Record Phone Calls and Improve Your Training

“Calls may be records for training and quality purposes.”

You know you’ve heard this line when calling a business of some sort – have you ever wondered why? Are the calls really recorded and are they really used for training purposes? The answer is yes, especially for companies that want to make an investment in their sales reps. The technology used to record phone calls used to be an expensive asset, but is now a typical feature in most business VoIP solutions. In fact, call recording has become so commonplace, it’s considered a must-have feature for just about any business. Of course, call recording has become standard for any contact center, but even businesses that don’t focus on customer contacts can still find a rationale for recording and keeping a log of all their calls.

While call recording is a great feature for call centers and other businesses alike, you have to start by making sure your call recording standards are legal and ethical. You need to ensure that you’re following all local and national laws when it comes to recording any type or part of a phone call. Every state in the US (except Vermont) has its own laws around recording phone calls, most of which require some form of explicit notification that the call is being recorded (hence the popular line above). And no matter which state your business operates in, it’s considered a violation of the law to record phone calls in which you are not a primary participant, a call where you have not received consent to record, or a call you otherwise would not be able to overhear under regular business circumstances. Countries outside of the US can have even more strict laws around call recording notifications, so it’s always best to err on the side of ethics and caution and begin your inbound and outbound sales calls with a clear and definite message about the call recording. As long as you’re well within the laws and standards for your business, here’s a list of reasons why call recording would be a helpful addition to your communications and call training:

1. Enhance the customer service experience –

These days, having quality customer service is necessary to maintain customers’ expectations. Any customer that has a bad experience will just go elsewhere, so regardless of your business’ focus, recording calls and responding to the customer’s needs will go a long way.

2. Train more effectively –

If you’re working in a call center, the information you need is almost always changing. Managers can listen in on recorded calls to make sure that their employees are doing everything they’re required to do while on the phone. New hires will especially benefit from learning from their calls – by hearing any mistakes, seeing what they’ve done correctly, learning what needs to be improved, and becoming better call reps all the way around.

3. Learn how to better your product –

By listening to previous interactions on phone calls, anyone could learn how to improve a product, but it makes the most sense for anyone in marketing or product development. These recordings again provide real life, factual interactions and highlight the real problems customers are facing.

4. Ensure regulatory compliance –

Call centers are under a lot of scrutinies legally, so covering your bases is necessary. If you’re in the medical industry, you have to abide by HIPAA laws. If you’re in the telemarketing world, you have to work under the laws set forth by the FTC and the TCPA. By recording calls and monitoring your staff, your business will be compliant, and if you were to ever be audited, those recordings will come in handy.

5. Capture anything you missed –

Even if you’re using modern CRM technology that allows your call reps to record detailed information, some situations may require sales reps to go back and re-listen to anything they might have missed. Human error is a real issue, so even if they’re taking notes, they can still mistype or miswrite something. Record phone calls to make sure that any error can be resolved.

6. Prevent potential disputes –

Call recording can actually be your strongest line of defense when it comes to any possible disputes between customers and clients. Recordings can help prevent any disastrous issues or prevent arguments from evolving into lengthy, costly legal battles. If every single interaction is recorded, you can avoid he-said/she-said battles. Managers can go back and listen to the interaction to see what happened and use that information to best resolve the dispute.

Does Your Call Recording Do What It Should?

If you’re in need of a top-notch call recording system, why not find a program that can handle more than just call recording? Your business should use Call Logic – our advanced phone system can help you handle every part of your telemarketing with confidence and compliance. Call us or schedule a free demo today!