It’s challenging for a small business owner to run daily operations and keep up with phone calls. I spoke with many business leaders before the holidays and each found themselves in a dilemma. They were torn between taking customer calls, handling personal matters, and overseeing all the ins and outs of their businesses. Many small businesses make mistakes that cost them loyal customers. They just don’t have the time to focus on a single task. Hiring a virtual receptionist service is vital in these cases.
I was called because this is a difficult awakening for a business owner. Each leader didn’t quite know what to do, but knew they needed help. Many of them were just shopping around for a solution to their woes. They feared a professional answering service with a team of Virtual Receptionists could be an unnecessary expense.
Here is the thing: most people know a phone answering service will answer your phone, and take messages. However, we can actually do so much more. And the impact of what we do can dramatically help businesses increase and retain loyal customers.
Benefits of hiring a virtual receptionist service that might not have crossed your mind:
Impress Customers
Your customers will still have the satisfaction of always having a company representative available to answer their questions, regardless of your availability. Customers are impressed when they can reach a live person, any time of day or night. It encourages them to have more confidence in your business!
You’ll know when customers are impressed. Customers will utter phrases such as, “Wow, I didn’t expect anyone to answer!” and “I’m so glad you’re still open!” Even when you’re not open. Partnering with a call answering service is particularly important if you run a service business that caters to customers with home or business emergencies. A plumbing breakdown or an HVAC problem, requires someone, STAT!
Keep Your Business Organized
A great receptionist will help your business run more smoothly. They’ll keep everything organized, do menial tasks that often get put off and tend to administrative duties that keep customers happy. Unfortunately, many small business owners simply can’t afford a dedicated receptionist.
Working with a virtual receptionist service is the perfect solution in these situations. Your virtual receptionist can schedule appointments for customers, keep a tidy caller log and prevent voicemail backlog. This ensures a high level of customer satisfaction and makes your job easier.
Provide Accurate Information
Customers don’t want to leave a voicemail and wait around for a call back. Especially when they have pressing questions about your business or products. Consumer questions are always answered in a timely fashion with a Virtual Receptionist service. You don’t have to worry at all.
Your virtual receptionist will be able to answer a wide variety of questions about your business, operating hours, location and more. This saves your customers time, and it means you won’t have to spend your valuable time calling people back to answer basic questions either.
Route Calls and Jobs
Directing call traffic and assigning jobs to technicians can take a lot of time. If you and your team are already busy with other tasks, you probably can’t handle every incoming call. When this happens, you miss out on opportunities to send techs out on jobs. Sometimes it means that you can’t direct pressing calls in a timely matter. This can put a drag on your business’s bottom line.
A virtual receptionist can take care of call routing and job dispatching on your behalf. Customers will get the help they need right away and you won’t have to worry about sending out technicians or transferring calls.
Centralize Business Operations
Many small business leaders believe that they can divide call answering duties among team members. They don’t want to hire a dedicated receptionist. Unfortunately, this approach can lead to a great deal of confusion within your business. Important messages can get lost in the shuffle. Employees may find themselves doing tasks that someone else has already done, due to poor communication.
A virtual receptionist can help to centralize your business operations and keep such confusion at bay. Your answering service can communicate directly with team members as needed to give them messages and provide direction on what needs to be done next. Centralizing your scheduling can also streamline business operations and prevent technicians or team members from being double booked, which is frustrating for both employees and customers.
Filter Through the Noise
Business leaders are too busy to answer every call that comes in and determine whether or not it’s something worth their attention. When you hire a call answering service, you get built-in call screening.
Your virtual receptionist can filter out junk calls and determine the importance of other inquiries so that they’re answered in a timely fashion. This is a great solution if you’re overwhelmed by solicitation calls from potential vendors. So, think of it as triage for your business calls.
Increase Business While Saving on Costs
Virtual receptionist services are surprisingly affordable. They are a smart investment for most business owners. You”l have more satisfied customers and win new business. If a receptionist can help you secure even one new client, the call answering service will have paid for itself. Working with a call service also helps to cut your operating costs. You won’t have to hire and train a full-time, in-office receptionist. You won’t have to deal with tax and benefits concerns either.
That means your business gets all the benefits of a dedicated receptionist without all the hassle. You have enough on your plate as a business owner. So, there’s no reason to add to your already-busy day by trying to handle receptionist duties, too. A virtual receptionist service provides a great way to impress customers, improve business efficiency and drive up your bottom line without a hefty investment. It’s just another reason that working with an answering service is a smart business move.
Apply this to your small business
As you can see, a virtual receptionist service isn’t limited to only answering calls and taking down messages. You’ll filter out the constant noise that comes along with running a small business, increase efficiency, and increase your bottom line. So, can you really risk continuing to not have a virtual receptionist service?
Now, give this a try:
Contact a call answering service to reap the benefits sooner, rather than later!