Interact Shares Insight on The Power of an IVR System: Video Interview
April 01, 2011
By Susan J. Campbell, TMCnet Contributing Editor
Interactive voice response (IVR) is a valuable platform for any organization wishing to automate certain elements of the customer service initiative. At the same time, this technology platform provides an opportunity for the organization to customize messages for customers, send information specific to a particular campaign and so much more.
At this year’s ITEXPO (News - Alert) East event, TMCnet’s Patrick Barnard spoke with Doug Page, Manager of Global Sales for Interact Inc., to explore the different opportunities in
IVR and the direction the company is headed. Their conversation was captured in this
video.
Interact is considered a leading IVR Solutions provider and has been around in the industry for a long time. Page noted, “In the last 10 years for sure, we’ve seen the advent of VoIP and adoption of convergence, which has changed what the company does for IVR today. Customers now have more options.”
New technologies available in the IVR space today include speech recognition and text-to-speech. These innovations allow them to provide a more customized approach to IVR. The company has also seen the integration of web-based services, as this is no longer a code-based world. People want to integrate web with IVR and manage with a GUI.
As for other areas where Interact is integrating, Page pointed to biometrics, or voice print services as it is often called. This is not speech recognition, but voice recognition. The company is also doing more for security firms; geocode mapping; geographic location services; E911 services capabilities and enhanced security for those responding to emergencies.
IVR is a strong tool for customer service and solutions today can be personalized and customized for an enhanced
customer experience . While Interact does have off-the-shelf solutions, every customer is unique and they all have an idea of what they want in their platform. Technical resources the company has on board allows for a high degree of customization for the client.
The technology platforms offered with IVR can greet customers by name, can push out messages about recent purchases, remind customers about prescriptions that are about to expire, etc. These capabilities are really about integration with the database to see what is going on with that customer and suggest things that improve the experience for the customer.
As for IVR in the cloud, Interact does have a hosted solution that they can offer to clients, which include pay as you go or use as needed.When asked about sessions at the show, Page noted he has been to several and they have been fantastic. He is excited about what they are doing and the information being shared, he considers to be phenomenal.
Susan J. Campbell is a contributing editor for TMCnet and has also written for eastbiz.com. To read more of Susan’s articles, please visit her columnist page.Edited by Juliana Kenny