Business owners and independent professionals are too often overwhelmed by incoming calls that hinder their concentration and efficiency. All these calls impede the proper development of the business by limiting the time available for essential tasks.
To refocus on developing your business activities, you can choose to implement a telephone answering service. But what is this service, and how can it help you grow your business? BURO Club provides the answers in this article.
How Does a Telephone Answering Service Work?
A telephone answering service solution is an outsourcing of your telephone reception. When this service is implemented, your incoming calls are forwarded to the dedicated telephone line of your provider’s switchboard. The assistants then answer on your behalf according to your telephone reception rules. Appointment requests and various questions are noted and transmitted to you by email or any other contact method you have chosen.
What Are the Advantages of Implementing a Telephone Answering Service?
Implementing a telephone answering service will bring numerous benefits to your business. Firstly,
On a daily basis, a telephone answering service provides you with great freedom in managing your business. You no longer need to be constantly available during your working hours, and you can focus 100% on your high-value tasks. Furthermore, the immediate response received by those trying to reach you can significantly improve user experience and strengthen customer relationships.
Finally, if part of your target audience is not in the same time zone as you, having a telephone answering service is essential. For example, if you do business with the West Indies, this allows your clients and prospects to reach a switchboard representing the company during business hours. An additional asset for the quality of your customer service!
Cost of a Telephone Answering Service
The cost of a telephone answering service depends on many factors:
- The number of calls you receive per month;
- The professionalism of the switchboard operators;
- Your industry.
The cost of a telephone answering service is primarily calculated based on the number of incoming calls per month. However, some telephone answering service companies specialize in managing calls for doctors, lawyers, or notaries. These services, tailored for certain liberal professions, can be more expensive than a standard telephone answering service.
Furthermore, not all companies offering this service are equal. The most professional ones will provide personalized telephone reception tailored to your clientele and core business. Do not hesitate to choose companies that demonstrate great professionalism, as your company’s image depends on it.
Telephone Answering Service and Secretarial Services: The Difference
Although a telephone answering service resembles a secretarial offering, it is important to note that they are not the same. A telephone answering service focuses solely on managing incoming calls by providing a personalized response to your clients. You cannot ask the telephone answering service company to process files or conduct research for you.
If you are looking for a more comprehensive service, remote secretarial or virtual assistant offerings might be more appropriate.
Telephone Answering Service for Businesses
Regardless of your industry and team size, delegating telephone answering to an external provider will save you valuable time by reducing the internal administrative workload. To assist you with outsourcing telephone answering, BURO Club offers telephone answering services in over 100 cities.