installation of firewalls comes into the picture.

So, what is a firewall and how do firewalls help secure your VoIP Phone Systems? Let us delve deeper.

What is a firewall?

VoIP systems function over the cloud. As they work with Internet connectivity, they may have vulnerabilities that are prone to cyber threats. With evolving cyber risks, you must secure your IT networks and systems appropriately. One such attempt to secure your best VoIP systems is the implementation of a firewall.

A firewall is installed to monitor incoming and outgoing traffic, based on predefined security rules, in your network. Any suspicious activity or malware detected is blocked automatically and access is denied to it. This way, a firewall protects your VoIP system from malicious and corrupted sources, thereby keeping it secure from cyberattacks.

What are the different types of firewalls?

Firewalls are broadly classified as software, hardware, and a combination of these two types of firewalls.

Software firewalls, as the name suggests, are installed on individual devices. They provide a granular level of monitoring applications on the devices. The administrator can check the type of cloud applications that have been provided access and others that have been blocked.

Hardware firewalls, on the other hand, are installed as physical devices between your VoIP system and the network connection. They are generally installed behind the router. These firewalls act as gateways between the internal networks and the Internet. Physical firewalls monitor network traffic and block malicious sources from accessing the endpoints in the network.

While software firewalls need multiple firewalls for incompatible intranets, hardware firewalls provide security only for the traffic that enters the network and not against insider attackers. Therefore, a combination of both (hardware and software) offers optimal security to your VoIP system and IT networks.

Firewalls are categorized based on their method of operation, which can be of five different types:

Packet filtering firewalls

Packet filtering firewalls are the oldest and most basic type of firewalls. They simply check a data packet for their source IP, destination IP, source port, and destination port against predefined authentication rules. They are stateless and therefore cannot check the contents of a data packet.

Circuit-level gateways

Circuit-level gateways work at the session layer. They verify active sessions established on Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) connections. These gateways function based on the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model. They help determine the security of established connections.

For example, when an internal device like your VoIP phone establishes a connection to another number, the circuit-level gateway establishes a virtual connection with the same number. It also tracks the identity and IP address of both the users.

Stateful inspection firewalls

Stateful inspection firewalls keep track of established connections. They are also able to verify the contents of the data packets. These firewalls function by creating a stable table with the source IP, destination IP, source port, and destination port after a connection has been established. Stateful inspection firewalls create their own authentication rules in real-time rather than depending on predefined, hardcoded regulations.

These firewalls are conveniently able to drop data packets that do not have a verified active connection. In the case of your VoIP system, calls from authenticated sources are monitored and allowed. Suspicious activity is monitored appropriately and blocked.

Proxy firewalls or application-level gateways

Proxy firewalls work as a mediator between internal and external devices. They work on the cloud application through a proxy device. For example, consider a customer calling your VoIP number. First, the call is connected to the proxy firewall that authenticates the connection. The connection is then forwarded to the internal VoIP telephone device. Similarly, if you initiate a call through the VoIP system, the call is transmitted through the proxy firewall to the destination.

Proxy firewalls keep the identity of the internal and external sources secure by preventing a direct connection between them. Proxy firewalls authenticate the connection along with the content of the data packets against a set of predefined rules. Depending on this outcome, they either permit or discard the data packets.

Next-generation firewalls

Next-generation firewalls offer additional security Voip features to your phone systems. They are capable of performing deeper data packet inspections in addition to surface-level inspections. They come with an application awareness feature for traffic and resource analysis. These firewalls block Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks and block data breach attempts from encrypted applications. They identify the user and user roles and offer a comprehensive approach to cybersecurity. This role-based authentication limits the exposure of critical business information to unwanted sources, thereby protecting it from misuse and leakage.

Why should you consider installing a firewall?

Businesses should consider the need to install firewalls for their VoIP systems for the following reasons:

Helps establish a secure connection

A VoIP telephony system is the heart of your business’s communication. You may use it to contact your customers, share information amongst colleagues, and use it for various other inbound and outbound purposes.

With a firewall in place, you ensure that the connections established remain secure. You have the control to check on network vulnerabilities and protect your VoIP system from cyber threats. The firewall blocks unauthorized access to your VoIP system to make sure that connection from and to your VoIP system is always secure.

Reduces chances of downtime

When critical business information is compromised or falls prey to cyberattacks, it may bring your business operations to a complete halt. Moreover, it may cause irreparable reputational damage and loss of revenue due to interruption in services.

