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Unified Communications: Improving Customer Service, Operational Efficiency and Cost Savings

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Switching from traditional telecommunications to a

cloud-based phone system has massive benefits for

businesses. Today, organizations turn to Unified

Communications as a Service (UCaaS) to cut costs

and enhance security by bringing their online and

phone-based communications under a single

umbrella. Businesses who use UCaaS can realize

cost savings, added mobility, improved business

continuity and disaster recovery, and increased

operational and data security.

But the benefits to customers are just as significant,

leading to measurable returns on investment

thanks to improved conversion and loyalty over

time. UCaaS allows businesses to serve customers

— whose expectations have shifted in recent years

— by going mobile, expanding availability,

improving responsiveness and personalizing the

customer experience.

UCaaS Benefits for Businesses

UCaaS Benefits for Customers

1. Infrastructure cost savings

2. Added mobility & agility

3. Business continuity & disaster recovery

4. Increased security

1. Adherence to modern expectations &

standards

2. Expanded business availability

3. Improved responsiveness & decreased

response times

4. Personalized, customized service

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Though millennials drive many of these trends, they

are true for older generations (namely Boomers and

Gen X) as well. And the youngest customers, those

in Generation Z, have even higher expectations than

their predecessors. Companies hoping to attract

and retain millennials and Gen Zs must therefore

pay close attention to these features, all of which

UCaaS can enable or enhance.

Availability

“Business hours” are a thing of the past. With

e-commerce, social media and all forms of

communication available 24/7, it’s natural to want

companies to remain available too. Factor in global

connectivity, time zones, remote work and flexible

hours, and “9 to 5” means something different to

Today's customers want:

• Availability

• Responsiveness

• Messaging options

• Personalization

every customer. UCaaS solves the availability

problem by facilitating mobile and remote work

and offering more options for customer service.

For example, a small business owner could use UCaaS

to have a customer's after-hours call forwarded from

her office line to her mobile phone, allowing her to

respond to the customer directly from her business

phone number.

Responsiveness

Customers today have much less tolerance for

waiting, requiring businesses to shift their approach

to communications. Hold times, long phone trees

or waiting several hours for a message reply can

sour customers on a business, prompting them

to seek a more convenient provider. UCaaS

enables responsiveness with real-time, organized

communications that equip customer service

teams to collaborate and respond to inquiries in

a timely fashion.

Messaging options

Millennials and younger customers express a reduced

willingness to call businesses on the phone. Instead,

they prefer messaging — as do customers of all ages

who are busy, mobile or frustrated with hold times.

Messaging lets customers communicate when

multitasking or unable to make time for a phone call.

And because many younger customers are simply

more comfortable with messaging, options to text or

chat can put them at ease and encourage long term

loyalty. UCaaS makes messaging available from all

connected devices, business landline numbers, so

customers receive the same level of service no matter

their preferred method of communication.

Personalization

Customers now expect businesses to come prepared

with an understanding of their history, needs and other

data that differentiates them from other customers.

Meeting the Modern CustomerWhile 88% of companies may think that their

organization currently understands customer needs,

only 61% of customers feel that their needs are being

met. Within this gap lies $62 billion — the amount of

money businesses lose each year to poor customer

service.1 Fortunately, UCaaS helps businesses bridge

that gap and retain their customers.

The average customer no longer has an appetite

for meeting a business on its terms. Instead, today’s

customers increasingly expect near-constant

availability, quick responses and a variety of ways

to get in touch — all with a personalized experience.

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With UCaaS, organizations can link their business

intelligence and CRM systems to their

communications services to deliver intelligent

personalization and demonstrate to each customer

that their business is valued.

For example, when a customer calls, an integrated

UCaaS system can display their complete purchase

history to a representative automatically, without

any additional customer input.

The Mobility AdvantageGone are the days when businesses, especially small

businesses, could afford to leave their phones

behind and pick up customer messages back in the

office. Now, remote access to all communication

tools is vital to meeting customer expectations.

Integrated communication tools like UCaaS allow

total access to calls, voicemails, SMS and even

collaboration tools from any authorized device —

from desk phones to mobile phones to computers

and tablets. This access and flexibility allows

businesses to have increased agility and improved

response times for customers.

