How’s the front door of your company’s phone presence in the world?

Here’s a useful little test.  Every week, assign two or three people from your own company to call into your own phone line.  Not the same people every week.  Rotate it.

Take notes on the total user experience.

If there was a transfer to an agent, how long did it take?

Were there any obvious problems with the automated prompts that could be fixed with a common-sense approach?  Or, any more profound problems that might require some consulting?  (It is your company’s own front door, on the phone, so things “should” run correctly!)

If your own CEO leaves a voicemail message in the company’s system, how long does it take for the promised callback?

Did the call get dropped at any weird place?

Was there anything that a brand-new customer, or a potential customer, would find confusing or off-putting?

The customers might not be able to report problems to you, and might not bother to do so.  Competitors certainly won’t.

Have fun!  Break your own system and find any problems before your customers do!