Monday, September 26, 2016

Which Small Businesses are Suited to Call Answering Services?

In this highly competitive age, businesses of all sizes are looking at ways to cut costs now more than ever. Call answering services have become one such option, particularly for small businesses that are growing and expanding. It is not only a way for a company to handle the incoming and outgoing calls, but to convey the level of professionalism that helps create a business in the future. Let’s have a look at the kinds of businesses it best suits.

 

What is a Call Answering Service?

 

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"A call answering service is essentially designed to act as an extension of a business and manage the incoming, and potentially the outgoing calls, leaving the staff to focus on more important things"

This means that when a call comes through to the business, it is diverted to the call service team, who are trained to deal with enquiries in a professional manner and represent the business well. Following a script, they can take down information, give advice, book appointments or whatever else is needed.

Generally, these services are highly flexible, meaning if the business is in the process of expanding and needs a temporary means of dealing with high volume calls, this can provide the answer.

 

What are the Advantages?


Obviously, contracting a phone answering service is less expensive than bringing on staff to handle these responsibilities. It means a business can use resources in other areas. It is particularly valuable for sole traders or partnerships, where the business is growing to a size where managing all the phone enquiries is getting in the way of actually completing contracted work.

There is also the added benefit of potentially being available 24/7, essentially meaning a business never misses a call from a potential customer no matter what time they ring. In certain lines of work, offering all hour’s phone service is extremely valuable.


What Kind of Businesses can Benefit?


While it’s true that a call answering service isn’t ideal for every kind of company, there are certain industries and types of business where it really adds value. In most professionals that require reception staff, you’ll find that a call service is appropriate.

 

Trades Services

 
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Before a plumber, painter or electrician expands into a large business, there is a period where they’ll be handling their own calls. This becomes tricky when on the job and more often than not means that some calls simply aren’t answered. For a smaller sized business, which needs to make the most of the calls it does get, this can be problematic. That’s why an answering service is quite popular with tradespeople.

 

Medical Professionals

 

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Doctors operating a smaller sized business are often very busy and are required to see patients throughout the day, possibly conduct home visits, coordinate with other specialists and or general practitioners and deal with patients calling in needing results and appointments. A call service can help manage this if hiring reception staff is not yet an option.

 

Offices with Large Customer Bases

 


There are businesses in a wide range of industries, though particularly the technology industry, that service hundreds of clients on an ongoing, or subscription basis. This means that while every client may only touch base every few months, the volume of calls can be difficult to manage. These kinds of companies usually find call services to be very helpful and can be an asset if the business is structured in this way.

 
Phone answering services are very easy to find and rates are highly affordable, depending on the plan you go ahead with. The best one you have in Australia is Call Service – a  professional & highly experienced phone answering service provider. Contact Call Service today for more information!

Sunday, September 4, 2016

4 Important Qualities a Phone Operator Needs


 
For a large number of businesses, incoming and outgoing phone calls are very important. They enable you to stay in touch with clients and customers and essentially run your business. While some lines of work are more reliant on phone conversations than others, a large percentage of commercial businesses conduct their business on the phone. Now-a –days, there are some types of companies for whom call tracking is a MUST.

When dealing with clients or customers on the phone, there’s a few qualities that you or your reception staff need to have in order to get the best long term result. If you aren’t hiring a call service provider, the next best thing is to be prepared! Let’s take a look at 4 of the most important customer service skills needed.



Calm Under Pressure


Remaining as professional as possible is important. Every so often a customer will lose their temper, or fail to understand something. Sometimes it will be the fault of the company, other times it may be a simple misunderstanding. Regardless, these situations require that you remain professional and reasonable, without upsetting the client further. It can be quite difficult to bite your tongue when you have someone on the line barking at you, but it’s important to maintain your composure even when they are out of line.


Patience

 


Again, this depends on the line of work, but chances are that if you’re manning the phones, you’re going to come across many of the same issues again and again. You’re also going to deal with customers that are perhaps not as knowledgeable as you’d expect and take a little time to explain things too or have trouble understanding what you’re telling them.


Verbal Communication


This ultimately goes without saying, but it’s something that - in a lot of cases - people either have or don’t have. A professional receptionist or phone operator needs to be able to effectively communicate ideas and information in a clear, concise tone that can be understood by people that may not know a lot about the topic. To achieve this your phone operator need to the basic verbal communication skills. It’s also important to get to the point quickly, without wasting the customers time.


Persuasion Skills



This is important not only for potential up-selling opportunities, but the ability to get the customer on your side and share some sense of mutual understanding. At its core, persuasion is all about creating a connection, where the other person recognises that you understand their position and have their best interests at heart. If you are able to communicate this effectively and the customer picks up on this, you are sure to find a solution for them.


If you’re too busy to handle your incoming and outgoing phone call requirements, you can also consider another option. Answering service providers like Call Service takes a very professional and good care of your business calls and speak to your customers on your behalf. Being experts in communicating on the phone and finding solutions, they are able to pass information along, take message or book meetings and appointments. For more information, contact Call Service in Melbourne today.