4 Benefits of a Telephone Answering Service
Have you ever heard the phrase, “You never get a second chance to make a great first impression”? Well, it’s true, and also applicable to a customer’s impression of a business.
If an interested customer has to go through several complicated processes to reach you, they most likely will give up before ever doing business with you. Not answering your phone is one way you might be losing customers to your competitors.
If you don’t have a dedicated employee to answer the phone, or don’t want the hassle of having to answer the phone yourself, you can seek the help of a telephone answering service. They will answer the phone for you and ensure that no customer issues go unattended.
What Is a Telephone Answering Service?
First things first, what is a telephone answering service? It is a type of service a company provides to answer phone calls on behalf of their clients. Think of it as having an army of receptionists ready to answer all your calls.
Call answering service providers train their agents to be knowledgeable about their client’s businesses. They are also trained to take messages, forward calls, and provide essential customer troubleshooting support when needed.
Why Do You Need a Call Answering Service for Your Business?
Before you jump into hiring a telephone answering service provider, consider whether or not your business needs one. Here are four benefits you can enjoy from hiring a telephone answering service:
Never Miss an Opportunity
According to published statistics, over 80% of business transactions are accomplished via phone calls. Unfortunately, a large majority of businesses either leave their phones unattended or rely on voicemails to take messages for them.
Missing calls means lost opportunities. Some customers will only call once, and then seek out your competitors if you don’t answer.
With a telephone answering service, you can avoid this from happening. You will have an entire team of professionals to take messages, answer calls, and pass information to the correct branch of your company.
Improve Customer Service
Your customers are the lifeline of your business. As such, you need to give them the best customer service possible. By not providing them with quality customer assistance, you’re risking their loyalty which can lead to a loss in revenue.
A telephone answering service will help improve your customer service significantly. You will have a team of customer service experts who can accommodate customers’ requests and help them resolve problems quickly and professionally.
More Time for Your Business
Despite the ongoing demand for online communication in the form of online chats and emails, live phone calls remain customers’ preferred communication method. Attending phone calls yourself takes a significant amount of time away from your work. To maintain productivity and have more time to focus on the core aspects of your business, hire a telephone answering service to take calls for you.
Enhances Customer Impression
First impressions last. If a potential customer calls your company and is greeted by a friendly, helpful agent, they are more likely to have a good impression of your business.
If their call goes to an automated voice message or voice mailbox, they might feel that you are not interested in attending to their needs. They may take their business elsewhere.
Hiring a telephone answering service will give your customers confidence and trust in your business.
Final Thoughts
Employing the help of a telephone answering service can provide significant benefits for your business, especially if you have a small business with few employees. Make sure your customers always have access to your company and don’t miss out on your services!