Call analytics, or "call tracking" as it's commonly called, is vital to gathering and analyzing marketing data for your business.

Just as Web analytics can give you in-depth information about how customers find you online, call-tracking software offers important information about who your customers are, how they discover your business, and what exactly they're looking for when they decide to give you a call.

Navigating the call-tracking waters can be difficult, especially if you're not sure of what to look for in a provider. You'll want to work with someone rather than have someone work for you: To get the most out of your service, think of your call-tracking provider of choice as a partner rather than a vendor.

Ready to start your search for that perfect partner? Here are four things to keep in mind when browsing call-tracking providers; you can use this as a checklist of criteria to look for when shopping for call-tracking software.

What to Look for in Call-Tracking Software

1. Real-time Data

Gathering data about customers after they've called you is one thing. But what about gathering data about callers as you're on the phone with them? Wouldn't they feel more engaged if you knew specifics about them before they even start talking?

The ability to see calls in real-time gives you an incredible edge over your competition. Knowing exactly who your customer is as soon as your phone rings will give you a better chance of a successful sale.

Ideally, you'll want to look for a call-tracking provider that can supply details such as call date and time, duration, location of the caller, and call source—in other words, data you can use in real-time and later on for analysis and reporting.

Real-time data is not something that's offered by all call-tracking software; however, finding one that does offer it can ultimately help you better understand your callers and cater to their needs—and help your sales team increase it sales conversion rates.

2. Integrations

Most people dislike having to hop around from platform to platform to gather all the data they need to get the big picture of their marketing efforts. That's why it's important to go with a call-tracking service that can integrate with the other services you already use for lead qualification and conversion, and aggregate all of your data in one central location.

Google Analytics and AdWords, Marketo, Salesforce, HubSpot, WordPress... the list of commonly integrated marketing software and services can go on and on, depending on how in-depth you want to get with analysis and reporting.

Look for call-tracking software that integrates with the platforms you use the most. For many people, that's likely Google AdWords and Analytics, but if you're using CRM systems such as Marketo and Salesforce, you'll want to investigate options that integrate with those as well.

Start small. Get only what you really need at the moment; then, as you expand your marketing arsenal, you can increase the power of your call-tracking software. Most providers offer different packages of their product to cater to various needs; start with the basic package and see whether it leaves anything to be desired. You can always upgrade later.

Enter your email address to continue reading

Four Things to Look for in a Call-Tracking Provider

Don't worry...it's free!

Already a member? Sign in now.

Sign in with your preferred account, below.

Did you like this article?
Know someone who would enjoy it too? Share with your friends, free of charge, no sign up required! Simply share this link, and they will get instant access…
  • Copy Link

  • Email

  • Twitter

  • Facebook

  • Pinterest

  • Linkedin


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

image of Lance Weatherby

Lance Weatherby is vice-president of marketing for CallRail, an Atlanta-based marketing technology company focused on call analytics.

Twitter: @Lance

LinkedIn: Lance Weatherby