Back to ArticlesEstablishing a New Travel Agency Generate High Returns by Investing in Primary Rate Interface Lines - Tata Tele Business Services
- Published on - Jan 10, 2022
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Timely and secure communication within the organisation and with customers is a critical factor for the success of any business. A travel agency that receives hundreds of customer queries daily must have a well-organised telecom setup that ensures seamless connectivity and clarity of calls. PRI lines bring these qualities while also offering versatile features for data sharing
From Cleartrip and Ixigo to OYO Rooms and TreeboHotels, several travel startups have done a brisk business in India through the past few years. Rising incomes and the convenience of booking transport and lodging online have encouraged new age travellers to take frequent vacations.
Travel companies are willing to provide customised packages for solo, business, couple and family trips. A report found that Indians spent nearly $94 billion on travel in 2018 helping the industry reach unprecedented scales.
In addition to partnering with the best of transport service providers and hotel chains, travel agencies must also have cutting-edge customer service managed by their internal teams. These businesses receive hundreds of phone calls and online queries from information-hungry clients who need to ensure that they are aware of all options and getting the best value for their money. And that’s where contact centre telephony systems matter.
Are PRI Lines the right choice for this business?
Among the different options that travel enterprises have for their telecommunication setups, one is Primary Rate Interface (PRI). The technology has been used to support business and consumer voice communication for more than 40 years. Telecom service providers today use PRI to transmit voice communications and data as electrical pulses over copper cable infrastructure and networks.
With its significant levels of data transmission capability, a PRI line suits the needs of businesses that have contact centres running round the clock. A single line carries 30 channels enabling 30 employees to use it simultaneously for calls and data transmission. It also provides 100 individual numbers.
A travel agency hiring associates to handle customer queries and concerns can leverage its team’s skills and generate good returns by deploying PRI lines for their work.
The top benefits of choosing this mode of telecommunication are:
Crystal clear digital voice
PRI connections do not have an analogue infrastructure. All the cables, equipment and protocols are digital. It results in crystal clear voice enabling lucid communication between associates and customers. The calls are also connected faster.
In comparison, basic PSTN lines have to convert analogue voice signals to digital signals. The conversion leads to disturbances spoiling the call quality.
Automatic call distribution
The 30 channels on a PRI line bring 100 unique numbers. If one channel is busy, the call automatically lands on the next line. Customers, therefore, never need to wait to get connected, and several queries can be handled simultaneously.
Direct Inward Calling (DID)
The organisation can publish different telephone numbers to help callers reach specific people/department directly, without being routed by an operator or IVR. As an example, 12345 can be allocated for a team handling transport-related concerns, while 12346 can be assigned to reach lodging concerns’ specialists within the customer service team.
DID feature comes inbuilt with PRI technology. Although it can be added to basic PSTN lines, the upgrade requires an expensive EPBX box.
Direct Outward Dialling (DOD)
PRI lines also bring benefits for business departments other than customer service. In the event of a missed call from another business, the travel agency would like to return the call. However, if the call lands on a ‘central number’ handled by a receptionist who has no idea about the original caller, he or she will be unable to connect the call to an extension.
PRI lines address this problem with their DOD feature. A person calling back against a missed call can directly reach the original caller without the help of a receptionist.
Bill pooling for 30 lines
A travel agency with infrastructure for at least 30 callers will have to pay multiple bills if it uses 30 PSTN lines in this setup. With PRI, however, there is only one bill to be paid for a single line that has 30 call channels. The cost of terminating 30 analogue PSTN lines is also more than that of terminating a single PRI line carrying 30 channels.
Furthermore, with PSTN, some analogue trunks are unintentionally used more often due to uneven call distribution, and some lines might remain unused even before reaching their ‘free-calls’ limit. PRI eliminates this problem as all thirty channels billed together stay under the same calling plan. They prove to be more cost-effective than traditional phone setups.
Versatile communication features
In addition to providing high quality for voice communication, PRI lines can also be used for data transfer, web conferences and fax transmissions. Moreover, all its functionalities can be used simultaneously – on different channels – without degrading the quality.
Security and ease of isolating a problem
Their digital framework makes PRI lines more reliable than normal PSTN lines. It is not easy to tap into a digital PRI link to snoop on a conversation.
In a rare case of a problem with functionalities, troubleshooting is simple for PRI users. These lines are typically based on a fibre core ring that gives them redundancy for a failover.
If you plan to establish or expand a travel business or any enterprise that needs a customer-facing team for regular interactions, PRI makes for a smart investment.
The PRI solution offered by Tata Tele Business Services is scalable in multiples of 30, supports HD video conferencing, and comes with value-added services such as pooling, free local Closed User Group (CUG) and similar pilot number across office branches.
To know more about the service, call us at 1800-266-1800.
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