Having to memorize 10-digit phone numbers or constantly look out for the telephone directory whenever you want to call someone is a burdensome task.
Even after all that, chances of misdialing a number occur often, too. 😨
And this is where speed dialing comes in handy. Speed dials give you the peace of mind that you can connect with people more quickly and efficiently and lower the risk of misdialing.
Most importantly, you don’t have to dial each digit one by one either manually. ✔️
So, what is this speed dialing, or how does this even work? It is what may be popping into your head right now.
This is what we will cover in this article, so you know all the ins and outs of speed dialing.
🔑 KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Speed Dialing is used to remove the need to search, memorize, and dial for a phone number.
- Speed Dialing is one of the ways to reduce customer wait times and improve efficiency.
- To activate the speed dial feature, you’ve to select a specific phone number from your contact list and assign it to a speed dial slot.
- KrispCall, Aircall, and CallHub are some of the highly renowned speed-dialing service providers.
Let’s get started! 👇
What is Speed Dialing?
Speed dialing is a functionality you’ll see on telephones, allowing you to make calls easily. All you have to do is dial a digit on the keypad, and it automatically inserts the person’s number you intend to call.
Speed dialing allows you to save frequently called numbers in the phone’s memory so that you can dial them with a press of a one-digit or a two-digit button on the keypad.
What are the Benefits of Speed Dialing for Your Business?
Speed dialer technology makes the outbound call process simple and easy, eliminating the need to search and dial for a phone number.
This technology is helpful for businesses to enhance the productivity of agents as well as customer experience. Here are some of its benefits:
- Improve agent productivity and performance: Since agents don’t have to spend all their energy searching and dialing phone numbers, they can entirely focus on their primary task, i.e., guiding customers.
- Increased customer experience: One of the benefits of speed dialer technology is that it minimizes customer wait times. This is done by transferring calls to the free agents. Hence, this leaves a positive impact on your customer experience.
- Streamlines business experience: Speed dialers are especially helpful in displaying all the essential information like insights, phone numbers, and contact information from a single place. This way, agents can have a smooth and uninterrupted experience.
- Cost-efficient: A speed dialer is included in most phone systems or devices, so they don’t require additional hardware and software. Hence, it is a comparatively cheaper option for personal and business purposes for making a limited number of calls.
- Saves time and reduces errors: Speed dialers are primarily helpful for people who regularly call the same contacts. It also helps save time and prevent mistakes like misdialing numbers.
How Does Speed Dialing Work?
One thing to remember is that setting up a speed dial functionality differs on each device. It may differ for your IP desk phone, mobile phone, or device.
Here is how it works:
1. Storing the Numbers
First and foremost, you’ve to select specific phone numbers from your contact list. After that, you’ve to assign them to a speed dial slot.
This is usually numbered buttons from 1 to 9. For instance, you can assign the number ‘1’ to your family, ‘2’ to your relatives, etc. The speed dial slots that you’ve created are usually stored in the phone’s memory.
2. Making the Call
To call the desired person, you have to press and hold the speed dial code that you assigned earlier. It may be specific buttons or key combinations.
After completing the following action, the phone recalls the speed dial code/button. It fills in the number of the associated person automatically from its memory on the screen. This process saves time by automating outbound calls.
Whenever you press the speed dial button that you assigned, it triggers the same phone number that you set earlier.
Speed Dialer Vs Auto Dialer: What are the Key Differences?
Often, speed dialers and auto-dialers are taken interchangeably. However, they are entirely different, each with its own functionality. Speed dialers streamline the process of calling regularly dialed phone numbers.
On the contrary, auto-dialers automate outbound call tasks, allowing businesses to make a huge volume of outbound calls quickly.
