You need to justify using voice self-service because it costs money to implement.

Some basics first: it can cost a lot less than you think; it can stay in place a very long time - especially if you can manage it yourself for very little overhead; and additional services can cost progressively less and less if you can leverage what you started out with.

Not all benefits are immediately obvious but there are serious cost implications right down the line that we can genuinely address:

• What’s the benefit of stretching out what I have already instead of ditching it all for something new? I want to sweat my existing assets.
  
  
• Should I spend more on a voice service platform that I can manage and less on a media server box – or the other way around? I want a service at the end of the day.
  
  
• Should I start adding new services using a reliable hosting service instead of spending capex? Who cares if its guaranteed failsafe anyway and I can still control what I want?
  
  
• Buying software and media servers is one thing – it’s the application development and cost of ownership that’s the killer – how can I break out of that loop?
  
  
• I want to use my people to run my voice services – and stop paying others.
  
  
• If I invest in new services I want to remain independent from a support perspective – I want to keep my services from getting tangled up with the communications network.
  
  
• OK but what if I’m acquiring a new business or doing M&A – can I be clear of roadblocks and wasted investment?
  
  
• Can I make a direct connection between what I spend and how my customers react?
  
  
• OK maybe the “soft” numbers don’t quite stand up but if I can’t keep up with my competitors it’s a straight revenue loss situation and I can measure that every time.
  

The list goes on. There is no magic ROI formula when it comes to addressing the complexities of voice self-service or multi-media self service. However, its good to know you can cover all the bases and make your own judgement – that’s where we add a lot more value than simply buying a shrink wrap application and spending a lot of money fitting square pegs into round holes.

We will outline your specific business case with you, based on what you need and how it needs to work for you – our input to that is free because we are confident of what we can do.