Marketer’s Guide to the Best IVR Software

We have created this IVR software guide to help you tap into the power of call routing and speech recognition and discover the best IVR service providers. The best IVR vendors listed in this guide have been ranked and rated according to the research done by our team.

The history of Interactive Voice Response (IVR) goes back to the 1930s.In the past, the IVR solutions were unquestionably infuriating and not designed with customer experience in mind. Thankfully, all that has changed with time, and so has the function of IVR technology.

While selecting an ideal IVR system may prove daunting, its benefits and impact on operational efficiency and customer experience are difficult to ignore. Equipped with the right IVR software, wait times are minimised, call routing is fine-tuned, and customer support has been improved. 

But how do you sift through the numerous possibilities to identify the best IVR service provider actually capable of meeting your company’s needs? The solution lies in finding IVR software with specific features and capabilities, such as powerful analytics, various integrations, and great customer support.

Let’s explore what IVR software is, how it works, and its major benefits, and take a closer look at the most detailed comparison review of top-rated IVR companies.

What Exactly Is IVR Software?

IVR is indeed one of the most valued tools for enterprises, mid-sized companies, or small businesses handling numerous calls.

Present-day IVR technology is known for decreasing employee burden, reducing expenses, and minimising wait time. But what is an IVR system, and why would it matter?

In simple words, IVR is a menu system that you interact with by selecting via a keypad or responding with your voice. In general, IVRs are pretty common in customer support and call centres. Whenever you call into a business and follow that short menu prompting you to enter information so your call may be routed properly, you have dealt directly with an IVR solution for call centres.

Hosted IVRs allow callers to access information through pre-recorded messages, without having to interact with an agent, multiple menus through touch-tone keypad selection, or IVR speech recognition, all the way through to routing through their calls to specific departments and/or call centre agents.

How IVR Software Operates

IVR software involves callers interacting with pre-recorded voice messages before the call goes through to a live operator. Some IVR services can also identify caller voices and are built on artificial intelligence technologies that allow them to respond appropriately to a given answer.

IVR speech recognition also supports DTMF tones, that is, telephone touch tones; besides, phone trees with a cloud-based IVR solution integrated into them make it possible to attend to many more calls by a call centre. Meanwhile, the option for speech recognition allows callers to communicate in their native language by responding to some kind of voice prompt.

Artificial intelligence for calls has started making its way into the contact centres, where callers no longer need to juggle long menus. With artificial intelligence in place, IVR vendors can get the callers routed directly to the portion of the calling centre they want information from or even get them routed directly to a live agent.

The settings of the IVR software can be modified and customised to fit the brand’s needs. Here is a basic single-level setup where three options are given to the callers:

Nowadays, a business that handles high call volume can no longer rely solely on a receptionist or a call centre. 

Implementing the right marketing automation solutions is the best way to personalise conversations, collect all necessary call data, improve customer experience, and fine-tune sales funnels. Therefore, businesses look for comprehensive solutions that include IVR software.

Phonexa offers IVR software as part of Call Logic — its call tracking, distribution, and intelligence platform — making every caller happier and more likely to convert. 

Why Use Phonexa’s IVR Cloud-Based Solution

Here is what Phonexa’s interactive voice response tool gives to brands and affiliate marketers alike:

Build your plan now to supercharge your call campaigns, or book a demo to learn more about Phonexa.

Comparative Overview of IVR Software

We have drawn up a comparison chart to help you analyse what each IVR software provider has to offer, compare features, and ultimately decide upon the best IVR software that will meet your business requirements.

So, without any further ado, let’s take a detailed look at the top 10 hosted IVR software providers:

IVR Software Providers — Comprehensive Comparison

Eight solutions, one ecosystem, total visibility. Book a demo and get a personalized consultation right away!

Why Use the IVR Software From Phonexa?

A business often requires an advanced IVR system that could employ both keypads and voice to keep things seamless.

Some marketers have had experience with the ineffective IVRs of the past; the earlier technologies did not understand the caller’s instructions and created a poor caller experience. IVR technology has advanced significantly recently and has greatly improved these systems for consumers and enterprises.

Even though installing IVR software is the sure-shot method of optimising call centre efficiency, some customers still believe IVR could worsen interaction with the business.

Let’s explore the pros and cons of using an interactive voice response.

Advantages of IVR

The following are some key benefits of utilising an interactive voice response system:

Typical Mistakes When Setting the IVR

IVR systems can be an excellent means of routing customer calls appropriately to the right operators. However, when utilising such systems, it is very easy to make a mistake and end up losing customers.