Here are the main differences between speed dialers and auto-dialers:
| Feature | Speed Dialing | Auto Dialer |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | It’s a feature by which you set a speed dial number to a dedicated contact or phone number. | An auto dialer is a tool like a phone assistant that automatically calls a number for you from your contact list. |
| Function | They are designed for personal use and aim to ease the process of calling regularly dialed phone numbers. | Auto dialer use lies in the field of business, allowing them to make a huge volume of calls quickly. |
| Volume | Speed dialers are not ideal for making a large volume of calls; you’ve to manually type each number. | With auto-dialers, businesses can make huge numbers of calls in a short period. |
| Efficiency | Speed dialers are made for personal use only; hence, they don’t offer such automation and functionalities. | Auto dialers are handy for routing calls to suitable agents, minimizing wait times, and enhancing customer experience. |
| Regulations | Speed dialers don’t support large volumes of outbound calls; hence, they are not subject to any kind of regulation. | Auto dialers abide by regulations like the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). These rules strictly oblige companies using auto-dialers to maintain specific guidelines to protect customers from unwanted or spam calls. |
| User Control | Here, a user has to pick and dial numbers manually. | Here, a system automatically dials numbers from a contact list. |
How to Put Someone on Speed Dial?
The speed dial setup differs based on the device you’re using, whether it’s an iPhone, an Android phone, or a landline. You can follow the below step-by-step guide to learn more about activating the speed dial feature on all devices.
How to Set Up Speed Dial on an iPhone?
For iPhone 8 and older models
Step 1: First and foremost, tap on the ‘Phone’ icon located on your iPhone’s home screen, and then move to the ‘Contacts’ tab
Step 2: Choose the contact you want to add and tap their name.
Step 3: Move to the bottom of their contact info and tap ‘Add to Favorites.’
Step 4: Tab on the ‘Edit’ button next to their name to add a speed dial number to the contact.
Step 5: Tap the speed dial option and choose a number from 2 to 9; you’ve successfully assigned a speed dial number to the contact.
For iPhone 12 and newer models
Step 1: First, tap the ‘Phone’ icon and then go to the ‘Favorites’ tab.
Step 2: From there on, tap the plus (+) icon in the top left corner.
Step 3: Select the contact you want to add and tap their name.
Step 4: Tap the ‘Edit’ button next to their name to add a speed dial number to the contact.
Step 5: Tap the speed dial option and choose a number from 2 to 9.
How to Set Up Speed Dial on Android?
The speed dialing setup process is slightly different on Android than on iPhones. Most Android phones include a built-in speed dial feature by which you can assign a number to a contact.
🧐Let’s check out these steps:
Step 1: Tap on the ‘Phone’ icon
Step 2: Go to the ‘Contacts’ tab.
Step 3: Select the contact to add to the speed dial.
Step 4: On the contact details page, tap on the three dots in the top right corner. Based on your phone, you’ll see options like ‘Add to Speed Dial,’ ‘Assign Speed Dial,’ or ‘Create Shortcut.’ Select one that appears on your mobile screen.
Step 5: Now assign a specific number to the contact you want to give a speed dial option.
Step 6: Lastly, save the contact.
How do you Set Up Speed Dialing on a Landline?
Depending on the brand and model of your landline phone, either a short list or a long list of contacts may be supported. The shortlist option allows you to enter up to eight numbers and uses a 1-digit code. On the other hand, the long list option allows you to enter up to thirty numbers and uses a 2-digit code. We’ll be discovering both options here.
🤗 To configure speed dial on your landline phones, follow these steps:
Step 1: Lift the handset and listen for the dial tone.
Step 2: For the shortlist, enter *74 or 74#. Similarly, for the longlist, enter *75 or 75#.
Step 3: Pick a 1-digit code (select from 2 to 9) or a 2-digit code (select from 20-49).
Step 4: Press the phone number you want to assign to your selected code.
Step 5: Your speed-calling number is now added.
After completing all the steps, you can make outbound calls by pressing the assigned speed dial code and the (#) button.
5 Best Speed Dialer Software for Businesses (or Speed Dialing Service Provider)
Businesses can handle calls and maintain customer relationships with the help of speed dialer software. Thankfully, there are several speed dialer software options available that can automate business operations smoothly.
1. KrispCall
KrispCall is one of the renowned cloud-based telephony systems that allows businesses to make calls over the Internet. It has an intelligent power dialer tool by which businesses can streamline their outbound phone calls, removing the need to dial phone numbers manually.
Businesses can implement automation in their dialing processes with the help of this intelligent dialer technology. Besides that, you can track calls, add contact lists, integrate CRM, create sales campaigns, route calls, and much more.
