Tip 1: Learn how to use your online portal and mobile app.

Even if you’re using a bare-bones service, there will likely be an online portal or a mobile app where you can access your messages. After you sign up, set aside a few minutes to visit the knowledge base and read through a tutorial or two on everything that you can get out of the software. Or, ask a customer support representative to walk you through it.

Some services allow you to forward messages directly from your portal, document follow up notes and add tags, create login credentials for your employees and assign specific calls for them to address and track, integrate your existing appointment calendar, and more. It’s one-stop shopping for business communication, and it’s well worth your time to make the technology work for you.

Tip 2: Listen to call recordings.

If you’re working with a service that offers call recording and you’ve taken advantage of that feature, then it is in your and your customers’ best interests to listen to as many calls as humanly possible. We’ve all been on the other end of an unfortunate customer service interaction. As a business owner, you can appreciate how valuable it is to know just what people think of your organization, whether positive or negative. Don’t wait around for someone to complain about a bad call.

Be proactive. Take the time to listen and assess the operators’ performance as well as the way your call script flows, questions that prospective customers often ask, opportunities for up-selling and cross-selling, and anything else that strikes you. Then, contact your service to provide feedback, tweak your script, and re-calibrate your FAQs.

Tip 3: Update your on-call schedule.

Ten out of ten CEO’s agree that businesses function much more efficiently when people are actually at work. That goes for both regular office hours and reliable, after-hours assistance. There are a slew of industries where after-hours or emergency service calls are where you earn a sizable portion of your income. And, if you use a 24-hour dispatching service, they’ll need accurate on-call schedules and contact details if you expect to give a customer a tow at 9pm or fix a busted pipe at 3am.

While your service may provide an online on-call scheduler and notify you when it’s expired, in most cases, you’ll have to send your technicians’ calendar via email, or call the programming team to manage changes. Naturally, if you forget to do this and the service calls the wrong tech, you’re going to miss an opportunity to win over a new customer with your stellar skills and round-the-clock availability. That being said, don’t forget to do this. Send in updated availability each month, and be sure to include the right mobile numbers and email addresses for your entire team.

Tip 4: Check your usage regularly.

For those business owners who have disposable income, feel free to skip this tip. For everyone else, read on. Paying more than you have to for your answering service is not built into anyone’s budget. If you want to keep costs down, get into the habit of reviewing your usage at the end of every week and prior to the beginning of the next billing cycle. This data is typically accessible through your portal and may also be available as auto-generated weekly reports that can be sent directly to your email.

If you’re going over your plan allowance, increasing to the next tier can help you avoid costly overage charges. If you’re having a slower season and don’t need as robust of an option, you can reduce your plan to something more cost-effective. In either case, get in touch with the billing department and ask them to retroactively adjust your rates while you’re still within a billing month. Save a few bucks, and spring for lunch. Your staff will thank you.

Answering services are chock full of user-friendly features, designed with you in mind. When you’re ready to step out of endless overhead costs, step into a streamlined virtual front desk, and take your customer support business model farther, faster.

The post 4 Ways to Stay Connected With Your Answering Service appeared first on Specialty Answering Service.

One of the easiest ways for any small business to look big is to have a receptionist answering and screening calls. Think about it. If you call a company and the owner answers the phone, that company has 100% succeeded in looking small. If you call the same company and a receptionist answers to screen the call, that’s big business style. Now, most small businesses don’t have the resources to hire a receptionist. It’s just not cost effective unless that receptionist is wearing a few other hats. Lucky for you, virtual receptionists can perform the same functions as an in-house receptionist for a more affordable cost. You look big. You save money. You win! Here are 5 tips on how to setup your personal virtual receptionist service to make you look large and in charge.

#1. Screen and transfer every single call

Where your normal in-house receptionist might not be able to answer every single call that comes in, a team of virtual receptionists can. And, with a virtual receptionist service, you get more than one agent answering your calls at any given time, which means your callers won’t be re-routed to voicemail, a busy signal, or have to sit for 5 minutes on hold. No matter when your customers call up your business, a professional receptionist will be there to help answer questions, take messages or transfer calls accordingly.

Depending on the types of calls your business most often receives, you can also set up custom protocols that closely match your in-house procedures. For example, prospective sales calls can be transferred to your top sales team members, upset or frustrated callers can be transferred to your customer support team, and requests to speak with specific people can be routed accordingly.

