In order to have music and messaging playing on one’s telephone system, the telephone system must have the parts and circuits to support message-on-hold.   The telephone industry refers to this feature as “MOH”.  Usually MOH support is found when the telephones are part of a “telephone system”…meaning that there is a central “brain” …or KSU (for Key Service Unit).

What is a KSU?

A KSU is a box about the size of a briefcase, usually hanging on the wall in a room with the routers, servers, telephone wires, water heater or even in a closet.  KSU stands for Key Service Unit.  It’ll say the name of the telephone system on the KSU. (e.g.: Avaya, Panasonic, etc)  The KSU is where all the telephone lines are connected.  The job of the KSU is to provide support for the many features we enjoy in today’s telephone system such as multi-line use, intercom, hold, paging, as well as input capabilities for background music and messages-on-hold.  The KSU is also the device that monitors which lines are on hold and makes sure the On Hold audio is only heard on those lines that are On Hold.

If you can locate the KSU, now it’s necessary to verify that it supports MOH.  This can be determined from the owner’s manual or by calling the local telephone dealer that services your KSU.  Some KSU’s have a music-ready jack on the outside, others have them hidden, and still others need to have the jack installed by a qualified telephone technician for a fee.

If there is no KSU to be found, the phones probably operate without a KSU.  This is known as a KSU-less phone system.  These systems have plenty of great features; however they do not support MOH.  (KSU-less phones are made by companies including AT&T, GE, Panasonic, RCA and others.)

Or, it is possible that you have subscribed to a “cloud based” or “hosted” service, whereby the operating software running your phones is off-site at a service provider or carrier site.   In this case, we would need to know the name of your provider and a contact phone number of your sales or technical rep.  

In any case, it’s always fine to call us with the make and model number of your telephone system and we’ll do the research for you.

(...or How DO Rock Stars Afford Those Lavish Cribs?) 

If you’ve just decided to upgrade your callers’ On Hold experience, you may be asking the question above.  It’s a great question and ignoring the answer could put you in violation of U.S. Copyright law…and cost you a hefty fine.

There are a host of people involved in the creation and production of songs and music, including composers, authors and publishers.  In fact, their musical works are protected as “intellectual property” by U.S. Copyright Law.  Here are just two examples of how copyright holders make their living thru licensing:

Bought a CD? A portion of purchase price for a music CD goes to the copyright holder. The purchaser of the CD is granted license for personal listening and for people in the car or home. (not for re-broadcast at the neighborhood bar-b-que, school pep rally, or thru a telephone system.

 

Listen to music on the radio? As you know, radio stations derive their income from advertising fees or subscriptions. A portion of the radio station’s income goes to the copyright holders of the music they broadcast. The listener is granted license for personal listening and for people in their car or home. (not for re-broadcasting to groups, pep rallies, or thru an intercom or telephone system.)

Bottom line: Playing copyrighted music through a business telephone system constitutes a “re-broadcast” and requires a separate and specific license.

Best Solution: Customized Music and message productions provided by On Hold Marketing are properly covered under licenses maintained with multiple music producers.

How many good things come out of association meetings?  Ok, many things…but I’m thinking about one good thing.  That is, meeting people that can view a business from a different perspective from the owner’s every-day-right-in-the-middle-of-it viewpoint.  I’ll bet that you’ve experienced a conversation where you’ve been able to offer a colleague a solution to a problem, right off the top of your head, even though you didn’t know nearly as much detail about the problem as the owner.  The benefit of an outside perspective is simply remarkable.

One could say that attending association meetings is one way to get ahead of the competition…to be “the best of the best of the best”, but maybe it’s more critical than that. At a HARDI Conference (this is where distributors of heating and air conditioning equipment meet) it occurred to me that the information being discussed was worth more than just what’s needed to stay ahead…it’s needed to just stay!

My experience is that association attendees not only have a built-in “outside of the box” perspective and, as one would expect, have more than considerable expertise in the business of the associated companies.  In the case of HARDI, it’s all about distribution and there I became acquainted with a Mr. Howard Coleman. Mr. Coleman’s company, MCA Associates, is in the business to provide that “outside of the box” perspective and expertise I was talking about. Over the years since I’ve known Howard, I’ve been witness to newsletters and articles about distribution management and have become even more convinced of the value of information gained at association meetings from people like Howard…much of it can be gleaned from publications free!

So here’s my encouragement to stick with your associations. Ours happens to be the On Hold Messaging Association which we attend and enjoy annually.  More importantly, we benefit from the relationships, the freely shared knowledge base, and a global market view of changes in “messages on hold” that no one can navigate alone.

If you’re reading this as a distributor, check out www.mcaassociates.com, maybe even signup for Howard’s newsletter.

 

 

If you live in Virginia, you’re part of an interesting heritage.  I’m not sure the founder knew it at the time, but when Lloyd Shockley founded On Hold Marketing in 1989,he was one of the very first On Hold companies anywhere.  Ask anybody. In 1989 very few telephone systems even had a way to connect an external audio source, and those that did were playing a radio to callers on hold. (a violation of copyright law)  So Lloyd had surely hit upon a need, a need that fell squarely in the lap of his talents as an ad agency entrepreneur.  (The Shockley Agency had been operating in Richmond since 1982.)

