The phone rings. 

*Gentle horror music creeps in* 

You pick it up immediately, excited to turn another prospect into a happy customer. Instead you hear the voice… the same voice that’s been haunting you, following you home, invading your very dreams… 

*Horror music intensifies* 

“Hello,” the voice says. “We’ve been trying to reach you about your car's extend–” 

You roll your eyes and slam the phone down. Robocallers have wasted your time once again. 

We’ve all felt the plague of robocallers in our personal lives for years, but lately there has been an exponential rise in robocalls to businesses. At best, these are highly annoying. At worst, they’re highly disruptive to your business. 

Fortunately, there’s already a feature your business can use to filter out the vast majority of robocallers. They’re called auto attendants, and they’re even more useful than you might think.

What Exactly is a Robocall?

Robocalls are a type of phone call that uses a computerized auto-dialer to send out a previously recorded message. They are generally used for telemarketing, political campaigns, and outright scams. Whatever their purpose, all robocalls are considered spam. 

Now, I know what you’re thinking. “If everyone hates robocalls so much, why doesn’t the government just ban them?” 

The issue is that, while all robocalls are spam, not all of them are fraudulent or illegal. Legitimate companies use robocalls every day to inform customers of outages or collect payments. You can easily tell a robocall is legitimate because it will state the name of the company calling you their address, and a phone number you can use to call them back.

On the other hand, fraudulent robocallers know what they’re doing is illegal so they put zero effort into complying with communications laws. They completely disregard ‘Do Not Call’ lists, are not registered in any government databases, and usually try to hide their identity until they’ve got someone on the hook. 

So, unfortunately, there is no way to institute a blanket ban on robocalling. You can however use an auto attendant to easily protect your business from distractions and scams. 

How Auto Attendants Can Help

An auto attendant is a custom company greeting and menu that directs callers to the appropriate departments or extensions. For instance: “Thank you for calling FluentStream. If you know the extension you are trying to reach, dial it now. Otherwise, press 1 for Sales, press 2 for Support…” 

When it comes to robocalls, an auto attendant is critical because it requires callers to press an additional button to connect with a real person. That automatically creates a barrier between the robocaller and ringing your phone. 

Sure, some robocalls actually are controlled by a real person who can select an option from your menu and then play the pre-recorded message when you answer. However, the number of scammers putting in that level of effort is quite small. 

By removing the threat of robocallers from your business, your employees can devote all their attention to providing the best experience possible for your customers.

Other Advantages of Using an Auto Attendant

The most obvious benefit of auto attendants is that they present every caller with a friendly introduction and then a clear, concise menu of their options. Rather than bogging down your team with basic questions or transfers to other employees, callers can immediately get the info they need or get connected with the right person.

Also – to address the elephant that sometimes forces its bulbous head into the room – there is a misconception that auto attendants make a business seem “impersonal” or “too corporate.” Quite to the contrary, auto attendants are the ideal tool for busy small businesses who want to make a great first impression on every call.

Let’s take a look at some other advantages auto attendants provide for your business: 

• Automatically directs callers to the right employee or department
• Informs callers of basic info such as your location and hours of operation
• Gives callers options even when your business is closed
• Provides an employee directory
• Can be skipped immediately when a call is urgent

Especially when your business is small or growing, you simply don’t have the time to deal with every call into your business. Implementing an auto attendant takes care of the basics, and then directs important calls exactly where they need to go, all without you picking up the phone. 

Unfortunately for all of us, the smartest minds in communications have yet to find a way to permanently stop robocallers. But, as long as you have an auto attendant to greet every caller, you can nullify their impact on your business. 

Have more questions about how an auto attendant protects you from robocallers? Want to see what else FluentStream can do to improve your productivity and save you money every month? Let us know at sales@fluentstream.com or by calling 303-GO-CLOUD and selecting Option 1.