IVR Usage in 2009 and Beyond

In an effort to gauge the deployment of IVR in business, ContactBabel recently conducted a survey of call centers in the UK and found that an average of 64% of those surveyed use automated systems to initially greet callers. This is down a few percentage points from a peak of 67% in 2007 however it was a dramatic rise over a similar survey conducted in 2004. The many statistics of the survey show that IVR and speech recognition systems are deployed in greater percentages at large companies and those that conduct business in the telecommunications and utility sectors. Small companies and those in the retail and distributions sectors tend to be the least likely to employ automated operator systems. The author of the study extrapolates that although IVR usage is still widespread, it has peaked as a technological solution due in part to poor customer satisfaction scores and the rise of new customer communication tools.

Although it is true that SMS and web-based customer communication are seeing an increase in deployment and functionality for business, consumer access to these technologies is still much more limited than that of traditional touch-tone telephones. Estimates in December of last year approximate that only 54% of Americans are connected to the internet and 33% of those that are not connected have no desire to do change that. Although many Americans are doing away with traditional landlines, more than three-quarters have cell phones. As voice recognition technology improves, so does customer satisfaction for automated call center systems. There will come a time when wed-based support or some other methodology may dominate customer service, but as long as telephones are the most prevalent form of communication among consumers, there will be a place for IVR.