What is Interactive Voice Response (IVR)?
Interactive Voice Response (IVR) is an automated phone system technology that allows incoming callers to access information via a voice response system of pre recorded messages without having to speak to an agent, as well as to utilize menu options via touch tone keypad selection or speech recognition to have their call routed to specific departments or specialists.
IVR is commonly used in toll-free numbers starting with 1-800, which is free, or 1-300, of which the caller pays the local call rates. While calls are usually free between phones these days, calls to 1-300 numbers will still incur charges to your phone bills.
A well-designed IVR software system can help increase customer satisfaction and improve contact center operations and KPIs. Particularly during times of high call volume, an effective interactive voice response system can help avoid hold time by helping customers find answers and perform simple tasks themselves. In cases where a customer needs or requests to speak with a person, ivr technology can help route calls quickly and seamlessly to the best call center agent to address their inquiry.
While it could help ‘increase customer satisfaction’, many poorly designed IVR systems can actually frustrate users. A leading example of such abhorrence is that of Great Eastern Malaysia, an insurance company with its toll-free number 1-300-13-0088.
For some reason, I needed to clarify certain questionsof mine by speaking to a real human in Great Eastern Malaysia. Other answers can easily be found online. So I did the next logical thing: call their toll-free number.
After getting greeted by a machine and choosing the language of my choice, I was led through a cascade of menus: questions on what I wanted to do. I have noted that once a choice has been made, there seems to be no going back except to hang up and redial again for the correct choices all over again. I treaded the choices carefully by pressing the correct number on my dial pad to send the correct DTMF tone to the decoder.
After what seemed like a very long time, I finally reached the part where I could choose to speak to an agent. I was told to enter the ten-digit IC number, and it was successful. I was then asked if the last four digits of my mobile phone number were ####. I pressed ‘1’ to confirm. It then told me that an OTP had been sent to my phone via SMS and asked me to key in the correct OTP. After a minor fumbling through my phone’s screen, I also managed to key in the correct OTP!
The next message was a major letdown: “We are sorry, all our agents are busy at the moment. Please call again later.” And it hung up on me! What the FUCK?
Eager to solve my problem, I repeated the same process after some time. This time, it did not hang up on me but asked if I would like to wait online, which I did more than five times. It offered me the option to press ‘1’ should I want them to call me back. By the sixth time, I pressed ‘1’, and it hung up.
I waited for the whole day but did not receive any call.
More than 24 hours had passed the next day when an unknown number, 03-42648888, identified as ‘SasTechnology’, called. She asked me what the purpose of my call the day before was. I told her my intention, and she, again, promised me that she would ‘ask a Claim Officer to call me within two working days’.
Leave a Reply