On Hold Messaging – Marketing to a Captive Audience

When a customer calls a business, there’s a strong chance they will be put on hold, even for 15 seconds or less. On average, most callers are on hold for about 45 seconds before they talk to someone. The first call is their first impression. When they call your company, what do they hear?

If it’s dead silence, they’ll probably hang up. How do they know they’re on hold, even for under 15 seconds? With music on hold, the caller knows they’re still connected. Still, hearing “Your call is very important to us” and “Your call will be answered by the next available agent” isn’t comforting when a caller urgently needs help.

You may not realize that callers on hold are a captive audience for your company’s marketing. Instead of listening to music, talk to them while they wait. Whatever they’re calling for, on-hold messaging is an ideal opportunity to engage with callers, tell them more about your brand, and offer important information.

Instead of listening to music, talk to them while they wait.

Why It Works

Adding or improving your company’s on-hold messaging can serve several purposes and address your company and customer needs easily and efficiently. While many companies let callers on hold know about their queue number and wait time, on-hold messaging can give them useful and important information.

• Offer customers self-service options such as automation by phone and website portals to resolve issues faster and reduce the burden on team members when possible
• Give callers relevant information such as business hours, company location, and other information so that team members can give personalized service instead of repeating generalized information
• Include information on frequently asked questions, known issues, tips for troubleshooting and resolving simple issues
• Include value-added recommendations for additional promotions and sales to callers based on prior interactions to increase both customer satisfaction and revenue

Any small business that interacts by phone with its customers can benefit from on-hold messaging with relevant and personalized information.

Benefits of On-Hold Messaging

Small businesses have a great opportunity to leverage their brand better and turn a usually boring experience into a good one with the right messages:

• Give your callers business information and other contact methods, such as social media messaging or your website to improve your company’s call management and decrease the number of missed calls.
• Tell them about upcoming special events, sales, new products or services, and incentives, and encourage them to purchase more.
• Increase your company’s brand awareness by including your marketing messages and tagline

On-hold messaging is a cost-effective and easy way to promote your brand and reach customers before they talk to you. With an excellent ROI, on-hold messaging can deliver a personalized message to your target audience less expensively.

Best Practices For Effective On-Hold Messaging

There are a few important points to remember when creating on-hold messaging for your business:

• Create messages that are short and to the point, or callers will tune out quickly.
• Use these messages for useful information and value, such as hours, location, and current and upcoming promotions.
• Concise clarity: use a moderate tone and conversational language rather than technical jargon.
• Make sure that your message is consistently in alignment with your brand.
• If you add music, make sure it’s positive but not too loud or overbearing.
• Update your on-hold messaging occasionally to keep it current so callers don’t hear about holiday specials three months into the new year. Regularly updated messaging helps keep customers engaged and informed.

On-hold messaging is an effective marketing tool that can help improve customer satisfaction and loyalty, increase your brand’s awareness, and ultimately increase your sales. These messages can turn a lost opportunity into an efficient marketing instrument for a small cost.

Creating the right on-hold message

Your first step is to identify your target market and consider what information they would like to hear. Emphasize and highlight your brand’s personality, how your company is different, and how you can help your customers. Then further emphasize what you can offer them with:

• Cross-selling and upselling other products or services and making additional suggestions for things that your customers may need but don’t know that you offer.
• Add options for self-help, such as going to your company’s website, social media channels, or email for assistance.
• Add a call to action, including following your company on social media and signing up for your email newsletter.

Consider what you want to convey to your callers while on hold. Then go with short, informative messages that callers will find interesting. Use feedback to learn what works and what they might be interested in hearing. Holiday and seasonal messaging is particularly good for not only thanking customers for their business but also telling them about holiday promotions and other specials as a “thank you” for their continued patronage.

If you’re ready to add or update marketing messages to your on-hold recordings, let Press 8’s In-House Recording Studio help at an affordable price with bulk discounts available. Your customers will like what they hear and feel less disappointed that they’re on hold.  Contact Press8 today for a free quote for your business.