The first true association of On Hold companies, the On Hold Messaging Association, (OHMA) wasn’t even created until the year 2000.  By then, On Hold Marketing was a fully established company serving businesses and practices in over 20 states, Canada,and the U.K.   Lloyd Shockley was recognized as one of the foremost pioneers of our industry and was asked to serve on the OHMA board.

On Hold Marketing has been providing audio studio services, professional copy writing, and telephone equipment support for over 20 years now, but one doesn’t survive this long without going thru some transitions.  Keeping up with the changes in telephone systems is enough to run some on hold companies completely out of business.  The introduction of computer/internet based telephone systems is a perfect example of a new technology introduction that can obsolete a business model to the extent that it simply cannot serve the market. Changes in the audio production process have gone from analog mechanisms and enough outboard processors to fill a building…to a computer running special software, replacing tons of gear. Did I mention doing business over the internet?  This change has not only impacted how sound files are moved around, but also how customers can hear voice talent, music, and productions to make better informed decisions and become comfortable form relationships with us, even though we’re thousands of miles away.

Virginia, even though one of the oldest states, is also among the innovators of what we take for granted…music and messages onhold….which, by the way, is responsible for helping just about every business and practice every day.

 

Months ago we added a “Live Chat” feature to our web pages to give web site visitors a direct connection to us…and the experience has been surprising. Yes, we get inquiries from people searching for a better On Hold Marketing provider, but I believe we get more live-chat inquires from customers of OTHER On Hold companies that want to complain about the service they’re getting.

We think we know why we receive complaints about other providers.  Customers often think we’re their provider because there are so many on hold companies that have a company name similar to ours…..so, when someone Googles “On Hold Marketing”, they see our listing first (since we have earned the #1 position with the major search engines).

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining.  When the offended customer realizes that we’re not the company that offended them, they often become customers…and the world becomes a better place.

The question is “Why are our competitors creating so many complaints about lack of service, incomplete productions, not returning phone calls, and productions…and choose to remain invisible and apparently uninterested in customer satisfaction?”  Naturally, we can’t answer this because we’re not them, but we do see it as an increasing trend. 

It’s true, we do make it easy to find us…which has contributed to us hearing complaints about our competitors.   I guess that’s the point.  We do complete productions on time, return phone calls, and work hard to get customers to update their audio On Hold programs…and when you need to find us…we’re easy to find. You’ll find all our contact info on our On Hold player and invoices, or just google “On Hold Marketing”…we’ll be #1.

One might say that every customer has a fear that sometime during their telephone inquiry they won’t be taken care of in a way that meets their expectations. It’s simply a sign of where the lack of customer service by many companies has taken us.   Telephone customers fear a number of potentially unpleasant outcomes:

- They’ll never get to speak with a human being

- They won’t be treated respectfully

- A language barrier will make communication difficult

- The product or service they want won’t be available, or affordable, or payment terms won’t be    bearable

- They’ll have to navigate an unfriendly auto attendant

- They’ll be left on hold indefinitely, or simply disconnected 

Unfortunately, these events are common place and repeatedly support the public’s fear of a less-than-stellar calling experience. However, patients calling their Dentist or Doctor have a real and legitimate fear that their visit will include a something even more fearful than poor customer service…and that is…real pain.  It is likely that their upcoming visit will include some pain, the kind that makes you say “ouch” or, maybe even sedation or pain reducing medication.  Even if no serious pain is anticipated, the mere call for the appointment can include some built-in anxiety. 

The patient's pre-existing anxiety is precisely why a customized On Hold program for a medical practice requires extra attention by the producer.  Compared to programs created for businesses, the message they hear must be more caring, more soothing, more comforting, & more assuring.  This is what makes “Patients On Hold” programs unique.  The script is crafted in such a way that information is presented in the spirit of sharing…not shoving.  Your voice talent is directed to deliver the informational messages in an especially low-key, assuring & caring tone.  Music selection is made to create a more soothing environment for those few moments of hold time. The duration and spacing of messages is designed to flow smoothly, but interestingly…as opposed to the jarring and interrupting advertising we often experience. 

Today’s Dental or Medical office requires a different, more caring approach their patients' On Hold experience…or they may be creating just another fearful…and painful…customer experience.

If you’re not a student of inbound telephone call statistics, you may not be aware that every business day, many phone calls are terminated before the sale or transaction is made because callers don’t like to wait on hold in silence…and they hang-up!

Ok, there may be other reasons why people hang up early.  Maybe their tea-pot started whistling, or the baby cried, or the dog was eating their homework…but much of the time, it’s because the caller felt like their On Hold experience was not up to par with their expectation of customer service. 

That is to say that their perception of the time in waiting was too long…

…and their response is to disconnect or hang-up, terminating the sale or transaction

…and possibly the relationship present and future.

Enter Albert Einstein and his Theory of Relativity, commonly expressed as E=mc² .

This, thankfully, for the rest of us, has also been expressed like this:

“When you sit with a nice girl for two minutes, it seems like two seconds.

