In the midst of a global pandemic, the world has entered an era of working from home, and remote work is no longer an alien concept.
A growing list of major corporations are planning a more permanent shift to remote work even after cities emerge from their lockdowns. One such company is Twitter, which was the first major tech company to allow employees to work from home “indefinitely”.
Working from home is here to stay, but the remote work experience is thwarted by something unexpected: bad audio.
Recall the last conference call you had, or the last time you spoke with a client over the phone. Were you frustrated or confused because you could not clearly hear what was going on?
If you have had to ask someone to repeat themselves or repeat yourself multiple times, you are not alone. Bad audio is to blame, and it’s bad for business.
Business people all over the world are mishearing each other on a daily basis, and it is leading to a serious waste of time and money.
In fact, “what?” is one of the most expensive words in business today.
Bad Audio Is Bad Business
Bad audio is no minor problem.
According to a survey by high-end audio and video solutions provider EPOS, sound issues adversely affected 95 per cent of today’s workers concentration and efficiency at work.
Another 69 per cent spend extra time at work due to poor sound quality.
Most common problems include having excessive background noise, having to repeat themselves multiple times, and asking for information to be repeated.
These were not the only problems. Bad connections on the line that cut off speech, and recipients having to send follow-up emails for clarifications on the contents of the call were other pain points.
All these result in frustration, irritation, stress, and wasted time.
In terms of productivity, office workers lose up to 29 minutes a week due to poor sound quality on voice calls.
This adds up to a whopping expense of US$725 (S$992) per employee each year when tied to the average US wage. Organisations that employ over 100 employees risk losing over US$70,000 (S$95,865) per annum.
Needless to say, these financial losses and emotional strain on staff are a serious problem.
How It Affects Companies’ Bottomline
Beyond productivity, companies are losing revenue.
According to the EPOS survey, one in five decision makers said bad audio also caused dissatisfied clients, financial loss due to incorrectly undertaking a task, and even losing a pitch or tender.
Gabriel Lim, co-founder and CEO of AI sales assistant startup Saleswhale said that he once had to miss out on a planned live podcast session due to bad audio, which caused him 30,000 potential impressions.
Bad audio also has a negative impact on companies’ reputations.
“Due to poor audio, clients have had to constantly repeat themselves which causes frustration on their end, and embarrassment on ours. In the long run, it can do damage to the company’s reputation.” said Jacky Yap, founder of GRVTY Media.
On the other hand, Erik Cheong, co-founder of logistics startup Park N Parcel has had the experience of customers being unhappy due to miscommunications caused by bad audio.
He shared that during the delivery process, communication between the drivers and recipients are essential, and there have been instances where drivers were unable to verbally confirm a delivery due to poor audio, resulting in dissatisfied customers.
How You Can Eliminate Your Business Problems
Companies are of the strong opinion that better audio can alleviate these problems.
This is where EPOS comes in. The Danish-based company pioneers in audio technology, and delivers high-end audio solutions designed for both enterprise and gaming.
Their audio devices empower users to not only hear clearly, but fully understand everything that has been said — even implicit details carried by pauses and tone of voice will not be missed.
Its premium solutions are tailored to the needs of individuals and teams, allowing them to reach their full potential and perform better.
EPOS’ products are also certified for use with Microsoft Teams, making for an exceptional group call experience.
With more than 115 years of experience of working with innovation and sound as part of the Demant Group, EPOS is well-positioned to facilitate the effective communication that gives workers in every industry the freedom to focus on their work.
Although working from home began as a response to Covid-19, it has now become a necessity. Whether you’re at home, in the office or on-the-go, meetings and calls are essential for business and good audio is vital.
It’s a no-brainer — better audio improves productivity, performance, and even revenue, and there’s no better time to invest in good audio than now.
Simply said, with good audio, you’ll enjoy even better business. To check out EPOS’ suite of audio solutions technology, check out their website here.
This article was written in collaboration with EPOS.
Featured Image Credit: EPOS