Many businesses aren’t aware of this, but the on hold messaging space is a marketing weapon. The on hold phone message is often a customer’s first impression of a business, so it is absolutely critical that this on hold message (or music) is strategic and carefully planned.

A great on hold message can generate sales, boost your brand, introduce callers to your product range, put customers into buying mode and reduce your customer hang-ups. Many businesses do not make the most of this on hold marketing time with their customers, and end up driving their customers away with terrible on hold music or unprofessional recordings. So, here are 4 common phone marketing mistakes and how to avoid them!

4 Common Mistakes Of Phone Marketing

1. The Worst Mistake Of All – No On Hold Messaging!

Many business out there do not have any on hold messaging. This can be extremely detrimental to their brand, their professionalism and their profit. If your business puts customers on hold, but you don’t have any on hold messaging in place, you could seriously benefit from on hold messages that promote your business and inform your customers.

When implemented with care, on hold messaging improves customer experience, prevents customer boredom, promotes the professionalism and success of your business and provides the perfect yet unobtrusive instance for some creative company marketing.

Wondering what you could promote in your on hold space? How about…

  • Services that your customers may not be aware you offer
  • Products, specials, sales, offers, competitions
  • General, helpful Information about your business
  • New products or services

If you don’t yet have an on hold messaging system for your business, contact Smart On Hold today.

2. Tacky On Hold Music

Another sin in the world of business is out of date and tacky on hold phone music. Terrible on hold music is one of the main causes of customer hang-ups. If you decide that music is the right choice for your on hold marketing space, make sure that the tunes are appropriate for your business.

On hold music should be pleasant for the listener and represent your company’s brand, personality and target market. Don’t just choose any copyright-free music that you can find for free on the internet! At Smart On Hold, all of the music we use is Royalty Free. Don’t get caught out having to pay APRA fees if you are playing music or the radio without a license!

Once you have chosen appropriate phone music for your on hold space, you can further your phone marketing potential by adding a friendly and promotional on hold message over the top. For more information about choosing the right on hold music for your company, or to enquire about our wide range of on hold music options, visit music on hold.

3. Unprofessional Voice Messages Or Recordings

If you decide to maximise your marketing efforts and have recorded phone messages playing to your customers… make sure that they are professional, appealing, well-written and clear! First of all, you need to think about what your customers want to hear.

Secondly, you need to think about the perfect way to phrase what you want to say – your script should be clear, succinct, unobtrusive and persuasive. Finally, you need to make sure that the final recording is of very high quality – the recording should be crisp, clear, appropriately volumed, concise and professional.

No one – especially not your valued customers – should have to listen to a poorly executed message when they are waiting on hold.

phone marketing - waiting for call

4. Out Of Date Messages

If you plan to utilise on hold messaging, you should make sure that your on hold messages are updated frequently, and inform customers about the latest changes or innovations in your business. Out of date messages are not only unprofessional, they are irrelevant and irritating, especially for repeat callers.

Your most dedicated long-time customers should not have to suffer through last year’s irrelevant messages. To keep your messages fresh and your customers informed, update messages regularly with information about new products or services, sales, specials, competitions or any changes within your business.

phone marketing - target audienceFor all of the points above, one of the most important aspects of phone marketing – and business in general – is that you are aware of your target audience, and what they want to hear. If your target market is women in their 50s, the ‘royalty free’ rap track you found on google is probably not the best on hold option.

When executed and targeted with strategy and thought, on hold marketing can benefit your business in exponential ways. If you would like more information about on hold marketing, visit our website or contact us now.