PREDICTIVE DIALERS

TECHNOLOGY BRIEF

WHAT IS A PREDICTIVE DIALER?
A predictive dialer is a computerized dialing system that allows call center agents to dramatically increase live connections. Unlike traditional auto-dialers, which merely dial phone numbers for agents, predictive dialers only connect agents to calls that are actually answered by people, freeing agents from the need to listen to unanswered calls, busy signals, disconnected lines, or answers from fax machines, answering machines and other automatic services.

A predictive dialer can help eliminate:  choosing a number, dialing the number, listening to busy signals, wrong numbers, or answering machines, and leaving messages.  Imagine a predictive dialer that helps eliminate these problems.

HOW DO PREDICTIVE DIALERS WORK?
Predictive dialers use mathematical formulas known as algorithms to predict both the average time it will take for calls to be answered and agent availability, adjusting the calling rate accordingly.

A predictive dialer, such as the one offered by Promero, Inc., learns from average call length when to anticipate that an agent will soon become available and speeds up and slows down the dialing rate accordingly. The dialer monitors how calls are answered and discards unanswered or otherwise unsuccessful calls. A good predictive dialer can also analyze unsuccessful calls to determine if the number needs to be called back later or requires special handling, such as a manual call by an agent.

Predictive dialers become more accurate at predicting average call length and agent availability as more agents use the system. The reason is simply that averages based on large samples are more accurate than averages based on small ones. When more agents use the system, more calls are made and there are more data points from which to derive average call length.

WHO SHOULD CONSIDER A PREDICTIVE DIALER?
Predictive dialers are most frequently used for outbound telemarketing/telesales campaigns and for collections, but any organization that uses the telephone to sell products or services, generate leads, raise funds or conduct research, can benefit from a predictive dialer solution.

Use cases include:
Predictive dialers can be especially effective for companies that currently buy phone lists: by moving through the lists more quickly they can convert more leads per day, and thereby close more business.

PREDICTIVE DIALERS
World-class businesses have used predictive dialers for years to increase sales, live contacts, or collections – by up to 300%.
Instead of wasting time manually dialing all-day, and dealing with busy signals and answering machines … you will be able to decrease the time spent dialing per day to one to three hours and increase time selling to the rest of the day.

WHY USE A PREDICTIVE DIALER?
Predictive dialers maximize revenues per agent by increasing live connections by up to 300%.
Typically, only 25-35% of calls dialed will actually be answered by a live person; the rest are not answered at all, get busy signals, or are answered by a machine or other electronic system. With a predictive dialer, only those calls that are answered live are transferred to an agent, increasing the time agents spend in actual conversation from 15 minutes out of every hour to almost 50.

With up to three times more connections, predictive dialers lower the cost per lead, increase business activity per day, and improve overall agent efficiency.

WHAT ARE THE DEPLOYMENT OPTIONS?
Businesses have two choices when deploying a predictive dialing solution. They can either deploy it at their facility, or they can let another company that specializes in dialer systems host it at their facility and simply connect to it.

Hosting on-premise requires a number of additional decisions, the first of which is whether you want a hardware-based dialer, or a software-based system. Hardware solutions can more quickly identify answering machines, do routing, etc., but they lack flexibility when bugs are found. Software dialers are easier to fix, but typically require licensing of other products (operating system, database, PC, telephony cards) to make a complete solution.

Among the other questions to consider are:

1. Do you want a system that is self managing, or one that has lots of ‘levers and switches’ so you can control every aspect?
2. Will you require inbound call handling (even if only for Do Not Call requests)?
3. Do you need call recording or agent monitoring?
4. Do you want to integrate with your agent desktop so you can deliver screen pops from your data applications?
5. How will you handle call scripting?

Once you choose the type of dialer, you will need to consider what capacity to order. You will need to decide how many agents you need both today and in the future, since a premise-installed system will have fixed limits on how many agents it can support. You will also need to consider how many phone lines the system will support. At a minimum you will want 2 lines per agent, and probably 3 lines per agent will achieve higher connect rates. You will have to select a carrier to bring the lines to you, and negotiate rates directly with them. You will have to consider what your up-time requirements are and how to back up the data on your system. If you have downtime, who is going to come in to fix it?

Lastly, you should consider whether you will have remote agents, or if they will all be located at one facility. If they are going to be in multiple locations, how will calls be delivered to these facilities? Can the system support remote agents at all? If so, do they use the public telephone network, thereby requiring another long distance phone call? Do they use the Internet? How will you monitor these agents if they are not in your direct sight?

A hosted provider [Promero] will work out these details for you, allowing you to concentrate on the features you need. The provider will be responsible for everything else, including backing up the system, providing a secure data environment, maintaining a 24x7 operations staff, and negotiating with long-distance carriers on rates. With a hosted solution, such as the Oracle Contact Center Anywhere provided by Promero, businesses can access the benefits of a predictive dialer with only a computer, an Internet connection and a USB headset.

WHAT INTEGRATION ISSUES SHOULD I CONSIDER?
ARE THERE ANY LEGAL RESTRICTIONS ON PREDICTIVE DIALERS?
Businesses considering a predictive dialer should ensure that their method of use does not violate the Federal Trade Commission’s Telemarketing Sales Rule, which prohibits telemarketers from calling consumers who have put their phone numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry, and imposes other restrictions on telemarketers.

Many states also have laws regulating telemarketing. The FTC and the FCC are working with states to harmonize Do Not Call requirements at state and federal levels for a unified national system enabling “one-stop” service for consumers, as well as businesses seeking to comply with the requirements.

Telemarketers must be especially careful to avoid violating the rule’s prohibition of “abandoned” marketing calls, which can result from the use of predictive dialers. Under the Rule’s definition, an outbound telephone call is “abandoned” if a person answers it and the telemarketer does not connect the call to a sales representative within two seconds of the person’s completed greeting. However, the rule also provides a “safe harbor” ensuring that a telemarketer will not face enforcement action for violating the call abandonment prohibition if the telemarketer:

• Uses technology that ensures abandonment of no more than three percent of all calls answered by a live person.
• Allows the telephone to ring for 15 seconds or four rings before disconnecting an unanswered call.
• Plays a recorded message stating the name and telephone number of the seller on whose behalf the call was placed whenever a live sales representative is unavailable within two seconds of a live person answering the call.