Virtual Secretary Service - Virtual Assistant Services
Whether you are just starting up, running a small business or already own a medium sized corporation, a virtual secretary service can be a powerful way to increase the productivity of your business.
Get your small business calls answered promptly
There are three main benefits that you will experience from using a virtual answering service.
1) save money
2) free up your time
3) increase your level of customer service
1) Save MONEY: In the economy, we live in, it has become increasingly important to watch our spending. With a secretarial service business owners can spend a fraction of the cost of what you would normally pay for a traditional receptionist or additional member of staff.
These costs include full-time salaries, insurance, tax, holiday and sick days, lunch breaks, utilities and office space.
With a virtual secretary these costs are minimal and as you can imagine can amount to big savings.
2) Free up your TIME: With a virtual answering service you are free to focus your time on growing your business with the peace of mind knowing that your calls are being looked after by your very own virtual secretarial service. Being able to work without distractions and attend meetings without having to constantly look at your phone can be priceless for most business owners. Many people use a telephone answering service when they are away on holiday and want to be able to enjoy their break without having to worry about missing any business opportunities.
3) Increase your level of CUSTOMER SERVICE: Telephone answering services are not just a great way for businesses of all sizes to cut costs and save time but it also has proven to be an incredible way for businesses to provide a more personal service to each of their clients. People find it very frustrating when they get through to voicemail and they would much prefer to speak with someone even if just to be told that someone will call them back. Amazingly, people hate getting through to voicemail so much so that at least 80% hang up! This of course means that there could be a lot of potential business being lost without you even knowing about it.
In fact, many businesses found that they started receiving an increase of new business after deciding to use a telephone answering service. They also found that clients were happier with the level of service provided as a result of their calls always being answered.
Getting set up with a Telephone Answering Services is a very simple process and can take less than 24 hours in most cases. There are many different telephone answering services with various price plans and it is always best to look around to find the one that best suits your businesses needs.
Most telephone answering services offer a one-week free trial and it is advisable to use this time to test the quality of the service provided. How does the virtual receptionist handle the call? Is the virtual receptionist clear and understandable? Does the virtual receptionist sound professional and friendly?
As your virtual secretarial service will ultimately become the first port of call for your business, they will be representing your company and will, on many occasions.
A remote receptionist service provides an edge for companies In the world today.
With the economy and increased competition there is a need to do more with less in companies. There is a limit on what can be within a company with the same resources and staff though. The solution to some of those difficulties is to use a virtual answering service to augment or replace your current staff.
Outsourcing services to external companies is a practice that companies of every size have adopted to decrease costs and increase efficiency. On the cost side you save in reduced spending in salary and office space over having those services provided by a regular staff. The answering service provider also can draw from a larger pool of trained receptionist including experts in many fields to help provide your call support.
These factors together allow you benefits over those who do not use the services. With the reduced cost across the board available company resources can be used on more productive activities such as direct sales or obtaining new clients. A leaner and efficient business structure is the result of proper uses of this service in most businesses.
When you start the planning and implementation stages of this project the first step is to detail how phones are currently being used in the company and related workflow. This is something that many companies do not know but will help you realize the most effective use of the service. Who takes calls, how is the current voice mail used, what are the policies and procedures with the use of phones and other details should be charted.
Then check the services to see what options they offer, like 24 hour call answering as well as what systems they have in place that can be used in your business. How many receptionists do they have on staff and in how many ways can calls and message be routed and delivered to your staff? Some common ways to deliver messages are through an individual company website portal for your business, through email, and through text messages or any combination of the above.
Then do investigation of the monthly cost and other expenses that the service provides. One thing to look out for is companies charging patch fees which are charges for connecting you and clients in this process. Most companies who do this are upfront about it but this is an extra cost that should be taken into account when comparing companies.
Taking your knowledge of how your business currently uses the telephone along with comparing the options you have will let you choose the best answering service for small business. Take your needs and standard operating procedure and match them with the providers you are looking at to make your final choice. Factor in costs and outside references as the final points to consider, considering all costs.
A virtual answering service is a tool that many are using to help their bottom line. Know your needs and how you currently use your phone system. Take that list when going to compare the vendors and to make your final choice.