Want to Add Customized on Hold Messaging to Your Hosted IP System? Watch Out!

Educational Technology - Want to Add Customized on Hold Messaging to Your Hosted IP System? Watch Out!

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Want to Add Customized on Hold Messaging to Your Hosted IP System? Watch Out!

You've just called your bank for the 4th time this month. You are put on hold and notice that you can whistle or hum their music On Hold in your sleep. Why? It wasn't this way in the past. You call your doctor's office for the 4th time this month and are put on hold. Their On Hold Messaging program tells you about the new doctor that has just joined the practice. It's the same message you hear EVERY TIME you call them. Now instead of being educated, you are getting annoyed. Why?

What I said. It just isn't the actual final outcome that the actual about Educational Technology . You check this out article for information on anyone wish to know is Educational Technology .

Educational Technology

Here's why. The bank and the doctor's office recently installed Hosted IP telephone systems. In the past, when you called these businesses, your ' hold ' experience was a bit more engaging and varied. The music changed from time to time, and you heard different messages. It seemed like the time youwere on hold was shorter than it is now.

What's the difference? Instead of the On Hold program being played as a continuous loop for the full 6 minutes, many Hosted IP systems play the audio program from the beginning every time a call goes on hold. This means the caller hears the same beginning message every time they're put on hold ... instead of the traditional method of looping the audio program so that the part of the program On Hold callers hear is random based on where the program happens to be playing at that moment.

What value did the bank or doctor's office gain by going to Hosted IP? Possibly a ton! Perhaps they were able to save money on dial-tone by combining it with other Internet bandwidth. New features, lower maintenance costs and cooler phones may have playedinto the decision. Maybe the old system was just tired, broken and needed a new life as a boat anchor. The purpose of this article is not to attack what may appear as a somewhat minor shortcoming with respect to how Hosted IP solutions neglect a few traditional features, but to simply point out a few points to consider.

For purposes of discussion, Hosted by ' IP ', we mean that the software powering the telecommunications environment is NOT housed at the customer's site. It is a subset of ' cloud computing '. The hosting solution software is typically housed at the provider's secure and well protected site and connects to the customer's phones via an Internet/Router solution. Most providers bundle Internet, LD, local services, equipment (occasionally) bundled into one monthly price ona per user basis. Some providers require the customer to purchase any equipment that is required on site to support the application such as phones and routers. We've seen pricing range from as low as per month (per user) up to as high as per month. Customers have varied amounts of control managing their systems, depending on their provider.

Some Hosted IP solutions offer the most serious challenges to properly configuring On Hold Messaging content for the end-user customer. Success depends completely on the host software's ability or the host's willingness to load a customized audio file or a content player. Many traditional business phone system owners that move to hosting services don't find out until after the migration to the hosting service that they have lost their customized On Hold capability completely. As of this writing, our company has ascertained several of the largest Hosted Providers are the most likely to NOT support their customers desire for a customized program On Hold. The reasons given for NOT supporting a customized file are that they have concerns from a legal perspective and simply don't care to manage the updating and installation. If you look closely at their marketing materials, they offer ONLY a canned music solution. Unfortunately, this is often not a point of discussion during the sales process. It is important for the customer to be aware of these potential shortcomings, and to cover them with their potential providers in advance.

Finally, it's important to note that many (but not all) of the ' wav files/mp3 scenarioswork in the following manner within a Hosted VoIP solution. When the HOLD button is pressed on a telephone, the host software requests for a ' file ' to be initiated and the caller hears the file from the beginning each and every time they call. This is somewhat against the grain of how an On Hold program should work. Most providers create On Hold 4-6 minute programs in an effort to provide more content to callers, so as they call in time and time again, they hear different content via the ' looped ' program feel that most 3rd party equipment solutions provide. Cisco (sometimes used as the hosting software) does provide a method to loop the program as long as the network is configured in a manner to allow for it. As for the Hosted IP groups that will accept a Customized File On Hold, thereis a bit of engineering that needs to happen within their platform to allow for the file to play in a ' looped ' manner. This varies from company to company. Some of these groups have addressed this issue, while many others have not and don't plan to until their customers raise the issue.

In closing, the world of telephony and its convergence with the data world is happening at a whirlwind pace. There are benefits to be had, and gains to be made. And though there certainly may be a plethora of advantages associated with any emerging technology, there are often trade-offs and features ... once coveted and taken for granted "... that are lost in transition.

I hope you have new knowledge about Educational Technology . Where you can put to easy use in your day-to-day life. And just remember, your reaction is passed. Read more.. Want to Add Customized on Hold Messaging to Your Hosted IP System? Watch Out!.