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IVR - The Technology Behind Plum IVR
IVR
April 11, 2012

The Technology Behind Plum IVR



By Susan J. Campbell, TMCnet Contributing Editor

Interactive voice response (IVR) relies on various technologies to make it an asset to the call center. The format used most often for IVR is VoiceXML (News - Alert), which was established in 1999. The XML stands for extensible markup language, of which there are hundreds of variations in circulation today. 



According to this Plum Voice blog, XML became a World Wide Web Consortium (W3C (News - Alert)) recommendation in early 1998. Similar to the way HTML items are deciphered by web browsers, the VXML items are interpreted by voice browsers. These VXML applications are taking millions of calls every day for everything from voice access to emails to checking on your flight, to getting a prescription filled.

IVR has been credited for not only saving companies money on live agents, but also for dramatically reducing the amount of cost per call, increasing customer satisfaction, and helping to push a company’s brand.Traditional IVR systems function best with a simple menu. 

Clients can use an IVR interface, so to speak, to access the information they need at any time of the day. IVR systems that make outgoing calls are often fitted with tools that allow calls to be transferred to a live agent if the client would prefer, and if no live agents are available, the software can shut down outgoing calls until there are more lines open.

An automated telephony solution is readily available from Plum, including a variety of IVR products and services to help their clients gain a better foothold in their industry. 

Plum uses the Internet combined with telephony technology to deliver its services. Plum also uses hardware and software together to collect and transmit data. The IVR applications offered by Plum rely on VoIP communications as well as cloud-based data storage and PBX (News - Alert).Plum’s IVR hosting service is an award-winning offering that is available to any sized business. 

The data centers that host the service are considered world class and are located stateside and in Europe. The company also offers a survey building service that gives companies the tools they need to create and deploy effective surveys that help them with their business process planning.Clients who prefer to manage their own equipment have the option to do so with Plum’s IVR. 

The hardware and software package is scalable and preconfigured to the needs of each individual company. The servers are built on VoiceXML 2.0-certified and 2.1-compliant platforms.Plum’s engineers have designed and built many IVR systems and are well equipped to deliver a project on time. 

The company claims to never have missed a delivery date, something that can set a provider apart from the crowd. As long as the technology lives up to its promises, Plum offers a strong value proposition.




Edited by Juliana Kenny


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