#2. If they can’t transfer, implement a standard response

If your virtual receptionist is set up to try and transfer every phone call, chances are not all of them will result in a connection. Instead of having your agents get creative and come up with different responses each time a connection doesn’t go through, implement standard responses. That way no matter who is handling the call, the response is always the same. Here are some of the replies we recommend:

• “I apologize, but Mrs. Jones is on the other line right now. Let me take your message and I’ll have her call you right back.”
• “It looks like Mr. Smith stepped out of his office. However, I’ll pass on your message and have him call you back.”
• “Ms. Epsom is currently in a meeting, but I’ll send over your message and have your call returned shortly.”

Pro tip: If you’ll be using your virtual receptionist 24/7, you may also want to consider creating different scripts to be used during business hours and after hours. If you set up the same response to be used around the clock, it won’t make sense to tell callers that “Mrs. Jackson is in a meeting right now” at midnight.  

#3. Equip them with basic information to answer questions

Aside from answering calls and greeting customers, receptionists are also great at answering questions on the behalf of the company. While a virtual receptionist won’t be able to greet any customers who walk through your doors, they can certainly help answer any questions callers may have, which means less follow-up you and your in-house staff have to worry about. All virtual receptionist services should be equipped with standard FAQs like where your business is located, your hours of operation, the services that are provided and the costs of said services. However, it’s also helpful to include more advanced information for questions that will undoubtedly come up. Depending on the type of business you run your questions will differ, but here are a few examples to start:

• Do you accept insurance?
• Are you currently accepting new clients?
• Do you treat children under the age of 10?
• Do you offer both residential and commercial services?
• Is there an after hours service fee?
• How long do appointments typically last?

#4. Have an alternate if you’re not available

If your virtual receptionist account is set up to transfer all calls, you’ll want to make sure you have a back up plan in case you or other team members are not available. Instead of trying the line once and letting the caller know no one is available, implement a protocol in which the receptionist asks the caller if they’d prefer to be transferred to another team member. That way your callers have the option to either leave their message for a return call, or they can speak with someone else and get assistance quicker than having to wait for a call back.

#5. Give your virtual receptionists the freedom to get personal

If your aim is to setup a personal virtual receptionist service, then you have to allow your agents the freedom to stray away from the status quo of a standard, dry, virtual receptionist experience. Here are some ways you can personalize your customers’ experience:

• Look for a Per-Call billing structure: While this may not always be the case, per-call answering service billing structures typically have operator interactions that are screen driven, not script driven – meaning the agents see all of your information displayed on a screen instead of a structured if/then type of call script making the conversations more natural.
• Implement a personalized greeting: If your business normally answers calls with a specific greeting, see if you can have your virtual receptionists use that greeting as well. Your callers will think they’ve reached your business directly, and your service will feel more like an extension to your business rather than a separate entity.
• Remove automation: Automated services can be a great addition to any business, but you should know your audience before implementation. For example, if you run a small medical practice with mostly elderly patients, you may cause confusion and frustration by making your patients dial through an automated system just to receive help. If your goal is to create a personal experience, let your callers speak to a real person.
• Encourage operators to engage with your callers: When your receptionists are upbeat, friendly, and quick to engage with callers, your customers will be happier and won’t ever hesitate to reach out when they need help. Some businesses may want their virtual receptionists to stick to the script and simply take a message, but having your receptionists ask callers how their day is and engage in actual conversation can definitely make your brand stand out among your competition.

The post 5 Tips on Setting Up A Virtual Receptionist Service To Make Your Small Business Look Big appeared first on Specialty Answering Service.

So how are businesses staying a step ahead of growing customer service expectations? For starters, they’re letting telephone answering services like SAS handle their front-end customer service 24 hours a day. We asked some of our employees for their best tips on how to use an answering service to strengthen the customer service relationship between businesses and consumers.

This article highlights our employees advice on every stage of the customer service process, from greeting and information gathering to tier 1 technical support and dispatching requests out of the scope of the virtual receptionists capabilities. You’ll learn more from this article than you would if you interviewed every employee in every answering service in the United States!

