Unlike the Mad Men era, today’s marketing professionals are not enjoying “3 martini lunches” while they look over color samples and stock photos, or flip through their rolodex.
Instead, they’re pouring over mountains of analytical data and market research, so they can optimize campaigns, increase brand visibility, establish competitive advantage, expand marketplaces, and populate the sales funnel with qualified leads. And that’s why one of the most valuable tools in the marketing world today is a hosted cloud phone system.
Here are 10 ways that a hosted cloud phone system drives marketing success:
1. Get Customized Local Numbers
Businesses can easily get customized local numbers for marketing campaigns in different geographic areas. For example, businesses can get a number with a 919 area code to boost conversions in Raleigh, NC, and get a number with a 704 area code to boost conversions in Charlotte, NC.
2. Get Vanity Numbers
Businesses can also quickly and easily get vanity numbers that are simpler for target audiences to remember. For example, a home renovation company in Greensboro, NC can get the number “(336) TOP-RENO”, a tow truck company in Atlanta, GA can get the number “(678) TOW-HELP”, and so on.
3. Get Toll-Free Numbers
Businesses with regional, multi-state and/or national campaigns can get toll-free numbers. This not only boosts engagement and conversions, but it makes small and mid-sized businesses look like large enterprises.
4. Use Multiple Numbers for A/B Testing
Businesses can assign more than one number to a single mail campaign (including direct email), in order to track response rates and identify which strategies and pieces of marketing collateral are getting the most traction. For example, 50% of target audiences can be invited to call one number, and 50% of target audiences can be invited to call another number. If after a few weeks or months the first number is generating a significantly higher response rate, then it can be used as the “control” to drive current and future campaigns.
5. Increase Engagement with Auto Attendant
Businesses can customize an auto attendant greeting that seamlessly integrates with campaign messaging. For example, a home renovation company that is offering customers a 20% discount if they book their project before May 31st can make sure this is referred to when customers call the number on the ad or email (e.g. “Thank you for calling ABC Home Renovations, where you’ll save 20% simply by booking your customized home renovation no later than May 31st. If you want to learn more about this promotion or to book your project right now, please press 1”).
6. Forward Calls to Any Number
Incoming calls can be forwarded to any number — or to multiple numbers at the same time — to ensure that there is a friendly and prepared sales representative on the other end of the phone when customers reach out.
7. Customized On-Hold Messages
Ideally, there would always be a sales representative available to speak with a customer. However, this isn’t always possible, and customers need to wait on hold. Instead of wasting this touchpoint, businesses can create customized on-hold messages or provide agreeable on-hold music — both of which help keep customers engaged and on-the-line, instead of frustrated and hanging up.
8. Voicemail to Email
Sometimes, customers want to leave a voicemail vs. wait on hold, or they call outside of normal business hours and must leave a voicemail. If so, then sales representatives can pick up the voicemail as an email (with an audio attachment). This speeds up response times, and can make the difference between making a sale, or losing a sale to the competition.
9. Business Caller ID
When sales representatives call customers back using a mobile app on their smartphone, the business’s name and number will show up on the customer’s caller ID — not the sales representative’s personal name and number. This increases response rates (since customers may be wary of answering a call from an unfamiliar name/number), and it also makes the business look more professional and polished. It keeps sales professionals from having to give customers their personal smartphone number, which may not be advisable or allowed.
10. Engage Colleagues to Seal the Deal
Sometimes, when speaking with customers and answering their questions, sales representatives need a little help from their friends — such as a member of the technical team, installation team, billing team, and so on. With a hosted cloud phone system, sales professionals can see which of their colleagues are available, as well as start a SMS chat to get instant answers and information. Or, if it makes sense to bring a colleague (or multiple colleagues) into the call itself to directly connect with the customer, this can be done in a matter of seconds.
The Bottom Line
Marketing has changed a great deal in recent years — and so have marketing tools. Rolodexes are out, and for the 10 impressive reasons noted above, state-of-the-art hosted cloud phone systems are definitely in. Don Draper would approve!