Four indisputable reasons why small businesses need an answering service
The most obvious reasons for business failure are poor planning, terrible time management, horrible customer service, lack of capital, and little to no marketing to promote the business. So why do so many companies that have perfected the aforementioned scenarios fail? The answer may lie in something so basic that it is easily overlooked.
Even with a great business model, adequate funding, and total dedication, a company runs the risk of collapse if it is not effective in acquiring new customers. The fact is, just because you’re running ads and the phone is ringing with new prospects doesn’t necessarily mean you’re not missing out on new opportunities and new customers.
Most start-up businesses simply cannot hire a full-time receptionist at the start of their new business, and as a result, those business owners resort to answering incoming calls themselves. There are several problems with that solution, including but not limited to creating a very small business image, loss of customers, and a complete waste of time that could be better spent building the new business and running it.
A proven solution to this dilemma can often be something as simple as hiring a virtual receptionist answering service. In fact, most people are surprised to learn that the inherent benefits of using a live answering service far outweigh the cost. After contacting a few providers, you will find the following reasons to seriously consider outsourcing your calls:
Reason # 1: It is considerably more affordable than hiring even a part-time receptionist. Hiring your own employee will cost you between two and three thousand dollars or more per month. This does not even take into consideration that you will receive health benefits, paid vacations, and sick leave. While all services can be billed differently, you can generally find one that charges between $ 1.00 and $ 1.50 per call. There are not many companies that receive calls for the sum of 400 per month, but even if they did, they would only be seeing a monthly investment of around $ 600 dollars. Additionally, a service is available to answer all calls 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, nights, weekends and even holidays.
Reason # 2: The next benefit in line would be the image of the company. Nothing screams that you are a small business like answering your own phone or, worse yet, having an answering machine to take the call in the middle of a business day. People judge you on these little elements and should take them very seriously. Having a secretary, or even a virtual receptionist, gives the image of a professional and successful firm.
Reason # 3: A quality response service will absolutely help prevent the loss of new customers. When new clients need service for the first time, especially in industries such as recruitment, lawyers, and medical fields, clients will want immediate attention, and while they can leave a message on an answering machine, they will almost certainly hang up and call other. competitor who could answer the call live. Whoever answers first will undoubtedly almost always get the business.
Reason # 4: Virtual receptionist providers can free up your time so you can go from being an overpaid secretary to doing the most important thing, and that is building your business and focusing on the things that generate the most income. The answering service can screen calls and answer basic questions about its services, such as giving directions, hours of operation, and even scheduling appointments or consultations. The service can determine whether a call should be transferred to you and therefore allows you to only spend time on the phone with callers who require your personal attention. Many services can even process payments, accept reservations, and handle very complex calls using menu-driven technology that makes it nearly impossible to tell that they are not speaking to your actual office.
The bottom line is that sometimes saving money is exactly what it will cost you money, and in fact the loss often far outweighs the savings. Whether it’s Fortune 500 companies or small individual operations, there are hundreds of thousands of companies using live response services to grow their business, increase cash flow, improve their image, and free up valuable time.