When you have a state-of-the-art firewall in place, you can check for malicious activities on your cloud network. The firewall alerts your VoIP Phone Service provider, thereby helping you to protect your cloud phone system from suspicious sources. This reduces the chances of a cyberattack, eliminates downtime, and supports uninterrupted services.

Showcases your business as a reliable one

When your business doesn’t experience frequent downtime, has secure connections, and maintains stability in delivering services, your customers will trust you. They can believe that they are associating with a highly reputable and reliable brand that prioritizes secure network connections. Your customers will not hesitate to partner with you and feel free to share their information with you.

Helps earn a competitive edge

Earning the trust of customers is of paramount importance. When you do that, other parameters will eventually fall into place. Your business is projected in a positive light amongst your customer base. This will help you earn a competitive edge thereby attracting more customers.

Wrap up

Though the installation of a firewall for your VoIP system is purely a technical facet, it impacts the functional aspects of your business too. With secure cloud communications solution, you can rest assured that your data will not be compromised. Therefore, regardless of the size of your business, you should consider implementing an updated firewall in your telephony environment to boost the security of your business. Without any cyber threats, you can easily maintain business continuity and stand out in the competition.

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Enhance Customer Experience in Banking Solutions by Switching to Hosted Phone Systems

Acefone Editor

Author

Customer Experience

May 14, 2021

8 mins read eye

Table of content

Delivering contextual and seamless customer experiences (CX) is vital to business success. Every interaction plays a crucial role in shaping long-term customer relationships. Across sectors, customers determine the value of your brand based on the CX you provide.

Considering the banking sector––what is the first thing that comes to your mind? Long queues, continuously ringing telephone lines, and overworked bank employees with a mountain of customer queries.

However, in the current competitive landscape, this scenario has drastically changed. Enterprises in the banking sector have left no stone unturned to deliver seamless customer experiences. Options like phone banking, round-the-clock support, IVR for self-service, etc. have transformed operations within the sector.

While we speak about the revolutionary development of the banking industry, it will be unfair if there is no mention of the role of hosted phone systems. So, what is the impact of hosted phone systems on banks?

Let’s read on to find out.

What are hosted phone systems?

As the name suggests, these are cloud-based phone systems that allow you to make calls over the Internet. Therefore, the need for conventional phone lines, hardware, and other upfront infrastructural costs is reduced.

These services are offered by a cloud service provider. This means, you no longer need to worry about regular maintenance and support for the phone system.

With this understanding, let us now see how hosted phone systems help banks deliver elevated experiences.

1. Provides centralised accessibility

This is one of the most crucial advantages of the system. Cloud systems are not on-premise and unlike conventional systems, their brain is not in your in-house server.

Cloud phone systems maintain a centralised repository of information that can be accessed anywhere across the globe and at any time, thus improving accessibility.

So, how does this improve customer experience?

Consider the following example. A bank has several branches across the country. A customer calls branch X to enquire about their account which is in branch Y. The customer explains that they have temporarily moved and are unable to contact their home branch.

In the case of a traditional phone system, the customer would be asked to contact the concerned branch for details, leaving them disappointed.

On the other hand, a hosted phone system allows the bank representative to access the required information from the central repository. They would simply be able to search for the details in the database and handle the customer query effectively and in one go, thereby improving first call resolutions and consequently, customer experiences.

2. Access to 24/7 support

Client queries don’t have any timings––they may call enquiring about their balance or a transaction any hour of the day. Or even night. Your representatives need to be available 24×7 to clarify their doubts.

Cloud-based phone systems make things easier. They operate via the Internet and don’t need a specific device to function––they can route calls via any device. Thus, your agents need not stay glued to their desks to perform official activities. They can attend to calls and answer queries from anywhere across the globe.

Furthermore, hosted phone systems support text messaging capabilities. That is, customers can send text messages to your support number. The messages land in the representative’s inbox for further action. This way, even if they miss calls, clients can contact them through emails and text messages. The representatives can go through these messages and reply to them as per convenience.

Also, hosted phone systems enable customers to request a call-back. If a call isn’t answered, the client can place this request and the agent will schedule a call with the customer.

These features ensure that no customer is left unattended and there is 24/7 support. As a whole, this contributes towards improved customer journeys.

3. Improved security and compliance

The banking sector deals with numerous customer records and sensitive information like bank account details, transactions, etc. Hence, the security of customer data is cardinal.