KrispCall has three different pricing plans, so you can pick the one that suits you better.
- Essential: $15/month, ideal for small businesses, startups, and freelancers.
- Standard: $40/month, ideal for mid-sized businesses and call centers.
- Enterprise: You need to talk to their contact sales to upgrade to this plan.
2. Aircall
Aircall is a popular communication platform designed for sales and customer support teams. This cloud-based voice solution is perfectly suitable for businesses of all sizes.
With Aircall’s power dialer, your sales team can combine a list of numbers and call through them only with a click. By default, it identifies phone numbers and adds them to your calling queue. You can integrate the power dialer with the CRM of your choice easily.
Aircall includes two different pricing plans; hence, you can pick one that meets your needs.
- Essential: $30/license, unlimited inbound calls, outbound calls, essential telephony features, etc.
- Professional: $50/license, power dialer, advanced support features, analytics, and call monitoring.
3. CallHub
CallHub is a cloud-based call center software that allows users to carry out outbound and inbound calls quickly. It offers automatic call distribution, lead generation, and call tracking features.
Other than that, CallHub also has power dialer software, which saves you the time and energy of dialing numbers manually. Since you’re not manually dialing numbers, you can make more calls with a power dialer.
For pricing, contact the Callhub’s support team.
4. VoxDesk
VoxDesk is one of the leading call center software programs available. It allows you to make unlimited calls, build advanced automation depending on the call outcomes, and reduce the agent’s workload.
VoxDesk allows businesses to manage calls and make calls quickly by simply pressing a button. You can customize the ins and outs of the speed dialer sidebar to match your business appearance.
VoxDesk comes up in three different pricing plans. These are:
- Cloud: $14.99/month, 99.5% global uptime, 24/5 professional support, multiple workspaces
- Enterprise: $74.95/month, 99.99% global uptime, 24/5 professional support, dedicated account representative
- Hosted: You have to contact their team to buy this plan
5. Freshcaller
Freshcaller is an all-in-one contact center solution that allows businesses to expand their operations and enhance customer engagement. It includes advanced calling features to smoothen workflow and increase team productivity.
You can make use of Freshcaller’s power dialer to automate your outbound calls and enhance your customer conversations. With it, you can call a list of customers’ phone numbers sequentially, which reduces manual effort.
There are altogether four different pricing plans in Freshcaller, starting with a free plan:
- Free: $0. Buy local numbers, toll-free numbers, call metrics
- Growth: $15/year, number porting, voicemail, call recording, pre-built records
- Pro: $39/year, holiday routing, advanced call metrics, call monitoring
- Enterprise: $69/year, speech-enabled IVR, abandoned call metrics, service level monitoring
Upgrade Your Calls with KrispCall’s Speed Dialing
Krispcall is an all-in-one solution to fulfill all your cloud telephony needs. It allows you to manage many calls, route them to suitable agents, and get real-time analytics from a single place.
KrispCall has intelligent power dialer software by which businesses can automate a series of phone calls based on the frequency of calls. What it does is remove the necessity to dial phone numbers manually.
The power dialer automates the loading and dialing processes, removing the worry of dialing mistakes. It boosts efficiency and saves your team members precious time.
Go ahead and book KrispCall’s free demo now!
FAQ
Why do I have speed dialing when I didn’t ask for it?
Pre-installed features, software updates, or third-party apps may cause speed dialing to appear when you didn’t ask for it.
Do iPhones have speed dial?
Yes, iPhones have a speed dial feature known as ‘Favorites.’ You can activate it by visiting the ‘Phone’ icon on your iPhone’s home screen.
How to use speed dial?
You can use speed dial by simply pressing a speed dial key, which triggers the contact number you’re trying to reach.
How many numbers are there on the speed dial?
The speed dial number is followed by a one or two-digit code, which the user assigns by selecting numbers from 1 to 9 in the keypad.
How to set the speed dial in a keypad phone?
Speed dial can be configured in a keypad phone by following these steps:
- Go to Phone>Contacts from home screen
- Click the More>Call Setting option
- Tap the speed dial option and select the contact
- Assign a specific digit to the contact
