Financial Services Institution Increases ANI Match Rate By 20%, Reducing IVR Opt-Out and Contact Center Costs

Today, most customers rely on their mobile phone as their primary phone rather than a landline. However, as the number of customers disconnecting their landline telephones increases, the percentage of customer service calls that can be authenticated using their telephone number decreases. For one of the world’s largest financial services institutions, this was becoming a costly problem.

In an ideal scenario, Automatic Number Identification (ANI) match capabilities in an IVR system to identify a caller’s phone number and compare it to the numbers in the company’s customer database. If the system finds a match, this information can then be used for caller identification or authentication purposes. Thus, ANI match provides a low-cost and user-friendly means of identifying callers — if the company has current contact information on record for its customers.

The Challenge

Because it didn’t have the correct phone number for a large number of customers, a financial services institution found that its ANI match was producing a low number of matches. The company tried to rectify this problem by having call center agents gather information from customers when they called in, but this was costly.

It also wasn’t incredibly productive. Some callers got what they needed through the IVR system and hung up, so agents didn’t have an opportunity to talk to them. To make matters worse, the financial services institution had no way to reach these customers for outbound promotions, late payments, and fraud prevention.

The Solution

The financial services institution turned to USAN for help in addressing this problem. A contact center technology provider, USAN built and deployed a system that allowed the organization to update its customer records and increase its ANI match percentage, all within the IVR system. The system tracks customers calling, identifying, and authenticating.

When a caller is identified and authenticated—and there is no ANI match for the phone number—the system stores this information along with the date and time of the call. If the same customer calls three times within two months from the same phone number, he/she is prompted to update their profile: “For faster access on future calls, can I update your profile from the number you’re calling from?”

The message includes a customer benefit (faster access) to entice callers to update their information, but if a caller is in a hurry and says
no, the system tracks that and, after an interval day count, prompts the customer to update their information during a subsequent call. If
the customer agrees to update their profile, the system asks if the phone number is their home, cell, or business number, and sends the
information to the CRM system.

The Outcomes

Within 18 months, the financial services institution saw a 20% increase in ANI matches — without ever requiring a live agent.

IVR utilization has increased because customers are easily identified and authenticated with minimal effort on their part, and the organization has updated customer information on file for its outbound efforts.

This is just one example of how USAN has delivered an innovative solution to help a contact center meet a challenging business
objective, and it’s the kind of work we thrive on.

To learn more or get a demo, Contact Us here.