Silence May Be Golden, Just Not During Business Hours! Why Smart Brands Embrace On Hold Music Marketing.

They say that silence in golden. In some instances, that may be true, but if you own, manage or operate a business- silence isn’t golden, especially during business hours! Silence aggravates and frustrates your waiting callers, and it makes them feel unimportant. Even worse, according to AT&T 70% of calls are placed on hold, and when forced to wait in dead silence, 50% of callers hang up in just less than 40 seconds and 34% of those callers – never call you back! Google also conducted a survey about callers’ willingness to wait, and over 32% of respondents said they were not willing to wait at all for a customer service.

When you put clients on hold, you need to let them know that they are still connected to your company. A silent line could confuse them by making them think that you have hung up instead of putting them on hold. Savvy brands know that they must take advantage of every opportunity to engage and speak directly to customers and prospects. On-hold music and messages appeal to callers. In fact, studies show that 88% of callers prefer on hold music and messages versus the alternatives (dead-silence or radio). 

Smart brands know that On-hold time at your business shouldn’t be a negative or even a neutral experience for the customer. It may seem like given that when your callers are waiting to speak to you, they hear branded on hold music. However many businesses still overlook this sales opportunity, as well as the opportunity to provide a great telephone brand experience by giving waiting patrons the cold shoulder with dead-air on hold.

Hold music doesn’t have to be just merely stand-by music.  Deploying custom branded music on hold and messaging mitigates frustration. According to a North American Telecom survey, keeps callers will remain on the line up to 3 times longer according. This is also further evidenced by U.S. West Communications, who found a 40 percent increase in caller retention with custom on-hold music and messaging.

So, silence is not golden after all. In fact, it may be costing you potential revenues due to caller abandonment. What is caller abandonment and why should you care?  Caller abandonment is when a caller hangs up before giving you the chance to serve them.  This is a lose/lose event. You lose out on a potential sale and gaining a customers, coupled with lost money spent on getting them to call you in the first place.

According to callcenterhelper.com, 6/10 customers have ditched a company because its telephone customer service has been so bad.  Custom branded on hold music with professional marketing messaging is a powerful language. It’s more than just entertainment! It’s the voice of your business, speaking directly to your customers during a highly-targeted inbound marketing opportunity to create an awesome customer brand experience, and give an added boost to profits.  Remember, it’s not just a call — it’s a customer!