All banks may not have the expertise or resources to maintain an in-house IT team and the integrity of their customer data. This brings in data security concerns. However, in the case of cloud-based phone systems, your cloud service provider ensures complete security.

They guarantee that the phone systems are fully patched and updated on par with industry-specific security measures. Data security best practices differ based on the industry and the geography of the business.

While you may not know about these aspects, your cloud service provider is equipped with the tools and technologies to support your banking ecosystem.

They implement state-of-the-art procedures like endpoint security, installation of firewalls and anti-malware software, multi-factor authentication, and role-based access to critical business information. These measures protect customer data, thereby helping you build trust among your customer base, and nurture customer experiences through secure banking transactions.

4. Replete with add-on features

Hosted phone systems come with several features like call routing, call recording, and call monitoring capabilities. These capabilities strive to improve the quality of customer services. For example, the call routing feature swiftly transfers calls to available agents.

Consider a scenario—your representative is not available in the office. With smart call routing features, they can readily direct calls to their personal number or to that of a colleague to ensure availability. Apart from guaranteeing round-the-clock service, this feature optimises call flow and boosts customer experiences.

Call recording capabilities are important to monitor agent performance and improve support quality. This capability helps stakeholders identify pain points and work on them.

Moreover, recorded calls can be used to train new agents. When new recruits listen to these calls, they get a real-time experience of what to expect at work even without hitting the work floor.

Also, call monitoring capabilities to allow supervisors to closely track calls. If they feel that some calls need escalation or intervention, they may do it right away to safeguard the interests of the customers.

Therefore, hosted phone systems come with these added capabilities that enhance customer experiences in the banking sector.

To conclude

The banking sector involves critical business information and, hence, data security is of top priority. Furthermore, banks must be available 24/7 to support their customers. Hosted phone systems help them achieve this.

They offer numerous capabilities that include call routing, call monitoring, and central access to information. These features facilitate uninterrupted customer services that ultimately result in improved customer experiences.

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Future CX: The Rise of Predictive Analytics

Yukti Verma

Author

Operations

May 12, 2021

8 mins read eye

Table of content

The current marketplace scenario is highly competitive. It isn’t surprising then that businesses are leaving no stone unturned to prove their worth and stand out in the crowd.

Amongst the several other factors that define a competitive and reliable brand, delivering contextual customer experiences is now considered one of the most important factors. You should look for different ways to strike the right chord among your target audience and leave a positive impression on them.

This cannot be accomplished simply by fulfilling their momentary requirements. You should be able to go the extra mile and predict your customer’s future needs. This proactiveness will help you differentiate yourself from others and earn a competitive edge.

While there are many tools that can be used to analyse customer trends, deriving intuitive insights from existing customer data is important. Predictive analytics is one method that allows you to zero in on future customer demands from their past behavioural trends.

So, how well can predictive analytics make a difference? Let’s read on to find out.

What should you know about predictive analytics?

The global predictive analytics market size was valued at $7.32 billion in 2019. It is estimated to reach $35.45 billion by the year 2027. This growth for the forecast period is at a CAGR of 21.9%.

Predictive analytics, as the term signifies, helps in predicting future events based on the analysis of historical data. Simply put, historical customer data is comprehensively analysed on par with the existing data, allowing you to predict the happenings of the future.

Consider you have a typical contact center, where several customers contact your staff every day. Your contact center deploys a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool that houses all the customer data. This tremendous amount of data is refined and studied with the current trends of your customers.

For example, you may try understanding the purchase behaviour of your customers in the past and try interpreting the changes that have happened to date. These changes will, in turn, enable you to predict customer personas of the future. So, how does this help you?

These insights will help you modify your products and services basis of customer preferences. They also help you understand the current and future demands of your customers. Thus, you’re able to improvise your offerings in a better fashion.

How does predictive analytics work?

The first step in predictive analytics is to define your goal. For example, if you wish to deliver better customer experiences through your contact center, fix that as your goal and start looking for relevant data.

The major sources of information will include your CRM or any other data repositories you may be maintaining. Ideally, the customer information should include their purchase and transaction history, feedback, and demands. A thorough data mining process will help you relevant fetch data and place it in one common platform for the primary analysis.

A predictive analytics software performs the next and most important step. This software mines through all the raw data and derives predictive insights. These insights are then presented in a simple fashion which enables you to easily comprehend the results on par with your business objective. Thus, you’re empowered to make better business decisions.

