IVR Systems Present Revenue Generating Opportunities
May 10, 2011
By Susan J. Campbell, TMCnet Contributing Editor
Companies considering an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system may be solely focused on what that system can do for the self-service channel. And, while this technology can streamline costs in this area, it is only one way to drive value with IVR. When applied correctly, IVR systems can also help to create revenue-generating applications.
This latest
post from IVRs World focused on the revenue-generating opportunities for the IVR space, highlighting how these applications can be used exclusively for this purpose. Regular money can be made when an
IVR system is used in the telecom space. The most widely deployed solutions to drive revenue are the voice portal and CRBT or PRBT.
Voice portals originally emerged as a premium service for quick access to information. When the mobile phone made its appearance, voice portals became more attractive to telecom service providers. These portals are operated by a value-added service provider in collaboration with a telecom service provider in a revenue-sharing basis. The revenue model for this approach to the IVR system is set up so that there is a premium charged per minute per call.
This
revenue is then shared between the telecom provider and the VAS service provider. Billing is then done once a month by the VAS Operator to the telecom service provider. The telecom service provider then charges the mobile user in his or her telephone bill.
The CRBT, or Caller Ringback Tone, is also known in the industry as PRBT (Personalized ring back tone) and is really nothing more than an IVR system. This platform has only been around for little more than a decade, yet the increase in usage and popularity is being driven by the increase in mobile telephony and marketing used by
mobile telephony providers.
The revenue model for the IVR system in this case is one where the subscriber is charged a monthly rental for using the service; the subscriber can also call in and make a change to the specific ring tone, which is also charged; the ring tone is not charged when it is used for every call; revenue is shared between the VAS operator and the telecom service provider; and revenue may also be shared with music producers.
In such
situations, the telecom service providers generally do not have more than one VAS operator for CRBT due to the technical setup. And, like the voice portal market, this IVR system space has room for significant growth and additional players as the revenue potential is huge.
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