subject: Virtual Receptionist or full time secretary? [print this page] Virtual Receptionist or full time secretary?
For start ups and small businesses, the benefits of using avirtual receptionist is clear. Salaries are a business's biggest expense. Small businesses just can't afford to hire a full time secretary, but require the assistance of someone to handle calls when they are busy. Using alive virtual receptionist also gives the small business the impression of a more established company and the professional image it needs in order to grow.
But Is there a benefit to having a virtual receptionist if you already have a full time secretary?
One of the great benefits of using virtual receptionists is that you can choose when you want your virtual receptionist to handle your calls. So if say your full time secretary is out to lunch or off sick for the day you can simply divert the calls to your live virtual receptionist and only pay per call she takes.This can be a true life saver for a business that can't afford to miss calls and that includes most businesses. Another benefit of having a virtual receptionist in addition to your full time secretary is that virtual receptionists can be a great support to your office staff when call volumes are high and multiple calls are coming through. People hate being placed on hold and it reflects badly on your business.
Whether your needs are just taking messages, order taking, reservations, technical support or customer care services, using aprofessional telephone answering service can take care of it.
In todays dynamic and competitive business world, the key to your business is customer service. Having your calls answered professionally at all times will certainly give your business a one up on your competition.
Answering services are cost effective ways for businesses to handle calls when staff are unavailable. One third of callers to your business will not leave a message; this means you could be losing potential customers with every missed call. Your virtual receptionist will answer your calls in your company name and either forward the call to your mobile phone, office phone, or if you are not available, they will take a message and send it to your email. The best part is that your customers speak to a live person and not an automated voice every time they call.
The benefit of having a live virtual receptionist is not just cost reduction but also value added proposition to a business. Once you start using a virtual receptionist to handle your calls, you may wonder what you did without one!
