At Apollo Cloud, we believe good customer service in telecoms should be simple: you should be able to speak to knowledgeable people quickly, get problems resolved properly, and feel looked after long after you sign the contract.

That sounds obvious. But in an increasingly automated world, it isn’t always the experience businesses receive.

That’s why we’re particularly proud that Apollo Cloud has a 4.3 Trustpilot score and is rated Excellent.

The score itself is important, but what matters more to us is what sits behind it: customers choosing to independently tell other businesses about their experience of working with Apollo Cloud.

For us, that is a useful measure of whether we are delivering on one of the promises we made when we started the business: great technology, backed by genuinely personal customer service.

‍

Why customer service matters when choosing a telecoms provider

Business communications are critical infrastructure.

Your phone system, internet connectivity, business mobiles and unified communications platforms affect how your employees work and, crucially, how your customers communicate with you.

When something goes wrong, businesses don't simply need someone to answer a call and create a support ticket.

They need someone who understands the problem and can do something about it.

That is one of the reasons we have deliberately built Apollo Cloud around direct access to experienced people.

When an Apollo customer needs technical support, our aim is to get them speaking quickly to someone who can actually help.

No endless call queues.

No being passed repeatedly between departments.

No feeling that you have become just another account number.

‍

Customer service shouldn't change once you've signed the contract

One of the biggest frustrations customers can experience with telecoms providers is the difference between the sales experience and the service that follows.

Before the contract is signed, everything can feel incredibly responsive.

Afterwards, it can sometimes be very different.

We've always believed the opposite should be true.

The service you receive as an existing Apollo Cloud customer should be every bit as important as the service you received while we were trying to win your business.

That means maintaining relationships with our customers, understanding how their organisations operate and taking responsibility when they need our help.

It is also why we want our customers to know the people behind Apollo Cloud.

Good business relationships are difficult to create if every interaction starts with somebody asking for your account number.

‍

Great telecoms support is becoming more proactive

Traditionally, telecoms support has been reactive.

Something stops working. You contact your provider. They fix it.

Clearly, that will always be an important part of the service.

But modern business communications technology can do so much more that we believe a good telecoms provider should also help customers identify opportunities to improve how they communicate.

That might include asking:

• Are you using all the functionality available within your current phone system?
• Could AI call transcription or call summaries save employees time?
• Could integrating your phone system with your CRM improve customer service?
• Could call reporting provide better management information?
• Have changes to your organisation affected the connectivity or mobile services you need?
• Are employees communicating with customers across telephone, WhatsApp, SMS, webchat and other channels in the most effective way?
• Is your current telecoms setup still right for your business?

These are increasingly important questions as cloud telephony, unified communications and AI become more sophisticated.

That is why Apollo Cloud is placing greater emphasis on regular customer service reviews and communications health checks.

The purpose isn't to find something new to sell.

It is to make sure the technology customers already have continues to support what their business needs.

And sometimes the best advice we can give is:

Everything is working well. Don't change it.

‍

How can AI improve customer service without removing the human element?

AI is rapidly changing business communications.

Features such as AI call transcription, automatic call summaries, AI voice agents, intelligent routing and CRM integration can save employees time and improve the customer experience.

We think that is enormously exciting.

But there is an important distinction.

Technology should make it easier for people to communicate, not make businesses harder to contact.

We increasingly see organisations introducing technology that removes friction internally but inadvertently creates frustration for their customers.

Chatbots can be helpful.

Self-service can be helpful.

Automation can be helpful.

But sometimes a customer simply needs to speak to another person.

At Apollo Cloud, our approach is to use AI and communications technology where it genuinely makes the experience better, while retaining the human service that our customers value.

We call that Powered by People.

‍

What does a 4.3 Trustpilot score say about Apollo Cloud?

A strong Trustpilot rating provides independent social proof.

It isn't Apollo Cloud saying we provide good customer service.

It is customers sharing their own experiences.

Our 4.3 Trustpilot score and Excellent rating therefore gives prospective customers another way of assessing what it might be like to work with us.

But we don't see 4.3 as the destination.

We want to keep improving.

More importantly, we want to keep earning positive feedback by continuing to:

• answer the phone;
• provide access to experienced technical people;
• take ownership of problems;
• communicate clearly;
• listen when customers tell us we could do something better;
• proactively review customers' communications;
• recommend technology when it genuinely adds value; and
• retain the personal service on which Apollo Cloud was built.

‍

What should businesses look for when choosing a telecoms provider?

Price and technology obviously matter.

But before choosing a business telecoms provider, we think there are some equally important questions worth asking.

Who will support us once the system is live?

Can we speak directly to someone when we need help?

Are the people answering support calls technically knowledgeable?

Will our provider continue reviewing our requirements after the initial sale?

Will they tell us when new technology could genuinely benefit us?

And perhaps most importantly:

What do their existing customers say about them?

Those questions often tell you considerably more about the experience you are likely to receive than a product specification or price comparison alone.

‍

Our approach to customer service at Apollo Cloud

Apollo Cloud provides business communications solutions including AI-driven cloud phone systems, 3CX, unified communications, business mobiles and internet connectivity.

Technology is central to what we do.

But our belief has always been that technology alone doesn't create a great communications experience.

People do.

So while we're delighted to have achieved a 4.3 Trustpilot score, our real ambition isn't to achieve the highest possible review score.

It's to continue providing the kind of service that makes our customers happy and get the very best out of their systems.