Tips for how to structure your greeting

• “Your business’s greeting is often times the first impression customers get of your brand. In order to ensure a solid first impression and a successful outsourcing experience, you’ll want to create the best answering service greeting possible.  That means you should stay away from greetings that don’t flow naturally and greetings where the operator has to say a complicated company name. Remember, what sounds good in your office may not always sound good in an answering service setting.” – Barb Albert
• “If your answering service will be handling all different types of calls on your behalf, a good idea is to add a driving question in your greeting to help steer the call. For example, asking “Are you calling to schedule an appointment?” will often result in a streamlined interaction whereas “how may I help you today?” may result in a 20 minute phone call.” – Kathy Galdi

Advice on what types of requests you want the answering service to handle

• “From appointment scheduling and order processing, to integrating with your CRM and following complex workflows, answering services can handle pretty much everything. However, that doesn’t mean they should handle everything. I suggest thinking of the few most common types of calls your in-house staff typically handle, and set your answering service up accordingly. The more you pile on your answering service, the more chances there are for errors.” – Matt Cohen
• “If you’re having your answering service go out to your website to look up a product, process an order or schedule an appointment, it’s always a good idea to create clear-cut instructions for the operators to follow. It’s important to remember that the operators are not familiar with your site and may be just as lost as the customers calling for help.” – Chris Middlecamp

Observations on what frustrates customers the most when speaking with a virtual receptionist and advice on how to mitigate

• “Sometimes when callers reach the answering service, they are upset because they are expecting that their issue will be resolved right then and there. While virtual receptionists are capable of solving issues, some things are better left for your own staff to handle. If your callers are upset that they’re unable to reach your office directly, it’s a good idea to let your service say they are the service, and why they are answering instead of you. For example, they can say “Thank you for calling, you’ve reached the overflow answering service for Dr. Smith’s office. We help handle calls when she’s visiting with patients. How may I help you today?” This tells callers upfront who they are speaking with, and why.” – Gabby Rolette
• “If  your callers are upset that they’re speaking to an answering service instead of your own staff, it could just be because your answering service is not set up to handle the same types of tasks your callers are used to being helped with. An easy way to mitigate this is to update your call handling! For example, if your answering service is currently not set up to schedule appointments, and your callers are frustrated at having to wait for a call back, see if your service can integrate with  scheduling software you’re already using which will help alleviate customer frustration and cut down on the amount of work your in-house staff have to do.” – Esther Cardin

Tips on escalations to your own on-call staff

• “If your script is set up to transfer or reach out to your on-call staff, you’ll want to make sure it’s as seamless a transition as possible. I always suggest that our customers get familiar with making on-call updates in their portal in case they need to make a last minute change and customer service isn’t readily available to make them.” – Sheila Forth
• “Many businesses that we work with implement on-call systems for escalations or urgent calls. If your business wants to set up an on-call system with your answering service, make sure it’s simple and straightforward. The more complicated your procedure, the more likely it is that operators will make mistakes.” – Stephen Wildemann

Advice on how to work with your answering service to solve problems

• “Your answering service is going to want to see your business succeed, so you should never hesitate to reach out whenever you have problems. With that being said, keeping a positive, professional demeanor when addressing issues will help make solving your problems a million times easier.” – Kaila Hamaday
• “If you’ve been having issues with calls, it’s a good idea to make a record of each individual call’s timestamp that you can present to your service. The more information they have up front, they quicker they can jump right into getting them reviewed for you, or the quicker they can work on making updates if the issue is regarding your script’s workflow.” – Danielle Viglione

Guidance on what makes a great customer service interaction

• “Great customer service is paramount when creating customer loyalty and ensuring customer satisfaction. For me, a great customer service experience entails speaking with a friendly, knowledgeable agent and being helped quickly.” – Annie Baker
• “When I work with customer service, I want to know that I matter. Receiving a check in phone call from a support rep after I’ve had an issue with a company is a simple, effective way to say ‘we care about you’.” – Jessica Rosado

Advice on how the answering service should deal with angry customers

• “If your answering service is dealing with angry customers, they should have systems in place to help them. For starters, they should always be empathetic and let the caller know they understand where they’re coming from. Deescalating situations can be difficult, but ultimately customers just want to know they’re being heard. If that doesn’t work, transferring the call to a supervisor usually works.” – Kelly Dunbar
• “Dealing with angry customers is never fun, but it comes with the territory of customer service. If your business tends to get a lot of irate callers, it’d be a good idea to implement a transfer option in your script in which the operators can transfer the caller to an experienced team member in your own office.” – Mollie Williams

Tips on hold times and how to approach it

• “While hold times can’t be avoided 100% of the time, there are some ways to reduce your customers’ chances of being placed in the queue. For example, I always advise customers to let us know in advance of any planned changes in volume, like airing a new product or campaign. That way we can make sure we are staffed accordingly.” – Courtney Pizzi
• “We can’t promise there will never be a hold – no answering service can. But adding a custom recorded greeting your callers can listen to if there is a hold is always a good rule of thumb.” – George Nave

Must-have advice for anyone using an answering service

• “You should think of your answering service as an extension to your business. Any changes you make in-house should be reflected in your service. It also doesn’t hurt to check in every couple of weeks just to make sure everything is running smoothly.” – Kevin Kozeniewski
• “Working with your answering service and making sure everyone is on the same page is key. That means if your service’s support or sales reps are making suggestions on how they think your procedures will work better, you should probably take their advice.” – Matt Baker

The post 18 Tips for Creating the Best Answering Service from SAS Employees appeared first on Specialty Answering Service.

