Whether on the phone placing an order or in the checkout line, people hate to wait. Rarely am I physically present to make a purchase in a place of business where the facilities are not optimized for fast service. In those cases, it is often a lack of manpower that keeps customers waiting. We've all been there.

There are fifteen cash registers at the grocery store but only five cashiers. Unfortunately for many companies who do business over the phone, the same thing can happen but in the opposite fashion. Many companies have more than enough employees to handle incoming calls, but simply lack the phone system to keep them from holding. This can result in a loss of business as many people, especially those who might be ordering goods or services from the company for the first time, will only wait a few minutes before hanging up and looking elsewhere.

Think about it...if you are in the grocery store with a cart full of groceries, it's not as though you are going to abandon the cart and drive to another store where you will have to pick out all the items again. On the phone, however, things are different. Unless your business is highly specialized with little competition or you are the customers choice because of geographical location (i.e. scheduling appointments for services). you can lose a caller who has been holding too long to a competitor.

Recently, advances in phone system technology have made it so that multiple lines can be added to a business at a very reasonable price. Additionally, office phones themselves have options that let customer service representatives know who has been holding and for how long, so that they can minimize waiting times for customers. For a company who relies on the phone for any portion of it's sales, having a modernized phone system is paramount for continued success in business. Streamling customer interaction is more than a consideration, it's a necessity.