The UPS Parcel Scam is a fraudulent scheme that exploits the UPS Express brand to deceive...
Spam calls are rampant. So how can an enterprise or large brand maintain trust that their calls are legitimate, and to mitigate fraud, through these critical communication channels? This current trust gap is fueled by incessant spam calls, mislabeling, and caller ID spoofing, and it significantly hampers customer engagement and brand loyalty.
In this blog, we’ll explore the essence of Trusted Calling and how it acts as a bridge to mend the trust gap, thereby enhancing customer engagement and brand loyalty, including:
The Trust Gap In Communication
The modern communication landscape is fraught with challenges, primarily due to the surge in spam calls and fraudulent activities. According to a report by YouMail, there were an astounding 1,896 robocalls per second in August 2023. (That’s 163.8 million robocalls per day, in case you were wondering.) This alarming figure not only disrupts communication, but also erodes the trust customers have in receiving calls from businesses, even legitimate ones. Mislabeling and caller ID spoofing further exacerbate the issue, making it imperative for enterprises to seek solutions that restore trust in their brand, and ensure the authenticity of their communications.
Phone Number Redemption, as it’s sometimes called, is the process of empowering legitimate enterprises to regain control of their phone numbers, ensuring a secure and reliable communication channel free from the disruptions of spoofers, spammers and scammers. To do that requires Trusted Calling.
The Mechanism Of Trust Calling
Trusted Calling is an important — and recent — concept that aims to restore trust in telephonic communication, especially in a business context. At the heart of Trusted Calling lies the idea of verifying the authenticity of calls, thereby ensuring (for all parties) that the communication is legitimate, and not malicious. This is particularly crucial in a time when spam calls and phone scams are rampant, causing significant disruption in business communications and eroding customer trust.
Authenticity Verification
The cornerstone of Trusted Calling is the verification of a call's authenticity. This is achieved through advanced technology and verified caller systems that work in tandem to establish the genuineness of a call. Unlike traditional methods that may solely rely on analyzing calling behaviors, the newest Trusted Calling systems go a step further by also adding in data on the content of the calls. This unique approach is led by YouMailPS, which emphasizes analyzing the content of calls to provide a more nuanced understanding of the caller's intention.
Content-Based Analysis
As mentioned, some Trusted Calling services employ a content-based analysis approach. This method incorporates the analysis of voice message audio data, which is then subjected to AI analysis to ascertain the caller's intention. This is a significant departure from merely analyzing behavioral patterns, which can often lead to misclassification of calls. By delving into the content of the calls — more specifically, transcribing voicemail messages and using AI to determine the risk of fraud or spam — a vastly more accurate assessment of the caller's intention is achieved, thereby reducing the chances of mislabeling legitimate calls as spam.
Dynamic Scoring Algorithm
The effectiveness of Trusted Calling is further enhanced by how that data is delivered to clients. Is it a “bad” or “good” (A or B) ranking, or does the service offer a clear risk analysis on a gradient? And is the algorithm static, or continually updated based on new data? A dynamic scoring system is the “gold standard” in ranking the risks of fraud or spam in a Trusted Calling system, as calling patterns and behaviors evolve over time.
Data Acquisition
It’s critical to ascertain the volume of a Trusted Calling system’s data. The data crucial for an analysis, and the more data, the more accurate a response. For example, for the YouMailPS system, they partner with their sister company and consumer branch, YouMail.com — delivering literally billions of data points on calls.
This platform collects voice message audio data which forms the basis for the content-based analysis carried out by YouMailPS’s Trusted Calling service. The rich dataset provides a substantial foundation for the AI analysis, ensuring that the Trusted Calling service is well-equipped to accurately assess the authenticity of calls.
In our next blog, we’ll see what an enterprise brand can do, specifically, to help fight voice fraud.
Enhancing call answer rates and reducing fraud ultimately enhances customer trust for enterprise brands. This is the end-goal of a Trusted Calling system, and it requires a sophisticated system to accurately identify and verify calls. Fortunately, the data shows that Trusted Calling works — significantly boosting call answer rates while reducing brand fraud and spam on both voice and SMS channels. The assurance that comes with Trusted Calling fosters a sense of trust between businesses and their customers, which is indispensable for effective communication and long-term customer loyalty. Schedule a no-obligation demo with YouMailPS today to learn more.