The Benefits of Business Mobility

1. Increased agility: Businesses that

work anywhere deliver results for their

customers faster.

2. Improved response times: Customers

are no longer willing to wait for

businesses to return calls.

This permits responses in a fraction of the time

without sharing personal numbers or otherwise

compromising data security. In addition, business

representatives can respond in the mode (calling,

texting or messaging) that each customer prefers

without having to switch devices.

This improved ability to respond has demonstrated

impact on customers’ attitudes toward businesses.

Responsiveness and availability have dramatic effects

on business favorability: a CMO Council report found

that the most important attribute of good customer

service is a fast response time.2 Meanwhile, 55% of

customers reported that not being able to talk to “a

real person” right away is the top reason they dislike

calling customer service.3

UCaaS enables owners and employees to receive

customer communications on one device, no matter

where they are. For instance, they can make business

calls from personal phones — with their business

number displayed on their outbound Caller ID.

Reasons customers dislike calling businesses:

1. Inability to reach a real person right away

(55%)

2. Having to repeat info to multiple reps (49%)

3. Waiting on hold (41%)

4. Navigating multiple menus (39%)

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Personalized Service Through Cloud CommunicationsWhile increased agility and mobility leading to more

responsive service is core to UCaaS, customers are

also keenly interested in the technology enabling

businesses to “know” them. Most businesses already

recognize that creating personalized experiences for

their customers will be integral to future success: 73%

of business leaders said that delivering a relevant and

reliable customer service experience was critical to

their success in 2017, and 93% agreed that it would be

critical in 2019.4

Personalization increases customer satisfaction,

retention and loyalty. And its inverse,

depersonalization, has extremely negative effects:

44% of customers express frustration when

companies fail to deliver relevant experiences,

including personalized customer service.5

Cloud communication technologies allow businesses

to both link their CRMs and other back-end systems

to their phone and messaging services. They also

enable companies to better understand who they’re

talking to and provide personalized service from the

start. Most businesses recognize that creating

personalized experiences for their customers will be

integral to future success.

According to a Rare Consulting study, personalization

is a massive loyalty driver, especially among younger

generations. And personalization is a high priority

for a significant percentage of customers of all

generations.6

ConclusionCloud communications clearly have a huge role

to play in modernizing business and allowing the

flexibility, agility and intelligence necessary to

compete in today’s marketplace. Businesses that

embrace the cloud can better serve their customers

by meeting modern expectations, using mobility

to their advantage and personalizing the customer

experience.

How generations value personalization

1. Boomers: 40%

2. Gen X: 48%

3. Millennials: 52%

4. Gen Z: 54%

At every customer touchpoint, businesses can know:

...all without asking the customer more than a few cursory questions.

• Details of the customer’s most recent contact

• Information on the customer’s purchase/service history

• An overview of the customer’s personal details

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Sources1. Researchscape International, 2017. “Talend Great Expectations Divide” survey.

Available at https://info.talend.com/rs/talend/images/pr_en_tld_datadivide_fullinfographic.jpg

2. CMO Council, 2017. The Customer in Context: Understanding the Real Expectations of Today's Connected Customer. Available at https://cmocouncil.org/thought-leadership/reports/the-customer-in-context

3. NewVoiceMedia, 2016. “The $62 Billion Customer Service Scared Away.” Available at https://www.newvoicemedia.com/en-us/news/the-62-billion-customer-service-scared-away

4. Harvard Business Review, 2017. “Closing the Customer Experience Gap.” Available at https://hbr.org/sponsored/2017/08/closing- the-customer-experience-gap

5. Harvard Business Review, 2017. “Closing the Customer Experience Gap.” Available at https://hbr.org/sponsored/2017/08/closing- the-customer-experience-gap

6. Rare Consulting, 2016. “Rare: Redefining Loyalty.” Available at https://rare.consulting/rare-research/loyalty

To learn more about cloud-based communication systems that can benefit businesses, visit U.S. Cellular — the network that works

In the Middle of Anywhere.

To learn more, call 1-866-616-5587 or go to uscellular.com/business

Visit us: uscellular.com/business | Call us: 1-866-616-5587All rights reserved: ©2018 U.S. Cellular