The final step is to take actionable steps based on the trends and patterns obtained from the data––identify opportunities and utilise them appropriately. This will enable you to proactively check for upcoming customer trends and stay on par with the competition.

How can predictive analytics boost customer experiences?

Contact centers are the fuel of any business. They play an essential role in bridging communication gaps with customers and get companies up and running.

Here are a few ways predictive analytics can make all the difference for your business.

1. Help track unhappy customers

In a typical contact center, closely tracking unhappy customers is as important as earning satisfied customers. This may not be possible manually. Recording every call, monitoring conversations daily, and deriving insights from them can be a herculean task.

Using predictive analytics can, however, ease this complete process. Predictive analytics can easily track every customer, the number of calls they have made, the type of expressions they have used, competitor mentions, and any mentions of price bargains among several other capabilities.

This tracking approach helps differentiate a happy customer from an unhappy one.

Predictive analytics provide you with a complete list of unhappy customers, enabling you to use specific approaches to reach out to them. You can then offer special discounts and offers and try to resolve their issue to meet their needs. This takes us to the next point.

2. Boosts customer retention

When you have a list of unhappy customers, your capability to retain them is endless. You can target this set of customers by sending personalised messages with product updates or promotions they may be interested in. You can also make them feel special by recommending a product based on their previous purchase history through a call.

Moreover, you can have your supervisor follow up with a call and enquire if their issues have been resolved. The client can rest assured that their concerns have been acknowledged. This will make them feel noticed, thereby motivating them to return to your brand rather than moving to another.

3. Helps identify customer sentiment

Note that a particular customer may not express their sentiments over a call alone. They may be vocal over other mediums of communication while not saying anything to your agent. Therefore, you mustn’t stop mining at calling data alone.

Your customers may post their reviews, feedback, or snippets of their experiences on social media platforms. Your method of predictive analytics should be able to derive data from all these channels.

Predictive analytics helps with customer sentiment analysis. It enables you to identify problematic instances from enormous data wherein customers have expressed concerns about your brand.

When your contact center representatives are equipped with this information, it helps them handle these customers carefully. Further, your agents can use strategies to pacify the unhappy customers and alleviate their concerns, thereby boosting customer satisfaction.

4. Allows better customer lifestyle predictions

Predictive analytics make your brand proactive. It closely monitors customer browsing and purchase history and compares it with their current browsing activities. Based on this then you get invaluable insights about when your customer may need help from your agents.

This enables you to proactively reach out to customers and help them move a step further in the sales funnel. For example, if through predictive analytics, you find that a customer is unable to locate the cart or find a product on your page, your agent can simply reach out to them and resolve the issue.

This will ensure that you do not miss out on prospects and also keep your customer happy.

5. Improves customer experiences

When you can predict customer needs and then be there for them, you’re bound to have a happy clientele. After all, they’re getting help even before they realise it.

On the other side, you can forecast bottlenecks from your customer’s point of view and rectify them promptly, ensuring that you’re solving issues proactively as you go. All these factors result in improved customer experiences, thereby increasing word-of-mouth referrals.

Thus, not only do you enjoy improved customer retention, but it’s also easy for you to get new leads without having to invest too much time, money, or effort. Quite a win-win, we’d say.

Wrapping up

The delivery of customer experiences through contact centers is time-bound. The quicker your agent can resolve customer concerns, the better your company’s customer retention will be.

Predictive analytics aids you in fulfilling this important requirement. It enables you to predict customer needs and problems and allows you to attend to them before these problems escalate into issues that hamper your reputation and eventually, lead to losses.

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Yukti Verma

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Yukti is a content marketing enthusiast with a soft spot for Saas. She loves weaving complicated concepts into simple stories. When not at work, she is found reading books or watching movies.

Dynamics of Video Conferencing: Past and Future

Yukti Verma

Author

Interaction Hub

May 10, 2021

8 mins read eye

Table of content

Reports suggest that the video conferencing market size was valued at USD 3.85 billion in 2019 and will reach a CAGR of 9.9% from 2020 to 2027. Makes sense, right?

Covid-19 has brought about several drastic changes in the way businesses operate. Previously meetings, never-ending discussions about deals, and final closures consumed a considerable amount of time.

However, with the pandemic bringing in stringent social distancing regulations, organisations have also evolved based on these shifting needs. One such change is becoming more technology-friendly. Recent innovations have helped organisations find newer ways to communicate, add that personal touch, and ensure uninterrupted business operations.

