I got a kick out of the recent Speech-Tek webinar on the topic of Hosted vs. On-Premise IVR and Contact Center Solutions. The fact that vendors could pitch with a straight-face the value of an on-premise solution vs. a hosted/on-demand one is pretty interesting. Enterprise customers should beware! Companies like Avaya, Genesys and even Voxeo now, are selling on-premise, voice technology solutions that date back over a decade and require a substantial upfront cost, a yearly maintenance fee and a complete lack of flexibility when a customer wants to make improvements to drive an improved customer experience.

Enterprise customers like Pfizer, Astra Zeneca and Barnes & Noble, are quickly understanding the value of deploying a hosted/on-demand IVR solution. The benefits are substantial in the short and long-term: 1) LOWER COST: There are no/limited set-up fees for a hosted/on-demand offering vs. the extensive programming required for an on-premise solution. 2) FASTEST TIME TO MARKET: A new customer is literally up and running in a matter of hours or days vs. months for an on-premise offering. 3) IMPROVED FLEXIBLITY: An hosted/on-demand offering allows customers to make improvement on-the-fly vs. an on-premise one that can take weeks, as updated coding is required.

If you’re considering a replacement or new IVR or Contact Center solution, GO hosted/on-demand.