1. “You don’t know how many calls you’re missing until you’re not missing them anymore.”

When small businesses are starting out, they typically let their voicemail answer calls when they’re too busy or they’re out of the office. However, the number of people that leave messages will never equal the number of people who called. Did you know that 7 out of 10 people are simply going to hang up instead of leaving a message? So, while you think you may only be missing a handful of calls based off the amount of messages you have, the truth is you’re missing a lot more.

When businesses start answering their calls 24 hours a day, they realize just how much activity they missed out on before. Even for small businesses that don’t get a lot of calls to begin with, every single interaction counts, and missing those opportunities is not something any business owner should risk.

2. “Start off with the simplest script, then add, test, evaluate, and repeat.”

For any first-time answering service user, it can be easy to go overboard with your script. Your first thought is that you’ll want to be able to account for all types of scenarios as you would in your own office. Unfortunately, that’s where things get a bit hairy. While it’s important to plan ahead and prepare for different call scenarios, you’ll want to start off with as simple a script as possible and work your way towards more complicated protocols.

Every answering service is different. Some may handle lead capture well and falter on emergency dispatch. Others may dispatch well but the operators may sound robotic. Once you get a good feel for how the reps are handling your calls at the most basic level, you can start to sprinkle in some more complicated processes like appointment scheduling, call transfers, and reach on call procedures.

Pro tip: Any time you add complexity to your script, remember to test out the functionality before going live with your customers. Once you’re confident the operators have a good grasp, you can release the hounds!

3. “Know what your goals are before getting an answering service.”

Before you hire an answering service, you need to understand your goals. Once you know what aspect of your business you’d like the answering service to help with, you can develop your script and protocols accordingly. Following are some basic goals and how the answering service can help:

• Lead capture: 24/7 live support makes sure that most every caller will leave a message.
• Around the clock appointment setting: Let your answering service schedule appointments to guarantee more traffic.
• 24 hour emergency dispatch: Be available to your customers for after hours emergencies.
• Customer service outsourcing: Around the clock support keeps customers happy.
• A live front desk: A live person makes a more personal brand experience.

4. “Trust that we know what’s going to work, and what isn’t.”

You know a lot about your business, and the answering service rep you’re working with is going to know a lot about what works (and what won’t) in an answering service environment. Whatever your initial ideas of what you want the answering service to handle on your behalf may not always be feasible. When outsourcing, it’s important to remember that the agents handling your calls are also answering calls for hundreds of other businesses, so it’s near impossible for them to know as much about your company as someone in your own office. During initial setup, if the answering service rep you’re working with expresses concerns that some of the protocols you want followed won’t work, they probably won’t.

The best outsourcing experiences are ones where the answering service gathers the most basic information, then transfers the call to your staff who handles the heavy lifting like closing sales and answering complex questions.

5. “Know the system you’re working with and activate any value-adding features accordingly.”

Whichever provider you’ve selected to answer your calls, be sure to explore other free features they may offer customers. For example, your answering service may offer free voicemail services or free integrations with software you’re already using. If you’re an SAS customer, we offer a wide range of features that come complimentary with our service like:

• Call ratings
• Appointment scheduling
• Downloadable reports
• On-call dispatching
• Customer surveys
• App integrations

6. “Customer comments don’t always show the full picture. Run a report, contact customer service, or listen to the call to see what really happened.”

The customer isn’t always right, but that doesn’t mean they should be ignored. For example, some customers may report 30 minute hold times, which in reality may be 30 seconds. Others may contact you about rude operators, who in reality were nothing as described. As soon as you are aware of an issue, contact the answering service immediately and let them dig into the situation. If what the caller described was incorrect, you can address it with them however you see fit. However, if what the caller described was correct and your answering service dropped the ball, you are able to provide them with a great opportunity to fix whatever’s wrong.

7. “Remember, we’re the receptionist.”

