Every business likes to interact with their customers in different ways, and although with new technology is becoming available all the time, the phone is still an integral communication channel for most businesses. Both outbound and inbound calling are important for businesses, but how should you use each? Let’s have a look at the differences as well as the advantages and disadvantages of both and then see how VoiceNation’s answering service would be the answer to your problems.
Inbound vs outbound calls
Inbound and outbound calls can both be important to your business so understanding the differences can help you make the most out of them. There are several differences between the two, but the simplest way to differentiate them is that inbound calls are when customers or prospects contact a business, and outbound calls are the opposite, so when a business contacts their customers or prospects. We’ll go into more detail and give some examples below.
What are inbound calls?
Inbound calls are when customers contact a business themselves, mostly for customer service reasons. It could be that they want to make a purchase, need support or help with something they’re already purchased from you, or could have questions with billing or their account.
What are outbound calls?
When it comes to outbound calls, this is when you, the business, reaches out to customers or prospects. These calls could either be to try and bring in new business or to contact existing customers to upsell, ask for feedback or just generally follow-up. These can also sometimes be known as cold calls if a business is contacting someone out of the blue who has not already registered interest in their products or services.
What are the advantages of inbound calls?
There are several advantages of inbound calls, here are a few of the main ones:
– Customers are actively calling you, so they want something you provide! These leads should therefore be easier to convert as they are already interested in your services or products.
– You’re ready and waiting to answer a customer’s queries. By having a team ready to help customers with their questions, you are making sure you’re offering great customer service.
What are the disadvantages of inbound calls?
– You never know what the call is going to be about. We’d all like to think that the majority of calls will result in a pleasant conversation, but the reality is you could be taking a call from an angry or upset customer. The caller could also ask a question you don’t know the answer to, so you feel thrown off!
– You can’t predict call volumes, so it can be hard to navigate staffing levels and rotas to make sure there is always someone available to take those calls, as missed calls can cost your business.
What are the advantages of outbound calls?
– You know what you’re calling about, so you’re always prepared! Having that confidence that you know what you’re talking about can help ensure the call is a success.
– When you sort an outbound calling plan, you know the amount of calls you need to make and can therefore make sure you have the right amount of staff on hand to get through the data list.
What are the disadvantages of outbound calls?
– People don’t usually like cold calls, so converting someone into a customer through an outbound call is a lot more work than an inbound call.
– Outbound calls can be very time consuming, and don’t always guarantee results.
Outbound vs inbound calls: can you use both?
So we’ve covered the disadvantages and advantages of outbound and inbound calls, but now the question is which should you use or can you just use both? The answers to these questions rely completely on your business, and what would work for you. If your business is keen to focus on customer support or talking to those already interested in your products or services then inbound calling would be more beneficial to your business.
If your business objectives include lead generation, marketing and reaching new audiences then outbound calling could be a perfect solution for you. What happens if you want to up your customer support provision as well as improve your lead generation? With the right resources, your business can use both inbound and outbound calling working together to achieve your business goals.
When it comes to both inbound and outbound calling success, a lot falls on the time and resources given to it. That’s why many businesses outsource their inbound and outbound calls to call centers or answering services like VoiceNation.
With live answering and Outbound Calling plans to suit every business, let us take and make calls on your behalf, leaving you to do what you do best.