Difference between: Call Forwarding Vs Call Transfer Vs Call Diverting

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Payal Patil

Senior Writer:

green tickDate: March 5, 2024

If you are a business owner or know someone who is, the chances are that you are familiar with the challenges faced while setting up and running a business call center. 

Service providers are coming up with a plethora of advanced features in an endeavor to handle high call volumes without missing out on any customer’s call. Some of these go by the name of Interactive Voice Response (IVR), call analytics, parallel routing, call forwarding, and call transfer facility. 

Though call forwarding and call transfer may sound similar, they are, in reality, as different as chalk and cheese. With not just a stark difference in meaning, these features also intend to solve various problems. 

In our quest to highlight the same, we decided to pen down this informative. Read on to know more! 

What does a Call Transfer mean?

When a call is transferred from one agent to another only after conversing with the caller first, it comes under the purview of a Call Transfer. 

Simply put, when an agent first speaks with a caller and then directs the call towards another agent/department, a call transfer is said to have been made. 

Why are Call Transfers needed?

Call transfer systems are useful in the customer service industry wherein a customer calls a business number to seek grievance or query resolution. It translates into transferring the call from an agent to a more relevant one after speaking with the customer. Such call transfer systems provide for a simplified and hassle-free way of applying diverse and pertinent expertise to customer issues.

What are the different types of Call Transfers?

A call transfer may be categorized as follows:

Call-Forwarding-vs-Call-Transfer

1. Warm Transfer:

When a customer calls with an issue that Agent A cannot solve, he/she can put the customer on hold and get in touch with another relevant department/agent. Once Agent A has briefed Agent B with the customer’s specific concerns, Agent A transfers the call to Agent B. 

A warm transfer ensures that the customer’s issues are resolved efficiently without any need for repetition on the customer’s part.

2. Cold Transfer:

A cold call transfer involves the direct transfer of the call to the relevant agent or department without having a word with the agent in question first. Cold transfers work well when call volumes are running high.

What is Call Forwarding?

Call Forwarding is a feature that allows the receiver to redirect the call to another number without any conversation happening. The best part about the whole process is that the caller doesn’t even come to know about the exchange of hands! It is completely discreet. 

CallHippo, a leading VoIP service provider, brings you the all-new Smart Call Forwarding feature with a whole host of remarkable benefits. You can now ensure that no calls go unanswered by redirecting them to your number even after working hours! 

Whatever be your device, whether a landline, a cell phone, or a satellite phone, you can receive calls on any number, anywhere in the world, at any point in time. 

With CallHippo’s intuitive and inclusive interface, you have the option of integrating smart extension menus to forward calls to the right person from the customer’s input! 

To ensure a smooth workflow, one also has the choice to integrate the forwarded calls with their current CRM software and maintain a record of them for overall as well as for individual performance analysis. 

You may also forward calls based on the work-shifts of your employees. Sounds like something your business could put to use? Sign up with us at callhippo.com, to experience the difference for yourself. 

When does Call Forwarding come into use?

The call forwarding feature is of immense relevance to both businesses as well as consumers. Individuals can use the facility to transfer calls to an alternate number or a more accessible device/number.

Whereas businesses choose to use call forwarding for a plethora of reasons:

  • The feature gives businesses the freedom to jump calls through a series of numbers before someone answers the call.
  • Call forwarding also helps to maintain a single number as the primary point of contact. The business might get hundreds of calls to this number daily. All of these calls are forwarded to one or more call centers.
  • The facility ensures that no call goes unanswered in case the phone lines are busy or an agent is unavailable. It works well for businesses as the customer queries are immediately resolved, and no crucial calls go unanswered.
  • Insufficient network coverage also gets factored in, with no missed calls owing to network issues. 

Benefits of Call Forwarding 

If ensuring unparalleled customer service is your forte, you need to get the best out of this practical and efficient telephony feature. The following are its significant benefits:

1. Round-the-clock availability:

Customers always value immediate redressal of their issues or queries. Build customer loyalty, and advocacy with the full-fledged use of call forwarding/call divert facility.

2. No location related restrictions:

You can now answer calls irrespective of your location, even after working hours. You may choose to divert the calls landing on your business phone number to your mobile phone (also known as call forwarding number). Resolve customer queries seamlessly this way, irrespective of the location and time.

3. Holistic service package:

The smart call forwarding feature offered by CallHippo differs from the regular facility. In addition to the benefits mentioned above, you can also set multiple device call forwarding, find-me facility, call group, time-of-the-day routing, as well as set sequential ring rules.

What are the different types of Call Forwarding?

Businesses may choose to forward calls in the following varied ways:

Call-Forwarding-vs-Call-Transfer

1. Forward the call to an available agent:

The software runs a check on how many calls the agents have responded to so far and distributes the incoming calls evenly. This method ensures an equitable distribution.

2. Forward a call to all agents on the team:

The team’s agents’ phones don’t stop ringing till one of them picks up. It works well in improving the agent’s response timings.

3. Location-based call forwarding:

Businesses generally provide only one number to their customers irrespective of their location. When a customer rings upon the business phone number, the call gets redirected to the nearest call center based on the caller’s location.

What is Call Diverting?

Call Diverting can help you to set up rule that will automatically send your incoming calls to another number when you can’t answer them. Call Diverting  can be very useful if you’re going to be unavailable for a period of time, or if you need to forward your calls to another phone.

What the difference between Call Diverting and Call Forwarding?

Well, Call Diverting is automated, while Call Forwarding is manual. Additionally, with Call Diverting you can set up rules for when your calls should be forwarded, while with Call Forwarding you’ll need to manually forward your calls each time.

 

 

Takeaway

Both call forwarding, as well as call transfer features, are crucial for ensuring seamless workflows and excellent customer experience. Despite their inherent differences, they make for a vibrant addition to your telephony communication arsenal. On that note, we hope that this blog served its purpose of highlighting the differences between the two. Albeit, if you need to get any more clarifications or just want to say hello, feel free to drop us a mail at [email protected].

 

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