• Monotony: Endlessly long menus that lead to submenus are frustrating customers. That would normally signify that the customer wants to switch to a live operator as soon as possible, bypassing the self-service. To avoid that, try hard to make the menu simple.
• Updates: Your company’s needs change, and so should the IVR. A simple error to make is that the company expands and matures, but the IVR menu does not. The consequence is that the menu is outdated: it lacks suitable options or, worse yet, contains options that no longer exist.
• No customer experience metrics: Put surveys at the end of the call where customers can leave feedback on service quality and grade service quality. That will allow your business to improve the service quality.
• Complete automation: Some companies try to automate operators entirely using artificial intelligence. A very complex IVR system like this will not work without rigorous testing. It is advisable to create a basic design that can answer some questions first and then enhance the complexity level step by step.
• Long waits: The more the customers are pleased with the self-service system, the better. That means operators must deal with fewer customers, which will reduce the average wait time.
• Overwhelming menu: Companies must avoid adding extra unnecessary options to the menu. Eliminate the redundant routes if more than one option or branch takes one to the same place.
• Locking customers in IVR with no callback option: No necessity to transform an IVR into a locked box with no door. You still won’t take all the calls, so it’s always better to offer customers the possibility of reaching a live operator or asking for a callback.
• Redirecting the clients to the website: It is never a good plan to send customers back to whence they came. But if that has to be done to redirect them, marketing messages must be well-considered and correctly positioned.

Voice Recognition in Interactive Voice Response Software

Voice recognition is a relatively new IVR option. This type of IVR technology enables one to respond to particular questions based on voice response, and such is simpler compared to menu navigation.

With correct implementation, voice recognition can inform callers about zones where their inquiries will be thoroughly answered. What’s the result? Reduced disappointments.

Answering using the native language to respond to callers’ queries provides an unbelievable customer experience relative to touch tones.

Advantages of Voice Recognition IVR System

• Speech-to-text: Any voice that is recognised can be decoded as text and stored. From there, a lot of new things can be accomplished with this text storage. A caller can use normal conversation to instruct the system, and then receive it saved back as text into a variable to search databases and other data storage.
• Text-to-speech: With this technology, a computer can use text to produce a human-like voice. It can be used to create prompts that callers will hear in real-time rather than recording them beforehand, which is helpful and part of a translation method. In addition, it highly improves the flexibility, ease of use, and simplicity of contact centre modification.

Disadvantages of IVR System With Voice Recognition

The advanced interactive voice recognition software, phone line connection on the caller’s part, and the caller’s diction affect how accurately the system can identify the speaker.

An interactive voice recognition system has its work cut out if your target audience is likely to use various accents. Recognition will generally fail if your customers are phoning from mobile phones with questionable connectivity.

If the system continues to fail to recognise your callers, you can find that significantly more calls than previously existed before the implementation of this technology will be routed to a human agent to be answered.

Integration of IVR Speech Recognition and Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is the latest upgrade to Interactive Voice Response. The IVR technology introduces native language comprehension into the call centre to streamline and increase the customer experience.

AI combines speech recognition technology with advanced processing and call history or account status. AI and IVR can accurately identify a caller’s intent and respond appropriately.

At the end of the day, it’s worth knowing that not all IVRs are created equal.

Personalise Your IVR Using Phonexa

Why would a company bother to create a personalised greeting via its IVR? What’s the point if you just want to transfer the call quickly?

You can have this done as a branding and identity move. Significant branding benefits result from the consumer calling in and hearing a custom message. This one small thing can deliver a lot of value to your callers so they don’t think they are receiving information from a machine.

Here are some benefits that result from implementing personalised IVRs as part of an end-to-end marketing automation solution:

• Effective call distribution: IVRs enable call prioritisation. IVRs assist brands in handling the process and offer their customers customised IVRs, allowing to speak with a live agent or bypass to self-service. With a customised IVR, a company can immediately split calls into certain categories and redistribute customers between IVR sections of an automated version and live over-the-phone customer support. From a company’s perspective, you can ensure your top agents receive the appropriate calls, giving priority to the top agents.
• Call prioritisation: Companies can rank their incoming daily calls using tailored IVRs. Every incoming call offers companies an opportunity to convert and maximise the value of leads. Personalised IVR can identify individual customers and give priority to their service requests. Companies can divide customers into levels, say repeat customers or club members, consumers with past brand experience, or even strategic value customers.
• Satisfied customers: IVRs’ best advantage is enhanced customer service. Satisfied customers tend to give repeat business to a company when they need a similar thing again after buying from them once. Customers will get an improved calling experience if companies implement custom IVRs, which properly sort and prioritise calls based on different standards. Callers receive assistance if they do, without delay, and save time, thereby staying content.
• Collecting vital data: IVR software collects data about your customers. They also forward the calls to the most appropriate agent or department. If your IVR is not transferring that information collected to the agent handling the call, and the caller needs to re-utter it to them, that can be extremely annoying. Ultimately, your aim should be to offer a beautiful experience to the caller.

Begin Leveraging the IVR Software Capability

The most valuable feature of any phone system is its IVR functionality. Comprehensive and dynamic IVR technology allows bigger businesses to no longer have to forward their calls manually.

Here are the eight proprietary solutions you can get at a single price:

Build your plan now, or book a free demo to learn more about Phonexa.