             Put your hand on a hot stove for two seconds, it seems like two minutes.

                         That’s relativity.”

The way your callers perceive their elapsed time On Hold is relative.

- A pleasant On Hold experience will be perceived as a less time than actual

- An unpleasant On Hold experience will be perceived as more time than           actual. (Ouch!)                                                                                                  

Making an On Hold experience more painful than it needs to be is simply wrong…and bad for business…especially when there are intelligent, proven, and cost effective methods to cause On Hold time to be perceived as shorter than it actually is.

Want to create a more pleasant On Hold experience that’s seems shorter rather than longer ?  Get in touch with a real studio specializing in On Hold message creation, preferably a member of the On Hold Messaging Association.

 

On Hold Marketing is celebrating its 20th year in business. Established in 1989 as a regional company operating from their Richmond studios, On Hold Marketing has been helping businesses and practices turn “telephone hold time” into a better experience for their callers. Their music and voiced productions provide an entertaining and informative atmosphere causing callers to ask questions about the company’s products and services. Added benefits include reduced caller frustration, and fewer hang-ups.

On Hold Marketing has earned their stability by keeping their customers’ marketing messages current and engaging, earning them a 96% repeat business rate as well as their industry’s “Holdie Award” for production value and creativity. Growth has been fueled by niche internet marketing and an acquisition resulting in a significant new presence in several vertical markets and new customers in nearly every US state, Canada, and the U.K.

In 2006 a local competitor, SalesMaker On Hold Systems, was acquired. Rich Moncure, On Hold Marketing’s President, stated, “The acquisition just made sense, the overlap in target markets was minimal and merging operations was seamless since we were producing in similar digital formats”.  This added more experienced people and several hundred new customer sites across the country.

On Hold Marketing helps their customers address their captive audiences with branding and information in several environments:

• Telephone On Hold with music and messaging
• In-store & lobby areas with music and messaging  
• Gas pumps with music and messaging

On Hold Marketing is guided by President, Rich Moncure, a 15 year veteran of the telecom industry.  Customers are supported with a staff of 5 with combined 60 years experience in music, marketing, telecom, copywriting, & audio production.

For more information about On Hold Marketing, please visit www.onholdmarketing.com.

Contact Information:
Dan Bryant/VP-Business Development
(804) 273-6900 danbryant@onholdmarketing.com

Richmond, Virginia-January 12, 2010

On Hold Marketing was awarded an endorsement of services by Virginia Banker’s Association to the association’s member banks and association members to provide telephone on hold messaging, digital signage solutions, and web audio services.

As an endorsed provider, On Hold Marketing will help member banks increase brand awareness and messaging to its existing and prospective clients, with a focus on ‘attentive audience’ marketing.  ‘Attentive Audiences’ are those customers that are in line or in queue for a service under a variety of conditions.  They could be ‘in line’ on the telephone (on hold), at a teller window, in a lobby, or visiting a website.   On Hold Marketing President Rich Moncure stated, “As a Virginia based company, we are happy to have received the endorsement by the VBA.  The banking industry in this state has historically been focused on providing outstanding personal service and value to it customers, and we look forward to doing the same for the VBA and its members.”

On Hold Marketing specializes in providing a single point of management and service for the various ‘attentive audience’ touch points found within a bank or company.  

On Hold Marketing was founded in 1989 in Richmond, Virginia and provides services nationally, but with considerable focus in Virginia.  

For more information, please contact Rich Moncure or Dan Bryant with On Hold Marketing at 800-342-0098, or visit www.onholdmarketing.com.

Are you considering adding On Hold Marketing to your distributor locations?  If done right, it’s a positive addition to your company’s image; brand awareness, sales figures, and event enrollment…even an improvement in the mood of callers!  

…and since a large portion of your business comes to you via telephone, the impact of doing it wrong can be significant.  

Ok, now we can get to the first of three questions I see distributors overlooking…and it’s a biggee.  #1 “Why are we considering On Hold Marketing” This needs to be more than “because our competition is doing it”. There are several good reasons, but the driver is the sheer number of inbound calls that are momentarily put On-Hold.  Even 30 hold events a day is 660 monthly.  And before you reinstate last year’s commitment to “never put anyone on hold again!”, consider this:  Smart businesses are fine-tuning their staff so that, with a short hold time, they can handle more calls.  The key to success is a program that’s interesting so your contractors will stay on the line…while giving them more reasons to do more business with you.   

#2 “What are our expectations?” A appropriate On Hold Marketing program can be expected to make callers feel better about their brief hold, increase awareness about new people-products-events-seminars-HVAC/R industry trends, and add-on sales. Anything less is just “noise on hold”…(satisfying  no expectations). 

The #3 consideration that many wholesalers overlook is the value of an industry-specific on-hold provider. The pronunciation of the specific terms and phrases used by your industry is critical to the credibility of your marketing messages….and an inexperienced on-hold producer can cause you some pretty big headaches if your customers are pointing out mispronounced acronyms, building codes and efficiency designations.    

If you consider these three points, you’ll be taking the right path toward knowing if, or how, or why to include On Hold Marketing as a new element of your overall marketing.