Picture it: You and your team are in the middle of putting together a very complex, and important, project for a customer. The phone rings. It’s new business – which is great – but do you have time to stop what you’re doing, answer the phone in a professional way and have the information that your new client needs at your fingertips?
That’s a lot to juggle all at once. Although lots of incoming phone calls is a good sign for your small business, these calls can be a real drain on your team’s time when they constantly interrupt the business day. Your resources are limited and time is one of them. You’re building a small business – so every moment counts.
In many cases, you may need professional phone reception services – but you probably don’t want to have to hire a permanent employee to get this level of service. Here’s the good news: Virtual assistants (or “VAs”) can bring your business and its customers the level of professionalism and responsiveness that you all need, without the cost of a full time employee.
What does a Virtual Assistant Do?
Thanks to the Internet and high-tech telecommunications technology, we’ve entered a day and age where all of your telecommunications services can be handled remotely. In other words, people who handle your phones and service don’t have to be physically located where you are. Virtual assistants can handle all of your reception, customer service and phone-related needs without needing to be physically present in your office.
Here’s how it works:
- Your incoming phone number stays the same, but your calls are routed to your professional virtual assistant instead of your office.
- Your virtual assistant gets to know your company and exactly what you need in terms of phone service. For example, you might have your virtual assistant simply answering and transferring calls – or you could instruct him or her to handle customer service issues like tracking orders and answering questions.
- Your virtual assistant cheerfully answers the phones during – or after – business hours and provides your callers with exactly what they need.
Projecting a professional image and delivering excellent customer service doesn’t get any easier than that.
Virtual assistants can be used for:
- Simple message-taking
- Answering and transferring calls
- Taking calls and answering customer service-related questions
- Taking down order information or giving callers basic information
- Taking down lead information for further follow up by your team
- Emergency dispatching to remote employees
No matter what your phone-related needs for your business, the right virtual receptionist service will be able to arrange for and deliver the quality and professionalism your callers expect and deserve.
Read more about Virtual Assistants in Part 2 of What is a Virtual Assistant?
