Choosing VoIP to Power a Micro Call Center
www.partypail.com
Watch Edward Hechter, CEO of party supply company PartyPail.com talk about his experience with Vocalocity, or download the PartyPail case study PDF to learn more about how PartyPail has grown due to their success with Vocalocity’s e-commerce VoIP system.
The Challenge – Finding Reliable Business VoIP
Edward Hechter, CEO of party supply company PartyPail.com, has a rich background as a technology provider in the telecommunications industry, but was seeking a phone system to support his brand-new small business. Although he has built sophisticated multi-channel customer response centers for multi-national corporations, he was looking for a simple yet powerful phone system to run his independent party supply operation.
He realized that not everybody wants to email an order or fill out a submission form, and needed to find a reliable provider to handle PartyPail’s 800-number. Edward knew that he needed a flexible, scalable solution that would work for the company as it grew – as it quickly did – from a home-based operation to a full-scale distribution center. As it grew, it acquired eight customer service workstations, and over a dozen handsets in their enterprise.
He realized that as his business grew, his analog phone lines were growing as well. He wondered why his telecommunications bill had increased by 200% in a matter of months, and started thinking about planning for infrastructure as the business expanded. Edward actually started off with phone service from a different VoIP provider for the cloud-based 800-number service, but wasn’t impressed with the initial experience.
“The best part about Vocalocity is that we’re four times larger than when we started and our phone bill is a quarter of the amount – and with a better feature set and what I consider to be better call quality and reliability than you get with a landline.”
The Solution – A Vocalocity-Powered Cell Center
Edward knew that he wanted to move toward a VoIP solution, and also knew he needed to solve quality issues that resulted from his local network. He set up an environment that streamed music via the internet, to serve as a “canary in a coalmine.” When the music turns off, he knows there’s a problem with the ISP provider’s connection, and is able to quickly remedy the situation.
Once he felt that he had a handle on his ISP, he felt comfortable enough to set up VoIP as his primary business phone system. He began his VoIP search in order to find a provider that would ensure that they were accessible to customers. After receiving advice from a friend, Edward compared seven different VoIP providers, including Vocalocity. With their previously negative VoIP experience still in mind and having considerably expanded the business, it was now more critical than ever that the VoIP phone service performed as the mission-critical tool for customer communication.
Edward liked that not only had service been reliable and consistent, but setup and training was fast, simple, and easy.
Results – A Rapidly-Expanding Business
Business keeps growing, and each time Edward needs to add another line to the PartyPail call center, he only has to make a quick phone call or email to Vocalocity. After that, another phone is delivered to their office and he simply plugs the phone in and begin working.
“The phones arrived at the office, we literally plugged them in, they started seeking Vocalocity, and immediately everything worked. We cut the existing 800-number over, we activated the new 800-numbers that we picked up with Vocalocity, and we’ve never looked back.”
“We looked at three things 1) real and great service 2) a great deal, and who had a wonderful package of integrated features and 800-number capabilities, and 3) basic call center functionality that gave us the ability to queue and route calls – Vocalocity was the clear winner.”
Since a micro-call center moves calls from person to person, Edward spent a lot of time thinking about the experience that a customer would have when they called in and was placed into the queue. He wanted it to be a smooth and seamless process. Of the different packages that were available, he found that the Vocalocity system was intuitive and easy to execute.
When new features come out, Edward thinks through how they’ll be deployed and impact his company’s call flow and staff interaction. He finds that the configuration experience is fast and easy. He mainly manages his phone system online. When he does have to call in, he finds that the Customer Care staff is supportive and knowledgeable.
Favorite Benefits of Vocalocity’s VoIP:
• Virtual Receptionist: Distribution can be affected by weather, so he can quickly and easily record messages to let customers know about shipping and holiday hours.
• Scalability: A rapidly growing business needs to be able to easily expand. Low-cost phone lines and fast shipping on equipment allows PartyPail to grow overnight.
• Plug and Play Technology: They’re not saddled with an expensive IT member on staff. Plug and play technology allows PartyPail to work entirely in the cloud.
Learn More About PartyPail
To learn more about PartyPail, visit their website at http://www.partypail.com, or check out their blog to learn about their latest products, party planning ideas, company news, and more!
