Every once in a while, we turn away business. Profitable business.
My inner accountant dies a little each time we do it, but we do it anyway.
Our agency has earned a good reputation, and that drives in-bound leads our way.
A prospect seeks us out, or was referred to us, or found us online and liked what she saw, so much so that she calls us to say, “Hey, I’d like to give you my business!”
We don’t need to conduct research, send emails or make phone calls just to get her to notice us (and hope she’s interested once she does).
So, why don’t we sign her as a client?
Sometimes, those people who reach out and are excited to work with us request something that we know won’t benefit them in the long run.
Most often, they want us to develop one On Hold Marketing production that they’ll use indefinitely.
The rationale often goes like this: “We just need something other than silence or the canned music that comes with our phone system. Our products and services don’t really change.”
But we won’t do it.
While it might temporarily prop up their weak caller experience, delivering just one production would not provide them with long-lasting value.
Here are 3 reasons why.
1) Whether or not an organization’s products and services truly never change, you can bet external factors affecting their target audience do. Callers are more engaged by current information that’s focused on their changing needs. Nike has sold shoes and apparel for a long time, but they don’t do it with the exact same digital, print and TV spots for years at a time.
2) How long will it take before repeat callers tune out content that never changes? Forcing customers to listen to the same information and music negatively affects their perceived wait times and overall caller experience.
3) In-Queue / On Hold Marketing is not a channel that’s typically top-of-mind. While many marketers likely have the best intentions of updating content, our 25+ years of experience in this space has shown that, without a dedicated team, those changes rarely happen.
Updating content regularly and proactively ensures the channels we work in are more effective. That makes for happier clients and callers in the long run, even if it means we sacrifice a few dollars along the way.