Worth mentioning here is video conferencing, a tool that has completely transformed business communication. Let us understand more about this medium of communication in detail.

What is Video Conferencing?

In layman terms, video conferencing is a medium wherein you can see a person during interactions even if they are not around physically. This tool proves to be a boon for business owners, especially now when domestic and international travelling is at an all-time low, and they need to bridge communication gaps to nurture business relationships.

With this understanding, let us now make a comparative analysis of how video conferencing was in the past and how well it has evolved over time. Also, read on to know the details of video conferencing capabilities that may develop shortly too.

Video conferencing: the past

The concept of video conferencing was first introduced in the year 1964 by AT&T. It included a simple system with two closed-circuit TVs that were connected by a cable and used VHF (Very High Frequency) or UHF (Ultra High Frequency) connections to display the video. This set-up was mostly used in television stations to interview people or report a live programme.

Gradually, this communication tool was used by NASA and the military base of several countries. However, in the 1990s, the Internet Protocol (IP) was introduced.

This was an advanced video compression technology that allowed the video image and sound to be transmitted in smaller data packets, thereby reducing the size of the live-streamed files.

Finally, in 1994, a full-fledged, commercially viable video conferencing solution was introduced.

That was a short recap about how video conferencing came into existence.

Video Conferencing: The present

With technological advancements, businesses of various capacities became aware of video conferencing. However, it was meant to facilitate high priority meetings by fortune 500 companies across the world. It wasn’t used to casually connect with colleagues or for a virtual meeting within the company.

Even if you go back a few years, video conferencing was never the buzzword. Perhaps, you may have heard of a family friend or a relative connecting with their loved ones from a foreign country. Regardless of the situation, video conferencing wasn’t for everyone.

But, after the pandemic, things have changed drastically.

Video conferencing tools have become the lifeblood of business communication. The technology plays a cardinal role in accommodating face-to-face interactions within teams, during important meetings, and enables interactive sessions.

With several companies adopting the remote working model, it has become important to keep employees engaged. It is equally important to make them feel noticed and not left out. Video conferencing serves all these purposes and then some more.

Conducting review meetings for team members, hosting virtual conferences, connecting team members across the world, monitoring daily tasks or simply conducting team building activities, this tool can do it all for you.

The myth that video conferencing can be used only by companies or individuals who belong to a specific category no longer exists. It is now being used by everyone across the globe.

Video conferencing: the future

Video conferencing, undeniably, has a promising future. Most will agree that a visual presentation speaks louder than a simple speech. Visuals leave a lasting impression on the audience, a capability that will be leveraged to its full potential.

Video conferencing in contact centers

An important area for businesses to focus on is delivering seamless customer services. Companies try their best to offer memorable customer experiences. Although video chat and messaging apps do exist, video conferencing is becoming the new normal.

While call center representatives are doing their best to satisfy customers through phone calls, one lasting concern is that they aren’t able to look at customers when they speak. This may result in miscommunication. Call centers will widely adopt this technology to interact with customers and create a personal connection with every conversation.

For example, consider a scenario wherein an agitated customer calls your call center. He sounds normal and replies to every question of the representative sarcastically. The representative may not be able to gauge the mood of the customer without looking at him.

However, if it were a video conference, the representative would have been able to react and modify the interaction contextually.

Furthermore, when you look at a person and speak, it builds trust. Several customers may contact your call center in a day. It may not be possible to resolve all the issues presented. However, when your representative can look at the customer and assure him of a resolution at the earliest, the customer may feel satisfied. This personal connection can be established only through video conferencing.

Consider a situation wherein a not-so-tech-savvy customer contacts your call center to clarify how your headset can be used best. If the customer is unable to use your product appropriately, he may choose your competitor’s product next time. Making the customer understand the nuances of your product through a call may be difficult.

In this case, a video conference can serve the purpose. Your representative can simply connect over a video conference to provide a product demo. This will detail the proper usage of your product. The customer will see what he has heard all these days. This experience will improve reliability and loyalty.

Also, your representatives showcase your brand. When your customers see your representatives conducting themselves amicably, it builds a positive impression of your brand too. Your customers become your biggest advocates because they see what they believe in.

Video conferencing for faster and improved business interactions

That was about video conferencing in the near future. Now, coming to closing deals––while video conferencing is used in the later stages of finalising closures, businesses will begin to use it right from the beginning very soon.

