Why your customers hate your IVR (and how to fix it)
The scene we all know too well
We all start off with hope.
You’ve carved out the time to call customer support and you’re ready to explain the issue to a fellow human.
But instead, your met with….
📞 “Welcome to [insert the name of the company you last called] 👀
Please listen carefully as our menu options have changed.”
And then comes the maze…
Press 1 for sales, 2 for support, 3 if you fancy giving up on life altogether.
You pick an option.
Then you get another menu.
Then another.
Then you’re back where you started.
By the time an agent finally picks up, you’re 4 minutes into the ordeal and you’re ready to flip your lid!
Only to be asked to repeat everything you already told the robot.
Sound familiar?
You’re not alone.
Customers hate bad IVRs.
Can you blame them?
What bad IVR actually feels like
Let’s be honest, a bad IVR isn’t just annoying, it’s insulting.
You’ve made the effort to reach out, followed all the prompts and you’ve played the game as instructed.
And what do you get in return?
🔁 Loops that lead nowhere 📣 Menus that sound like they were written in 2003 📦 No option that actually matches your issue 🙃 A robot pretending to understand natural language and failing spectacularly
What start’s out a tech problem quickly becomes a trust problem.
Because if a business can’t even direct your call properly… what hope is there for the rest of the experience?
It’s like turning up to a hotel and getting stuck in the revolving door.
Technically you may have arrived.
But you’re not exactly getting the warm welcome you expected!
What good IVR actually looks like
Now imagine this instead…
📞 “Hi Michele, thanks for calling. I see you’ve been chatting to us recently about a billing issue, would you like to speak to the same team?”
1️⃣ Press 1 to continue where you left off 2️⃣ Press 2 if it’s something new 3️⃣ Or press 3 if you’re just here for the vibes (ok, maybe, but you get the idea) 😉 What a dream this would be.
🔂 No repeating yourself.
😫 No wading through irrelevant options.
🤖 No robotic monologues.
Just smart routing, based on who you are, what you need, and what’s already happened.
That’s not just good IVR.
That’s what a decent customer experience actually sounds like.
And it’s a win, win, it saves your customers sanity and stops you losing them!
What bad IVR really costs you
Sadly, most businesses don’t think their IVR is a problem, because, technically, it does work.
Calls connect, customers get eventually get through, albeit it slightly irked.
But is that really good enough these days?
Especially when you consider that what is happening behind the scenes is:
🔁 Calls are being bounced around to the wrong teams 📉 Resolution times are dragged out 😤 Customers are getting more frustrated before they even speak to someone 🧍♂️ Agents are wasting time re-routing and repeating
And all this costs you in:
Trust NPS CSAT Churn Agent morale Actual revenue
Every annoying menu, every broken loop, every “please repeat that” moment adds friction, which
in turn creates frustration. And that frustration, especially when it’s avoidable, turns into lost customers.
So no, your IVR isn’t “just a system.”
It’s part of your brand.
Part of your service.
And part of why people stay… or don’t.
Your IVR shouldn’t be a maze, it should be a map.
When you’re routing reflects your customer journey and not just your org chart, everything changes.
Calls flow where they’re supposed to.
Customers get answers faster.
Agents aren’t picking up with zero context.
And nobody’s stuck pressing 2, then 3, then again, just to speak to a human.
That’s what smart IVR looks like.
And that’s exactly what QContact helps you build.
From intelligent call routing to dynamic workflows that understand what’s going on!
We make sure your customers get the right support, first time.
We don’t just do this on voice.
We do it across every channel, from voice, to email, to WhatsApp and socials.
So that wherever your customers show up, we help you route, respond, and resolve with zero chaos.
So, if you’re ready to clean up your customer journey, one menu at a time.
