Types and benefits of IVR payments

Billing issues is one of the biggest customer service problems. As per research, billing queries are the number one reason for calls to customer support lines in many financial and banking industries. Furthermore, the healthcare providers get nearly ¼ of calls from customers with queries related to billing. The complications in billing take up a lot of valuable agent time and disrupt the customers’ overall experience. So, in case you face a similar problem, IVR payments are the ultimate solution. To know the types and benefits of this payment system, you can read on and learn about them.

What are the types of Interactive Voice Response payments?

The two main types of IVR payment system is self-service and agent system. Get to learn about both types.

  1. Self-service: In this method, customers select the payment option from their phone menu after calling your phone number. It will allow them to interact with the specially configured and branded IVR payment system. The debit and credit card payments are made in a PCI compliant environment.
  2. Agent assisted: When it comes to the agent-assisted method, the customers get to speak to the agent, who then transfers them to the payment platform.

What are the benefits of IVR payment?

In this payment system, your customers will be allowed to pay the bills automatically. Well, there are several other advantages of utilising this payment system. To learn more, you can keep reading this article.

  1. Customer loyalty is attained: Customers will certainly pay all their bills on time if you combine the system with a text notification reminder and a simple email. Furthermore, the foundation of a great customer loyalty program is the IVR payment system. You can build loyalty programs and provide offers based on various customer behaviours such as prompt payments, etc. In this manner, you can engage with your customers and create an excellent relationship with them.
  2. The self-service payments are secure: Security is always the prime concern for many customers. After all, they expect that their details should not fall into the wrong hands. The IVR system provides customers with a solution that allows them to enter the debit or credit card data via dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) or keypad tones securely, swiftly, and anytime. Before implementing the IVR payment service, it is vital to look for a contact centre provider that will help you with the compliance process. Before taking payments through customer reference or an invoice, the IVR payment solutions must authenticate callers. You can also integrate the system with in-house CRM systems, telephony and accounting. Due to these features, you can ensure your customers of credit card security.
  3. 24/7 payments are accepted: The convenience of the customers increase when your system provides them with a 24/7 payment service. The customers must hear the account balance and the status of the previous payment each time they call. Furthermore, they must be able to make payments over the phone with the help of IVR payments.
  4. It helps decrease the operating costs: The credit card processing fees can run up to approximately 3.5 per cent of the transaction cost. Although it might not sound like a lot, there are many factors that can swiftly add up the fees of the transaction. Some factors include insufficient penalty funds, additional fees such as charge-backs and other incidentals. When compared to traditional credit card transactions, the fees of bank transfers are very low. In this manner, you will be able to save thousands of dollars every year. You can also save costs by optimising your employees and hiring more agents to manage the problems related to billing. So, how many dollars will you save with IVR payments? If you consider automation and online payments, it will cost about 6 cents per transaction. When it comes to collecting payment information manually over the phone, it can cost you around 70 cents for each transaction.