Releasing a report on details of a customer service market survey recently, Fonality (News - Alert), a leader in supplying cloud telephony services to SMB’s in North America, discovered that customers are willing to pay a 20 percent maximum premium for exceptional customer service.
Fonality’s survey polled 300 customers using services from SMB’s, and it was conducted by Webtorials to gauge the opinions of customers when it comes to delivering superior customer experiences. Steve Taylor, editor-in-chief and publisher for Webtorials, stated in a release, “With the UC and VoIP capabilities now readily available to SMBs, the playing field has been leveled. Investments in this technology can yield tremendous dividends because consumers will pay more for enhanced customer service. Smaller businesses can enjoy greater benefits in a shorter timeframe through the acquisition of improved customer service tools, particularly when delivered through the cloud.”
80 percent of respondents to the survey cited unified communications and voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) tools as important factors in providing superior customer service. The survey also revealed that consumers prefer working with SMB’s in a 3 to 1 ratio, even as they are willing to pay more for better customer service.
The report’s stats showed that companies are using a combination of premise-based equipment and the cloud to deliver unified communications, in addition to the trend of adopting VoIP and UC to reduce costs and expand the reach of skill sets across locations to improve customer service.
Fonality’s Chief Marketing Officer, Wes Durow, stated, “Advanced business communications features, such as UC and presence, have traditionally been cost prohibitive for the majority of SMBs, placing them at a distinct disadvantage against larger competitors. This study shows that once equipped with this technology, SMBs can work smarter, faster and more effectively than larger competitors, and garner a premium for doing so. For growth-oriented companies, investing in a VoIP and UC solution to empower improved customer service provides an accelerated ROI opportunity.”
Fonality’s cloud telephony technology was built specifically for SMB’s and the company is now the leading provider of cloud telephony services in North America. Enabling users to access customer information through several applications in real time, Fonality has recently announced its participation in TMCnet’s ITEXPO (News - Alert) West 2011 event in Austin, TX this fall.
Want to learn more about the latest in communications and technology? Then be sure to attend ITEXPO West 2011, taking place Sept. 13-15, 2011, in Austin, Texas. ITEXPO offers an educational program to help corporate decision makers select the right IP-based voice, video, fax and unified communications solutions to improve their operations. It's also where service providers learn how to profitably roll out the services their subscribers are clamoring for – and where resellers can learn about new growth opportunities. To register, click here.
Juliana Kenny graduated from the University of Connecticut with a double degree in English and French. After managing a small company for two years, she joined TMC (News - Alert) as a Web Editor for TMCnet. Juliana currently focuses on the call center and CRM industries, but she also writes about cloud telephony and network gear including softswitches.
Edited by Jamie Epstein