Not getting as many people to answer your phone calls as you’d like?

With increased consumer call protections, spam detection, and more robocalls, can you really blame folks for not answering?

Ask yourself, how often are you answering that call from a number you don’t know? Today, it’s about a 50/50 toss-up that it’ll be a scam, robocall, or maybe, just maybe a phone call from someone you’re expecting.

But, business is done over phone calls. 75% of online buyers want to receive between 2-4 phone calls before making a decision. That’s proof that most of your leads actually want to talk to you.

So how do you get them to answer the phone? It’s simple – call from the same phone number you’ve already been texting the lead from.

Let’s dive in.

Structurely makes Live Transfer Phone Calls from the Same Phone Number it’s Texting your Lead From

You get a cold call from a phone number you don’t know… do you:

1. Answer it (cause that’s a totally sane thing to do)
2. Ignore it (it’s gonna be spam, duh)

Most sane humans today will opt for number 2, and ignore it.

But, what if that call is from a phone number you already know? In fact, you’ve already been texting that number. 

Some devices (like iPhone) even go so far as to suggest who might be calling, if in that prior text message conversation the person introduced themselves.

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You’re getting a phone call that looks like the image above, now are you more likely to answer it?

Yes. 

That’s how Structurely’s new Live Transfer Phone Calls and Click-to-Call works:

1. Structurely’s AI first reaches out over text message until lead responds
2. Has a two-way qualifying conversation with the lead
3. Tee’s up a phone call between the assigned agent and lead over text
4. Calls the assigned agent
5. Calls the lead, from the same number they’ve been texting on
6. Merges the calls when both parties answer

And guess what? Our initial data is showing that phone calls done this way are leading to more than 2x call answer rates, and this is just the beginning.

How are Live Transfers Better than Business Caller ID?

It’s true, today with many business phone systems you can go through additional verification and administration to configure the phone numbers you own, to indicate a specified caller ID when calling folks.

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You can use methods like SHAKEN/STIR to ensure your numbers aren’t coming through as “spam likely”

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But is all that work really going to pay off in a higher phone call answer rate? Maybe.

Let us be clear, we highly recommend you go through the compliance and certification processes to register your phone numbers for SHAKEN/STIR as well as through the verified caller id (CNAM) process. Once approved, the method we’re outlining will only help you see exponential increases in answer rates, which sounds amazing, right?

The difference still, between just cold calling leads (even with proper verification) vs. texting first, using AI, then calling is the rapport and expectation that has been built between you (your AI) and the lead.

Introducing the Text, Call, AI Technique™️ (The TCA Technique)

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Now that you’ve got your phone numbers registered for A2P 10DLC, SHAKEN/STIR, and CNAM, you’re on solid footing to get your texts and calls answered.

But our research, in handling nearly 10,000,000 leads in our time at Structurely has shown that how you approach your leads will make or break your deals.

This is why we’ve developed the Text, Call, AI technique. Let’s break it down:

Text first:

Let’s face it, people today text. It may be more annoying for you, the business owner, to have a conversation over text that could just be handled over the phone, but business texting is becoming the norm for a reason. Consumers love to text. Here’s the stats:

• 90% of people prefer texting with businesses over a phone call. [SMS Comparison, 2022]
• 75% of millennials avoid phone calls as they’re time-consuming. [Bank My Cell]

This is why Structurely’s AI sees a 57% engagement rate to it’s text messages, people want to engage that way and that’s why we suggest starting with text. You get the chance to introduce yourself, in a near instant way, and in a way that’s passive for your prospect (they may be unable to take a call, but they’re almost never unable to look at a text quickly) – start with a text message, it’ll make your life easier.

Call next:

As part of the TCA Technique, we don’t designate when specifically you should call. That part is up to you, so long as its after you’ve texted. 

Why? Because again, folks are more likely to answer the phone call, when it’s from a number they know (and if you’ve already texted, many devices may even save your contact as a “suggested” contact).

You could call right away after you text (less likely to answer, but still worth a shot), you can call mid-conversation, or you can call at the end of a conversation after you’ve tentatively told the lead to expect your call (this is what we suggest)

No matter when you call, the most important part is that you call from the same number you’ve texted from. Let me repeat that: 

call from the same number you’ve texted from, 

call from the same number you’ve texted from, 

call from the same number you’ve texted from!

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AI always:

The reality of business is – you can’t do everything. How could you possibly handle making 4-6+ phone calls, sending 12+ text messages over 6+ months and having a back and forth conversation with leads when they finally do respond – all multiplied by the hundreds or thousands of leads you’re managing all at once?

You can’t. Even with a small army of inside sales agents, or call center reps, leads slip through the cracks. 

But not for AI. AI is systematically programmed to never let something slip. Good AI for sales and marketing teams, designed to qualify leads, is plugged into your CRM so it knows who your leads are and how to handle them. Like Structurely’s AI which works with the TCA Technique like this:

• Lead is enrolled into Structurely AI from your CRM/lead generation source
• Structurely AI texts lead with the relevant campaign based on info from the CRM
• Structurely AI follows up with lead for over 12 months until they respond
• When lead responds, Structurely has 2-way qualifying conversation over text
• At the end of the AI texting campaign, the AI introduces the assigned human agent and asks for the lead’s call availability
• Depending on the lead’s answer Structurely AI will initiate a Live Transfer Phone Call where:
  – AI calls the assigned agent
  – AI calls the lead from the same number where texting has been happening
  – If both parties answer, the call is merged

• The call is recorded, and transcribed and insights are gleaned by AI from the call
• Call disposition, tasks, follow-ups, and more are suggested by the AI post call

As you can see, the AI is omnipresent throughout the entire text and call conversations with leads, as is the entire point of quality AI. 

And as the “A” in the TCA Technique, AI is required to be always on, or omnipresent. Texting your leads, queuing up phone calls, transcribing your calls and taking next steps for you.

Dials aren’t Dead, they’ve Evolved

This is the new era of the salesperson where dials haven’t died, but they’ve evolved. Phone calls are still as vital in the sales process as they’ve ever been. But getting your leads to answer has become exponentially more difficult. 

By utilizing techniques and tools like live transfers, the Text, Call, AI Technique, and ensuring compliance and verification, you’re putting your business ahead of others, who are throwing anything at the wall and seeing what sticks.

Advance or dwindle. You can choose how to usher in your new era of contact center software or pay the consequences of lost opportunities. 

Want to learn more about Structurely’s Live Transfers and calling? Check them out here.