Introducing call branding in the UK

Hiya’s data show that more than one in every four unidentified calls received in the UK are flagged as spam. Brits experience one of the highest rates of fraud calls in Europe. This high frequency of unwanted phone calls results in poor consumer trust in the voice channel. 

A recent survey conducted on behalf of Hiya revealed that 79% of unidentified calls in the UK go unanswered, and 86% of Britons believe that an unidentified call may be fraud. That means unidentified calls are much less likely to be answered, slows down deals and service speeds, and negatively impacts revenue and customer satisfaction.

Those were a few data points mentioned in a recent webinar hosted by CCW Digital titled Introducing Call Branding in the UK: What You Need to Know. 

Carriers are cracking down on spam calls

Carriers in the UK are cracking down on suspicious calls. They use technologies such as Hiya Protect, which helps carriers identify unwanted calls by assigning labels such as “Suspected Scam” or “Likely Nuisance.” These labels warn consumers to be cautious if they decide to answer.

Soon, people in the UK will see the usage of call warnings on incoming calls grow.

How to get calls answered: Branded caller ID

So, what can enterprises do to get their calls answered and restore customer trust? Add branded caller ID.

Branded caller ID is a technology that enables businesses to display their name, logo, and reason for the call on the recipient’s mobile device so consumers know who is calling. 

Rather than simply seeing an incoming phone number on the phone display — which doesn’t provide any helpful information — branded caller ID identifies the business name of the caller so consumers can answer the calls they want to receive. 

Businesses can now add identity to more outbound calls to get more calls answered, faster, engage in more live conversations, and build trust with their customers. 

Learn more about branded caller ID in the UK

How branded caller ID helped Protect Line

One example of how a UK company uses branded caller ID to improve business results is the life insurance company Protect Line. It had struggled with answer rates and an inability to connect with potential customers because calls were not getting answered — even those who had filled out an online form indicating their interest in a life insurance plan. 

After implementing Hiya Connect, Hiya’s branded caller ID product, Protect Line saw its answer rates double. Consumers who saw “Protect Line” on their phone display were more likely to answer the phone. And that's important in the competitive life insurance industry, where the first company to connect with the prospect is often the one to win the business. 

Branded caller ID also helped improve the quality of conversations with customers. Protect Line tripled its average call duration — a metric that often indicates call quality and likelihood of conversion. 

Five things enterprises can do right now

Want to improve your answer rates and other important KPIs? Here are five things enterprises in the UK can do right now, at www.hiya.com/uk.

1. Get a branded call demo — See how branded calls work and how they can improve business results for your specific business by requesting a free branded call demo from Hiya. 

2. Register your business — Business registration is a simple and free way for businesses to identify themselves to carriers. Businesses that proactively identify themselves through registration establish themselves as trustworthy callers — less likely to make aggressive or unwanted phone calls than an unknown caller. 

3. Book a complimentary call assessment — Businesses may hear customer anecdotes, but that’s not concrete data for business decisions. With Hiya’s free call assessment, a company provides an outbound phone number or set of numbers. Hiya then runs a report looking at the past 30-90 days of calling activity and measures performance based on several metrics, including (but not limited to) answer rate, contact rate, call duration, and call attempts. With this information, companies can make more educated decisions on where to focus their efforts. 

4. Inspect your current numbers — Hiya’s free call inspection shows companies exactly what their outbound calls look like to consumers. Hiya takes a single number and shows how the number appears across carriers and devices. This allows companies to identify their opportunities to deliver call branding. 

5. Download Hiya’s call reputation guide — Businesses often want to know how to avoid spam labels. In response, Hiya has published a guide called 10 Tips to Improve Your Call Reputation. The guide gives practical tips on what callers should and shouldn’t do to create a positive user experience and maintain a good reputation. 

Watch the entire webinar by clicking the image below.