It’s important not to overload your virtual receptionists with too many tasks, or expect that they will be able to handle everything thrown their way. Keeping things complicated means your callers won’t have the best customer service experience possible. Some examples of things you should second guess includes:

• Saying your company name: Unless your company name is super simple, you shouldn’t expect your virtual receptionists to pronounce it correctly 100% of the time. We recommend having a recorded upfront greeting that states your company name to avoid any human error and maintain a professional experience.
• Following a complex script: For the most part, your answering service script should be relatively simple. The more paths, or options, you have your operators to choose from, the more likely they are to make a mistake.
• Accessing your software: Operators shouldn’t access your software unless you have a dedicated agent that is specifically trained on your account only. Learning new systems can be difficult and time consuming, which is why it’s better for your team to handle those tasks instead of your answering service agents.
• Learn new instructions on the fly: Virtual receptionists follow programmed protocols to handle different types of calls, which means they aren’t able to follow new instructions on the fly. For example, you wouldn’t be able to call your virtual receptionists, tell them you’re expecting a call from someone specific and ask them to transfer the call to you. If those instructions aren’t programmed in, they won’t be able to do it.

8. “The best price usually doesn’t equal the best answering service.”

When it comes to pricing, it can be difficult to determine the best answering service to choose. Some people may think that an expensive answering service means it’ll be top notch, which isn’t always the case. On the other hand, an answering service that is dirt cheap is probably dirt cheap for a reason. Price is usually a function of quality, and you want to make sure you’re getting what you’re paying for. We recommend aiming for somewhere in between, where you’d be paying around $1 per minute/call. You’ll also want to look for an answering service with multiple pricing options that can scale up or down with your business. For example, Specialty Answering Service offers over 10 different pricing plans, including both per minute and per call options so that we can cater to businesses of all sizes.

The post 8 Pieces of Answering Service Advice You Wish You Knew appeared first on Specialty Answering Service.

#1. Let your employees work from home

Even if it’s only a few days a month, letting your employees work from home can help cut down on the amount of resources they use in the office, which will help lower the environmental impact your business is leaving on the planet. Some activities that occur every day that suck up energy include:

• Driving to and from work
• Turning on the lights
• Using computers
• Adjusting the thermostat
• Making copies
• Brewing endless cups of coffee
• Heating up lunch in the microwave

When you outsource to an answering service that can handle the same basic tasks your staff does, you eliminate the need to have your employees come into the office every day, since most of their tasks can be completed remotely. While they may need to come in to meet with customers face to face, the majority of their work day can be spent in the comfort of their own home while your answering service fields all incoming calls and handles basic receptionist tasks like transferring calls to your remote team.

#2. Downsize your office space

No matter how much you think you need more space – you probably don’t. Instead of spending more money to hire more employees and increase your office space, you can outsource your calls to an answering service instead and use the money you’ll be saving to reinvest back into your business. Answering services can allow your business to grow without actually needing to grow physically. Smaller offices are easier to manage, cheaper, and much better for the environment.

In fact, an answering service can help you run a business without the need to have an office at all! Unless your business requires that customers come in for appointments, consultations or because you run a brick and mortar shop, everything else can be done remotely through your service. For example:

• With the use of a CRM,  you don’t need to store customer files in old school filing cabinets that take up space. Many answering services can integrate with whatever CRM you’re already using, and update that accordingly whenever they take a new call.
• Answering services can help schedule phone appointments, or appointments where you are going out to your customers’ house to provide estimates.
• Answering services can process orders on your behalf, handle event registration calls, and manage your email response, social media, and live chat assistance.
• If you have employees, using an answering service can make it easy for your staff to work from home, negating the need to come into an actual office. Conference calls can keep everyone on the same page, or you could always meet for lunch to discuss business matters.

If you already occupy a large office space, consider the benefits of using an answering service to handle the same tasks some of your employees currently do, and how downsizing to a smaller office space would help your business succeed. Remember, it’s not about the size of your business, it’s about what you can do with it that matters!

#3. Ditch your phone system

For the businesses that use intricate, outdated phone systems that suck up a lot of electricity, outsourcing to an answering service that uses energy-efficient VoIP phone systems is a great way to decrease your carbon footprint, your electric bill, and the amount of customers who are annoyed at being stuck in your IVR loop. Answering services are also typically available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so they are able to handle all of your incoming calls if and when necessary. That means you can ditch your phone system without worrying about your customers not being able to reach you.

#4. Get and pay your answering service invoices online

Snail mail is so last year. More and more people are opting to receive and pay bills online for a number of reasons. Not only are you able to have immediate access to your invoices, but you also don’t have to worry about your check getting lost in the mail, which may result in late fees. Additionally, the more bills you can pay online, the less paper you use in the form of stamps, envelops, return address stickers and the bills themselves. So, by opting to pay your bills online, you are helping save the planet as well as your wallet!

