Three Considerations For Unanswered Automated Calls

A previous blog post discussed the benefits of using automated outbound dialers for many use cases, such as cold calling, debt collection, and market research. They are more efficient than manual dialing, leading to resources being utilized more effectively, increasing the number of calls per day, and, in turn, growing the number of sales per day.

But an automated dialer can only help a business if customers answer the call. Hence, businesses should be prepared for unanswered calls, and they should have a strategy for addressing them.

How Many Times To Retry

The first part of a retry strategy is the number of times to retry when a customer does not answer. Unfortunately, since every business is different, there is no “magic number” for retries. Some of the factors that companies should consider when determining how many times they should attempt to call include:

• Quality of the leads – Existing customers are more likely to lead to sales and should be retried as often as the business can support it. On the other hand, cold calls have a 1 to 3% success rate and should have a lower number of tries.
• Number of leads – The larger the lead list, the longer it will take to complete all calls. Businesses may want to keep the number of retries low to complete the campaign in less time.
• Eventually, businesses need to consider a lead as dead. The reporting system should provide insight into the number of retries where success rates drop.

When To Retry

After determining the appropriate number of retries, businesses should then look at when to perform those retries. Most systems allow organizations to define a time interval for retries. However, automated campaigns can be more successful if the solution supports different retry intervals based on the reason for the unanswered call.

• A busy signal indicates the customer is actively using their phone, so it is reasonable to set a short retry interval, such as 15 minutes, in an attempt to reach them while they are still able to talk.
• On the other hand, a customer whose phone went to voicemail might be more accessible later in the day.

Which Calls To Make First

The final consideration should be which calls to prioritize. The typical behavior is to move retries to the end of the campaign and only call them after all new calls have been made. The idea behind that strategy is that the new calls are more likely to be answered than retries. Also, there may be a time constraint for running the campaign, so the business may want to attempt to contact all of the leads at least once. However, some companies may wish to perform retries first, so their solution should allow them to control the retry priority.

Mavenir Mobile Business Contact’s Dialing And Retry Rules Engine

All automated outbound campaigns for Mobile Business Contact use an advanced dialing and retry rules engine that provides the control and flexibility businesses need to maximize the rate of answered calls.

• Number of Retries – The solution allows up to 10 retries for unanswered calls. Businesses can also specify the number of retries per day and the number of days to retry.
• When to Retry – Businesses can customize the retry interval based on why the call was not answered. Some of the answer statuses are Busy, No Answer, and Rejected. For each of these, businesses can set a retry interval for the number of retries. The retry interval can also be different for each retry; the first retry for a Busy response might be 15 minutes, and the second could be set for 45 minutes, etc.
• Which Calls to Make First – The dialing and retry rules engine provides a simple checkbox that allows businesses to prioritize scheduled retries over new calls.

Businesses that invest in lead lists and dedicate resources to outbound campaigns need them to be successful. The only way they can produce results is if those calls are answered. No solution can guarantee all calls will be answered. However, Mobile Business Contact’s dialing and retry rules engine provides businesses control over the number of retries, when to retry, and the priority of retries to maximize the chances of success.

For additional information about outbound dialers and other contact center features, visit https://www.mavenir.com/contact-us/.