Cold calling techniques will be replaced by video conferencing. Your representatives will get an opportunity to strike the right chord amongst the target audience from the first interaction itself. This will help improve the quality and credibility of these interactions which will result in faster closure of deals, improved customer acquisition, and finally, better business relationships.

So, as we see, though utilisation of video conferencing has picked pace, it will be used at a larger scale in the years to come. Businesses will choose face-to-face meetings not just during the final stages of a sales cycle or discussion but right from the initiation itself.

Wrapping up

Video conferencing is, undoubtedly, a tool to stay. Not just during this pandemic, but even after the world comes back to normal, businesses will continue to embrace this technology and make the most of it.

Hope this blog has highlighted the importance of technology not just for present-day purposes but even for the future.

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Yukti is a content marketing enthusiast with a soft spot for Saas. She loves weaving complicated concepts into simple stories. When not at work, she is found reading books or watching movies.

Understanding the TRAI Guidelines that Govern Mobile Number Portability

Acefone Editor

Author

Contact Center

May 7, 2021

8 mins read eye

Table of content

India is a massive country with a diverse population and a vast user base of mobile devices and networks. With the market offering such immense potential, it isn’t surprising that the competition between telecom operators is booming.

This is a boon for users who have access to new and more affordable telecom plans every day. They can easily move from one network to another when they want to save money and avail better offers. If you wish to do the same, you need to understand the mobile number portability (MNP) rules provided by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).

The authority came up with new rules and guidelines in December 2019, intending to facilitate hassle-free porting for mobile users across the country. Before explaining these rules in detail, we shall talk about number portability and how it works.

What is mobile number portability?

Essentially, mobile number portability (MNP) refers to the facility that allows users to switch from one operator to another. You may do it to get a better offer from another service provider or simply because you are not happy with your current provider.

The best part about the service is that it only changes your network provider, not your mobile number. This means that you don’t have to worry about sharing your new number with all your contacts; they will probably not even know about the switch. Additionally, you can change operators regardless of geographical location.

How you can port your mobile number

Now that you are well aware of mobile number porting, you will want to learn about the actual process. According to the latest TRAI guidelines, you will have to use a unique porting code (UPC) to be able to complete the process.

You will have to apply through your telecom provider, and they will generate the code after validating your account. The regulator will first verify your eligibility as a subscriber to port your number. Here are the eligibility criteria:

You are an active user of the current network and have been using it for at least 90 days.
You have cleared all your pending payments to the provider if you are using a postpaid service.
You have no pending contractual obligations according to the exit clause in the subscriber agreement.
Porting of the particular mobile number is not prohibited by the court of law
You will not be allowed to port the number if it is sub-judice
You will not be eligible if you have already applied to change the ownership of your mobile number

Steps to port your mobile number

Once eligibility is sorted, porting your number is pretty simple. Here are the steps you will have to follow.

Step #1:

You will have to start by sending an SMS to 1900, with the text “PORT” followed by a space and your ten-digit mobile number.

Step #2:

After step 1, you will get a UPC via SMS. It is valid for four days in all Licensed Service Areas (LSAs), except for Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, and North East LSAs. It remains valid for up to 30 days.

Step #3:

Visit the nearest customer service center of the new operator within the validity period. You will have to fill up the Porting Form and Customer Acquisition Form (CAF) here and submit your KYC document(s) as well. These include your ID proof, address proof, and photographs. Corporate connections require a NOC on the company letterhead, duly signed and stamped by the authorized signatory.

Step #4:

After you submit the forms and documents, pay a transaction fee of Rs 6.46.

Step #5:

You will get a new SIM and a message confirming the submission of your request.

How long is the process?

The new TRAI guidelines state that porting within the same circle or LSA will be done within three working days. Conversely, porting to another circle takes five days. It is a considerably shorter process now, as compared to the initial 15 days. However, there is an exception here as you can expect the process to take 30 days for Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, and other states in Northeast India.

It is important to note that you can experience a service disruption of four hours during the night when porting is done. You can also withdraw your request if you change your mind.

The process is simple––you only have to send an SMS to 1900. The text this time will be “CANCEL”, followed by space and your ten-digit mobile number. But you can send the withdrawal message only within 24 hours of your porting request.

Mobile number porting is the easiest and most hassle-free process to move to another provider without having to change your number. The new TRAI guidelines have made it quicker and all the more stress-free. You only need to follow the procedure, and everything will be done within a few days.

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