If you’re using SAS as your answering service, there are a number of ways you can check your bill online. If you’re new to the scene, we’ve broken it down for you below:

• Through your Billing portal: Both of our Advanced and Essentials service level customers have access to our billing portal. Here you will be able to view all past invoices, view all past payments, and update your payment method.
• Through your SAS Desk portal: For our Advanced service level customers, your online portal will also include billing information. The billing section within your general portal will include information about the plan you are on, the amount of minutes you’ve used so far within the month, and if you are on the right plan or not. If you are not on the right plan, you can select a new plan to make sure you are not overpaying for service. From your general portal, you can also access the standard billing portal if you want to view your past invoices or payments.

If you want your invoice to be sent through email only, then you’re in luck if you’re using SAS, as we always send invoices via email by default. For customers who specifically want their invoices sent via standard mail, they must reach out to our customer support department to enforce the change.

#5. Don’t receive daily fax reports

Every year Americans use over 90 million tons of paper products, which means millions of trees have to be cut down to support the paper industry. Many businesses rely on daily reports sent from their answering service in order to reach back out to clients, analyze metrics and determine marketing strategies. However, instead of having your service fax you these reports, see if they can send them via email or better yet – if you can generate them yourself through an online portal. Taking steps to reduce paper waste means a smaller carbon footprint and a happier mother Earth. By eliminating faxed reports, you are also not at the mercy of the fax machine if it happens to break or stall. Your reports can be sent immediately through email or you can have access reports on-demand through an online portal.

If you happen to use a service that doesn’t offer an online portal and faxing reports is your only option, try reducing the reports to be sent daily (instead of with each incoming call), or weekly (if you’re not relying on the reports to return calls).

#6. Use an app and give your printer a break

If your answering service offers a mobile app, use it! Using a mobile app will eliminate the need to print out messages, on-call schedules or directions for service technicians. As long as all of your staff has access to a smart phone, they should be able to access your service’s mobile app. From their mobile app, they should be able to do things like:

• Check new messages and respond from wherever they are
• Check who is on-call or make updates
• Have immediate access to the caller’s address and use Google Maps to bring up directions
• Generate on-demand reports without needing to print them out

#7. Ditch your computer to reduce energy consumption

While it may not seem like using a computer is harmful for the environment, you should know that computers are energy hogs. Depending on the type of computer you use (i.e., a laptop vs. a desktop). A desktop computer uses an average of 200 watts/hour when it is being actively used. A computer that is being used for 8 hours a day would typically use about 600 kilowatts/hour which emits around 175 kg of carbon dioxide per year! Now times that by the number of staff members you have and you’re leaving a pretty big carbon footprint. Some ways you can reduce energy consumption from your computer include:

• Turn off speakers if they are not being used
• Turnoff the printer if it is not being used
• Turn off your computer when it is not being used instead of putting it to sleep or stand by mode
• Use a laptop instead of a desktop

Letting an answering service enter data into your system means less time you’re in front of the computer. Your answering service agents can update CRM records via an integration, schedule appointments, process orders and troubleshoot basic issues. While you won’t be able to cut out the need to use a computer entirely, reducing your energy consumption is always a step in the right direction.

#8. Share an on-call phone

According to the EPA, discarded cell phones and their components that are lying in landfills allows lead to seep into the ground, air and water, which can then be consumed by humans. If your business uses an on-call schedule that rotates between your employees, you can cut down on resources by having your employees share one on-call phone that rotates between them. The less cell phones and cell phone chargers that end up in landfills the better. If you’re not sure how to go about sharing a phone among employees, here are some tips:

• The company should purchase the phone so no one has to share their personal device or pay out of pocket to buy it themselves
• After each on-call rotation is finished, the last employee to be on-call will bring the phone back into the office and hand it off to the next person on rotation.
• Instead of giving customers the direct number to the on-call phone and increasing the chance of non-urgent calls, you can route your office lines to the answering service, and then have them reach out to the on-call phone for any urgent issues.

#9. Use your service to send important documents to your customers

Taking into account how many paper products are used each year, you can opt for email instead, and use your answering service to send important documents to your callers. With SAS, this can be done in a few different ways:

• Email App: The Email App is useful for sending pricing information, product details, medical office forms, and more. It can also be utilized to create customized call detail routing for your colleagues so that new SAS leads will be easily identifiable.
• Google Calendar: The Advanced Settings section of the Google Calendar app gives you the option to send callers their appointment details following a call. The email will send them their appointment date and time or confirm a canceled appointment. Note that this is not an appointment reminder message, but an email confirmation of their appointment details.
• Google Docs: With Google Docs, documents can be sent to callers as a link or an attachment. You can also use this app to provide operators with detailed information about your business in response to specific questions.
• Google Maps: When callers are requesting directions to your business, we can take their starting address and send them a link with point-by-point directions provided by Google.

