New Communication Technology: Meeting Customers Wherever They Are

You know, a lot has been made over the years about the importance of knowing your customers — for good reason, too. After all, you can't very well meet the needs of your customers if you don't understand them.

That being said, for as much attention as marketing and sales professionals devote to learning who their customers are, precious little time is given to understanding how best to reach them. Here are a few helpful tips on how new communication technology can help you do just that.

New Communication Technology

One of the simplest ways to maximize the effectiveness of your customer outreach is to not only understand who you're calling, but what. If the ultimate goal of your communications is to drive purchasing decisions, the last thing you want is to be an inconvenience. The trick is figuring out how to call at the most convenient, dynamic moment. Unfortunately, each call can seem like a roll of the dice without a little clairvoyance.

This is where new communication technology comes in. Imagine being able to know more about the kind of phone you're calling. For example: Is it a mobile phone or a landline? Is it a corporate phone or a personal one? Is the phone within its service provider's coverage area, or is it roaming? This may seem like trivial information, but with it, you can make a far more educated and impactful connection.

Let's say you're heading up sales for Dunder Mifflin. You've had some on-and-off communication with a particular customer, who tends to switch between an office phone, a mobile phone, and a home office landline. Wouldn't it be nice to know immediately which one your customer is calling from before you pick up the phone? With some creative use of a phone number API, you can be immediately alerted to these kinds of useful insights when the customer returns your call.

Even better, maybe you notice that your client is calling from a new landline, in a new location you haven't seen yet. As benign as that insight may initially seem, perhaps you mention the new number. As it turns out, she's calling from a brand-new branch that just opened its doors. You then quickly turn the conversation into a new sale by inquiring about supplies the office may need. This is simple information that leads to more effective communication about a customer's business needs.

A Two-Way Street

These insights don't just affect incoming communications either. If you've ever tried to make first contact with a customer only to find out you've caught him on vacation in Hawaii, you'll understand. Timing is everything when trying to make an impact with customers. With communication APIs, your contacts will automatically be tagged with metadata like carrier, country, roaming status, mobile or landlines, and more. Armed with this information, you'll be able to create a more effective communication strategy — one that doesn't interrupt vacation, consume costly roaming minutes, or ring during lunchtime.

In the end, if effective communications is based on meeting customers where they are, knowing exactly how best to do that is useful information indeed.

Contact Vonage Business to learn more about business communication solutions.