Some answers to frequently asked questions about on hold messages and how they connect to your phone system.
1 – Q: How can we know if our phones have message on hold capability?
A: First, locate your business telephone’s Key Service Unit (KSU). You may be able to identify the music on hold (MOH) port by carefully checking the KSU for an input jack or screw terminals marked “music”, “external music” or “MOH”. Depending on the manufacturer and model, this input may or may not be easily identified. Check with your telephone system provider(not the phone company e.g. AT&T, Sprint, Verizon) and ask them if your system is already equipped for M.O.H.. They should be able to give you an answer right over the phone. If it is not, your system can be easily adapted to play messages on hold for a nominal service charge from your local phone provider.
2 – Q: We don’t have a K.S.U.(Key Service Unit) phone system. All we have are two or four-line telephone that plugs right into the wall. Can we still use your service?
A: Yes! We offer an inexpensive two or four line “message on hold adapter” that will provide superior message on-hold capabilities to any consumer-grade telephone. One of these adapters will work with all telephones connected to the same lines or phone numbers. Only one on-hold adapter is needed to provide message on-hold. Just let us know the make and model of your phones and we will provide you with the right on-hold adapter for your non-system telephones.
3 – Q: We share our phone system with another company in our office. Can we have our own custom Please Hold message play on our lines and not the lines the other company?
A: No. Your phone system most likely only has one message on-hold input for the entire system. Even though the other company has it own dedicated phones lines it will not be possible in most cases. Some phone systems do allow for multiple hold or “multi-tenant” functionality. Check with your phone system vendor or service provider.
4 – Q: Will on hold work with the “call waiting” feature from my local phone provider?
A: No. Because “call waiting” works with one line and does not “roll over” to another line. Therefore, it is not possible to broadcast an on hold message, radio or any other audio source with “call waiting”.
5 – Q: Our auto attendant/voice mail system gives callers a second language option. (Example: press 2 for Spanish). When this option is selected by the caller and the system puts the call on-hold, will they hear the on-hold message exclusively in that same language? In this example, Spanish?
A: In most cases no. You see most if not all phone systems only have one message on-hold input source for the entire system. This means that the caller will be placed on-hold and will hear the same message as a caller selecting English through the automated attendant/voice mail system. Some phone systems on the market today do allow, through programming and additional hardware/software from your phone vendor, a second on-hold message source to be connected. Though this feature is provides by less than 10% of phone manufactures today.
6 – Q: Does the Please Hold message start from the beginning ever time the caller is put on hold?
A: No. The message plays continuously through the M.O.H. input on your phone system. This means that when your caller is placed on-hold he will pick up the message where ever it happens to be at that moment. If you are using a VOIP system, chances are that the message will start from the beginning every time the caller is placed on hold. This is an inherent characteristic of VOIP phone systems.
7 – Q: Will the “Please Hold Advertising” message work with all of our lines on our phone system?
A: Yes! It will broadcast to all callers that are placed on hold. No matter if you have one or one hundred lines. Anytime the hold button is pressed from an extension on your phone system the caller will hear the message.
8 – Q: Do we have to write our own scripts?
A: No! Just provide us the information(brochures, letters, copy yellow page ad, newspaper ad or radio copy) you want to announce and we’ll produce a full script that will be faxed or e-mailed to you for approval before production. We can even consult with you over the phone to gather ideas for your message.
9 – Q – What is the cost for a professional phone greeting?
A – For a voice mail script you can send in a copy of the script and we will give you a quote.
10 – Q: Can your service work with our automated attendant and voice mail system?
A: Yes! In most cases the Please Hold message will appear every time the auto attendant/voice mail places the caller on hold after the caller enters the desired extension. In some cases your phone system may be programmed to ring the selected extension without placing the caller on-hold. In this scenario, your caller will not hear the Please Hold message but rather will hear your system ringing that extension without putting the call on-hold.
11 – Q – Can I choose who will do my recording?
12 – Q – I use a VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) phone system. Do we still need to purchase message playback equipment from you?
A – No. Most VOIP phone systems will be able to playback an on-hold message in .wav or MP3 format internally with no hardware required. We would simply produce the message and e-mail it to you or your VOIP provider directly so that it can be loaded into your system. We are able to provide the file in any format and resolution for telephony applications.
13 – Q – What forms of payment do you accept?
A – We accept all forms of credit cards: i.e. Master card, Visa, Discover, and American Express.
14 – Q – What if the pronunciation is wrong after it has been recorded?
A – When you send over the script for a quote we ask that you phonetically spell out any uncommon words and names. If you do that and it is still recorded incorrectly, we will re-record with no charge.
15 – Q – Will I be able to hear my message before taking final delivery?
A- Of course! We will e-mail you the production in a standard MP3 audio format for your review and approval. If there are any mistakes on our part or you don’t like the music we will re-record it and send it to you for one more review.
Frequently Asked Questions about on hold messages, FAQ.