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Since we’re experts on all things answering service, we created a quick 7 point guide to help you out, young grasshopper. Read on to learn what to do after you’ve hired an answering service, so that your transition can be as seamless as possible.

#1. Know your forwarding number

In general, telephone answering services work on the principle of call forwarding. They provide you with a designated phone number at the call center, and you forward your office phones to that number when you want the answering service to handle your calls. Typically, you have the option of advertising that number separately (so calls will go direct to the service), forwarding your current lines to it (where you decide when the answering service is handling your calls), or both! Whichever method you choose, it’s important that you keep that number handy so you or anyone in your office can route calls to the answering service.  Write the number down and stick it to your computer, save it in a word document, or tattoo it on your hand. Whatever will help you remember it best!

#2. Contact your phone provider

Once you’ve signed up with an answering service, you’ll want to touch base with your phone provider. If you’re not sure how to forward calls, they can help you. If you don’t have call forwarding on your business phone, they can help you with that too. You can also discuss with them the different forwarding methods they offer and what would be the best option for your business. For example, conditional call forwarding would allow calls to come to you first before routing over to your service. This way you have the opportunity to answer them before anyone else. Another option would be all calls call forwarding, which just sends your calls directly to the number you’ve forwarded to. This option would be great during after hours, weekends and holidays so that there is no wait time for your callers. Keep in mind that not all phone providers offer these options, which is why it’s important to touch base with them early on.

#3. Make test calls

Assuming that you’ve already given your new answering service the protocol on how you want your calls handled, the next thing you’ll want to do is make test calls to see how they’re handling those protocols. Think of this like training a new employee you would hire in your own office. You’ll want to see how the new employee handles calls, and you’ll probably end up adjusting some of your protocols to get the most out of your new hire. Virtual receptionists operate with the same learning curve. So you aren’t paying for that learning curve, typically services will offer some sort of free trial period, so it’s a great idea to make all of your test calls during this phase. That way you can iron out any kinks you may come across, and you won’t have to pay for the calls you’ve made. Often times people will go right to forwarding their lines before making any test calls, which could result in a lot of errors and unhappy clients.

Pro tip: It’s important to keep in mind that the operators may make mistakes during the beginning stages as they are still learning  your account. Using any free trial period to make test calls will give the operators ample time to learn your protocol, so that when you are finally ready to go live with your callers, you can feel confident that the hand off will be smooth.

#4. Modify your call handling

After a few test calls, you may find that the way the receptionists are handling your calls isn’t 100% what you had envisioned. Sometimes what works best for handling calls in your own office isn’t what works best for a virtual receptionist answering your calls. Make a list of all the changes or modifications you would like, and submit them to the appropriate point of contact as one list. If your service allows you to access this information via an online portal, you can even try making the changes yourself! Another great way to make tweaks is by listening to calls. If your service records phone calls, you can get a lot of great insight into what your callers are asking about or looking for. This is a great opportunity to add FAQs and update your call handling accordingly, so that your calls are as streamlined as possible and there is less for you to follow up on.

#5. Know your points of contact

It’s important to know who your points of contact are at the answering service. Is there a customer support team? Do you have one specific account representative? Are you able to call your forwarding number directly and have the operators make changes? These are all great questions to ask your service provider so that you know exactly who to call whenever you need assistance. If you have to go through a customer support rep, you should also find out when they are available, and if there’s a protocol you can follow should you need immediate help after hours. For example, Specialty Answering Service gives all of our per minute level clients access to an online portal where they can log in and make updates at a moment’s notice. While we do offer support after hours, it can be limited so it’s always a great idea to get familiar with the tools that are at your disposal!

#6. Go live!

Now that you’ve memorized your new number, got your forwarding procedure squared away with your phone provider, placed test calls and made the appropriate changes to your script, you are ready to go live with your customers. After you’ve forwarded your line, make one last test call from a different phone, like your cell phone, just to ensure that you’re properly forwarded, then you’ll be free to handle business as normal, just without all the interruptions!

Pro tip: Letting your customers know in advance that you will be utilizing an answering service could be beneficial to both you and your service. If your callers are used to speaking with the same people every time they call, they may be put off when they start to hear new voices. In addition, it’s a great opportunity to ask for feedback, which you can then relay to your service. After all, feedback (whether good or bad) is always helpful in the end. 

