OneReach introduces cost-effective SMS Call Center

ORLANDO, USA: OneReach introduced an SMS customer service offering - SMS Call Center - that changes the face of inbound service by providing the ability for companies to directly convert incoming calls to text conversations, which are convenient and flexible for customers.

According to a study from J.D. Power & Associates, 93 percent of IVRs have resulted in decreased customer satisfaction versus talking with an agent.

Providing a Web chat channel has shown to improve satisfaction by up to 65 percent, but customers who call in for assistance cannot be transferred directly to chat, meaning they have to abandon their phone call to switch devices and can feel they've lost the progress made through the IVR.

Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project reports that text messaging is becoming a preferred method of communication among consumers, with 31 percent of mobile phone owners preferring to text instead of talk.

The SMS Call Center offering from OneReach can transfer callers to a text message conversation with a live agent to address their needs in a simple, convenient text message exchange they can have from anywhere.

"Many call centers have adopted SMS as a marketing tool or for simple notifications, however, there are huge opportunities for businesses to use this powerful, always-available channel to engage in two-way communication with their customers," said Rich Weborg, CEO of OneReach.

"Our SMS Call Center application provides a smart bridge from an expensive, sometimes frustrating phone interaction to an efficient engagement that is cost-effective for businesses and convenient for the customer."

The cost per interaction for SMS customer service is about 25 percent less than a phone call through the IVR.

OneReach allows call centers to create simple to complex SMS automation capability using OneReach's visual designer. Text message applications can be set up quickly and easily without the need of development resources. For companies that don't have a call center in place, OneReach can also provide standalone SMS, IVR and Web chat capabilities that are easy to set up, implement and manage.