Reaching people in this connected world can be surprisingly difficult. Sure, virtually everyone carries around a smartphone or a cell phone these days, but proximity to these communications devices has also made people ruthless about resisting contact. There are a lot of telemarketers operating today, and they know all too well that today's smartphone-toting consumers are more likely to ignore calls from unknown numbers than people with landlines used to do. An unanswered call is a waste of time for a phone-based marketing plan.
Or is it? Actually, there's another factor to consider here: Voicemail. When a call doesn't get picked up, the marketer can still leave a voicemail. But here, again, there are problems. What about people who pick up the phone and immediately end the call, just to stop it from ringing? And what about those who pick up in earnest, but then quickly hang up when they realize that it's a marketing call? When the call is ended, voicemail is not an option.
This is why the marketing world is being transformed by a new option called ringless voicemail.
What is ringless voicemail?
Ringless voicemail is pretty much exactly what it sounds like: It's a technology that allows marketers to leave voicemails without making phones ring. In other words, the person being called doesn't actually get "called" in the traditional sense at all-and has no way to block the marketer from leaving a voicemail.
There's another aspect of ringless voicemail that appeals to marketers. Since a voicemail is a recorded message, marketers can use pre-recorded audio as the source of the voicemail. The message can be "dropped" into a voice mailbox and then re-used for countless others. So it's not just the phone owner who doesn't have to pick up the phone for ringless voicemail to work; the marketer doesn't have to pick up the phone on his or her end, either! It's a fully automated and convenient process.
Why Ringless Voicemail Works Well
Ringless voicemail is similar in some ways to other automated calling systems and telemarketing techniques. But the crucial difference here is that ringless voicemail manages to avoid many of the tactics that consumers use to deny telemarketing efforts. Things like ignoring the call or picking up briefly just to hang up again don't work against a ringless voicemail campaign.
Voicemails are harder to ignore than missed calls, of course; consumers are likely to go through their voicemail boxes at least periodically. Ringless voicemail is also something that not all consumers are familiar with, which makes consumers more likely to listen to the recorded messages. On top of this, some smartphones actually transcribe recorded messages, meaning that consumers may see at least the beginning of the message printed out in plain text on their screen. Even if they're in their voicemail app just to delete the voicemail, they're likely to see your message!
Making the Most of Your Ringless Voicemail Campaign
Ringless voicemail is a powerful tool. But the experts at Stratics Networks, a company that pioneered key aspects of ringless voicemail technology, caution that a ringless voicemail campaign is only as effective as the marketing team that runs it. There are, of course, aspects of ringless voicemail that could frustrate or alienate customers. Marketers can also make mistakes by wastefully targeting the wrong audiences.
That's why it's important to plan out a ringless voicemail campaign properly. Marketers should check the National Do Not Call Registry and comply with all regulations. The message will be most effective if it is recorded personally by an interested party, and the message should feel human and authentic-robot voices are a big no-no. A good message will include a number to call back and a call to action. A marketing push that uses ringless voicemail may also be more effective if combined with other strategies, such as email outreach.
Did you get all that? If not, never fear: A great ringless voicemail campaign is best built with the help of trained and qualified professionals who specialize in marketing and in ringless voicemail technology. If you put a team like that to work for your business, you'll gain a big advantage.