#7. Don’t forget to check in

It’s always a good idea to check in on your answering service every month or so to make sure things are still running smoothly. Some people will let their account go for months, or years, without ever making updates. While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing (if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?), it’s important to keep in mind that the virtual receptionists are your virtual employees, and employees need direction. For example if your prices increased, you’ll want to make sure your answering service is aware of that, or else the operators will be providing inaccurate information to your callers.

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Tip #1: Route calls properly

Having someone answer your calls 24/7 is huge. Like elevator in your house, 5 car garage huge. If any potential clients call your number and get your voicemail, you’re leaving it up to chance that they’ll leave a message – or call back later. To properly route calls, we recommend setting up conditional call forwarding on your phones during business hours, after hours, and holidays. Conditional call forwarding is included as a free feature with 99.9% of all phone providers, so you’ll need to contact your provider (like AT&T, Verizon, or Comcast) to get it activated and configured. With this feature activated, if you are too busy to answer, your phone can be configured so instead of routing to voicemail, it will roll over to your answering service. During after hours, weekends and holidays you can roll them directly over to the answering service instead of having the phone ring at all on your side. While voicemail is perfect for when you’re screening calls from your in-laws, it’s not great for capturing leads.

Tip #2: Use virtual assistants

If your answering service is just passing messages to your office, see if they can do more – as most answering services often can do significantly more than just answering calls. Most services also double as virtual assistants. Virtual assistants can answer questions, dispatch calls, schedule appointments, and do basically everything else a normal receptionist can do. For example, an answering service agent should be able to schedule showings. If you want your answering service to schedule showings, most can pop out to your web based software to schedule, or they can often schedule on popular calendars like Google Calendar.

If your real estate company also manages rental properties, you may be receiving calls from tenants that have maintenance issues. With a virtual assistant, you can have them field and dispatch urgent calls any day or time. Many services can text, email, fax, page, and/or dial out to the assigned on-call technician to relay the appropriate message. If your tenants are looking to pay rent, virtual assistants can also usually take payments over the phone, or assist callers in paying via an online portal. Essentially, the less you have to do yourself, the better.

Pro tip: Usually the more an answering service does, the more they will charge. If you are paying your answering service by the call, there will most certainly be extra charges for things like accessing your website to schedule, accessing FAQs, etc. For services that charge by the minute, there usually won’t be extra charges as the cost of the call is a function of the length of the call – and if the agent is doing more than taking a message, the call will cost you more.

Tip #3: Use multiple numbers for lead tracking and faster calls

If you manage more than one property or have more than one listing, you should set up different numbers with your service to help keep calls moving quickly and to help you understand which channels are generating your call traffic. See if your answering service can provide multiple local or toll free numbers. Assigning one number to each property will give your callers a streamlined experience so that they can be efficiently managed. Or, you can have one number for property management and another for your real estate services. Having one number for all properties to call with issues can result in errors and confusion. This could lead to longer than normal calls and frustrated callers.

Even if you don’t manage properties and strictly sell them, having multiple numbers is great for lead tracking. For example, all of the houses you’re selling in one area can be directed to one number, whereas the houses you’re selling across town can be directed to another. Or, if you happen to sell both commercial and residential real estate, you can have two different numbers for both. This way, you can understand which phone calls are coming from which properties to give you stronger customer service insight.

Tip #4: Add FAQs

Just like you would want your receptionist to answer questions about your business when asked, you should expect the same from your answering service. It’s best to provide them with as much information as possible. For people asking simple questions like: “what are your business hours?” or “what are your fees?”, you can save a lot of time by having the agents answer those questions for you. The more information the agents are equipped with, the better they’ll be able to handle your calls. This also means less messages they’ll have to take, and less time you’ll have to spend returning calls.

Pro tip: Update your FAQs frequently to keep up with the properties you have available. For example: “Is the house on Peach street still available?” “It sure is, would you like me to schedule a showing?”

Tip #5: Customize your call handling

Continuity is a great thing. When someone calls your office and speaks to your receptionist, you want them to have the same call experience when they get your answering service. We suggest customizing your scripting, or your call handling, to reflect your business as much as possible. For example, you can have a call option for people looking to put their property on the market, a call option for people looking to buy, a call option to schedule a showing, etc. You should also see if you can set up screening questions to see if the caller is a new or existing client. Then, you can have new clients transferred to you so that you can capture the lead ASAP, whereas existing clients would just leave their information with an agent for a call back. See what works best for your business and run with it!

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