How IVR Continues to be Relevant: Introducing VIVR

Interactive voice response (IVR) technology is constantly adapting to the industry’s needs. An example of such an adaptation is visual IVR (VIVR). This blog post will focus primarily on how VIVR provides customers with the opportunity to have their inbound calls to be seamlessly transitioned to a mobile or web-based system to be processed.

The inbound component of VIVR increases functionality of the script-driven menus in traditional IVRs with visual navigation – letting your eyes do the work. VIVR is great for some of the following reasons:

• Reduces call volume
• Offers digital self-service options
• Improves customer satisfaction and experience
• Reduces “on-hold” times
• Processes more customer transactions quickly and efficiently

When we think of traditional IVR we sometimes focus on the shortcomings – never-ending menu trees, confusing options, inaccurate voice recognition, and a limited power to collect information. An IVR on a mobile device is even trickier since the caller needs to pull the phone away from their ear to press buttons on a keypad. Then there’s the frustration of trying to speak to an actual person!

VIVR presents new growth opportunities and improved customer service for organizations by making the current IVR system visual it replaces lengthy menus that are notorious in traditional IVR. VIVR is easily accessible from a company’s website or a customer’s cell phone. With VIVR, customers can still manage their accounts and pay bills and order new services, but it gives customers power at their fingertips by providing a convenient menu-driven interface on their desktop or mobile device. Customers can simply click or touch their way through the VIVR system without listening to each option. The bottom line is an improved customer experience.

There is also an outbound component to VIVR. For example, when a customer calls a company to pay a utility bill, the company is incurring a cost for the people calling in. However, a useful application of VIVR is for the company to send an outbound text to customers with a link for them to pay their bill. This outbound notification helps in two ways:

1. Company didn’t have to incur the cost for the end users’ inbound call; and
2. Company proactively reached out to customer to remind them of their bill and/or give them the option to pay without them having to call in

Why offer VIVR if you’re a player in the traditional IVR market? For starters, it works seamlessly with your existing IVR system. An IVR system is still required to make the initial connection for incoming phone calls and to drive the voice-to-digital service. IVR will continue to serve customers calling from landlines and for customers who are tech shy. The benefit of offering both options is that the customer experience can seamlessly transition from visual to into call as the VIVR uses your existing IVR scripts so customers still have the choice of using traditional IVR or the new VIVR, even midway through an interaction. Either way you’re extending customer experience to different technology and giving customers the choice of how they want to be served. A benefit of VIVR is that it provides a better interface and better success rates than IVR.

VIVR is another example of how IVR continues to be relevant in this ever-changing technology landscape and continues to adapt to customer needs. What do you think of VIVR as a company or end user? We’d like to hear your thoughts.

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