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New SMS Customer Service Offering from OneReach Puts Support into Customers' Hands

April 11, 2014

New SMS Customer Service Offering from OneReach Puts Support into Customers’ Hands

Powerful SMS Call Center platform allows call centers to convert costly inbound phone calls to cost-effective text message conversations

ORLANDO – As customer service costs continue to climb, companies look to automation as a solution, however, it often comes at the expense of satisfaction and loyalty. To help businesses better serve customers in a cost-effective and efficient way, OneReach introduced an SMS customer service offering – SMS Call Center – that changes the face of inbound customer service by providing the ability for companies to directly convert incoming calls to text conversations, which are convenient and flexible for customers. The company is showcasing the platform at Enterprise Connect, March 17-20, 2014 at the Gaylord Palms in Orlando, Fla.

According to a study from J.D. Power & Associates, 93 percent of IVRs have resulted in decreased customer satisfaction versus talking with an agent. Providing a Web chat channel has shown to improve satisfaction by up to 65 percent, but customers who call in for assistance cannot be transferred directly to chat, meaning they have to abandon their phone call to switch devices and can feel they’ve lost the progress made through the IVR.

Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project reports that text messaging is becoming a preferred method of communication among consumers, with 31 percent of mobile phone owners preferring to text instead of talk. The SMS Call Center offering from OneReach can transfer callers to a text message conversation with a live agent to address their needs in a simple, convenient text message exchange they can have from anywhere.

“Many call centers have adopted SMS as a marketing tool or for simple notifications, however, there are huge opportunities for businesses to use this powerful, always-available channel to engage in two-way communication with their customers,” said Rich Weborg, CEO of OneReach. “Our SMS Call Center application provides a smart bridge from an expensive, sometimes frustrating phone interaction to an efficient engagement that is cost effective for businesses and convenient for the customer.”

When a customer calls in to a company’s IVR, the OneReach SMS Call Center platform provides the option for a caller to complete their interaction via text messaging instead of wading through the IVR prompts or waiting on hold for an agent. The caller is prompted to press a button and then transferred to text-based communication to resolve their request either through a live text conversation with an agent or an automated interaction.

The cost per interaction for SMS customer service is about 25 percent less than a phone call through the IVR. Companies that manage high quantities of service calls regarding a simple, specific action – such as a password change or tracking an order – can automate the SMS customer interaction so that an agent is not required, reducing the cost per interaction to about 25 cents.

OneReach allows call centers to create simple to complex SMS automation capability using OneReach’s visual designer. Text message applications can be set up quickly and easily without the need of development resources. For companies that don’t have a call center in place, OneReach can also provide standalone SMS, IVR and Web chat capabilities that are easy to set up, implement and manage.

Once SMS customer service is implemented, companies can further increase meaningful engagement with their customers, including adding point of sale integration and outbound communications that allow for two-way interaction. For example, an outbound reminder for an automatic re-order of a product sent via text can also ask customers if they would like complimentary products added, and then confirm the sale through SMS.

OneReach is demonstrating its SMS Call Center platform at Enterprise Connect at booth 1914. More information on SMS Call Center can be found at www.onereach.com/callcenter.html.

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