Virtual Receptionist

Many business owners are missing out on new business every day, for a very simple, very preventable reason. The truth is, 64% of merchants aren’t connecting with every interested lead and every potential customer. Why not? Because they can’t be reached by phone. Prospective customers get a busy signal, encounter a disconnected phone number, struggle to communicate with an automated call menu feature, or otherwise just don’t receive a response to their call.

Today, with search engines always at our fingertips, these missed interactions with callers mean missed business. If a caller can’t reach your company, they will call the next company that shows up in their search results. Suddenly, an unanswered phone means more than just a  missed call: It means lost earnings.

Nobody Likes an Automated Phone Menu

One of the quickest ways to lose business is an automated phone menu. Sure, it will save you time, directing the call to the perfect person to best help your caller. But no callers actually want to deal with these menus: think of the hassle the last time you tried to reach your doctor’s office or cable company and had to repeat yourself over and over again to be understood. It’s awful.

Many people will actively avoid automated phone menus, no matter their age. Whether they are 20 years old or 60 years old, these interactive voice response (IVR) menus leave callers feeling frustrated and without adequate help from your company. They may even give up and call your competitor instead.

People go to great lengths to avoid IVRs, even using strange “life hacks” like swearing at the IVR, just to get a real person on the other end of the line in a timely manner. Why start your interaction with a new caller with frustration or colorful language? Help them reach a real, breathing person on the call from the start. It’s a refreshing break from impersonal, convenience technology.

Speed Matters

Even 10 years ago, callers would wait as long as 6-10 rings for someone to answer their call. But now, in our age of technology and immediacy, those same callers only wait for an average of 4 rings for their call to be answered before giving up. Keeping someone waiting on the other end of a ringing phone can be interpreted as rude, or that you are potentially too busy to adequately help them.

Many callers will take this as a bad sign about what their interaction with your business will be like, and give up, then try another company. What does this mean for you? Not only is it important for callers to reach your business every time they call, but for them to reach you quickly, too.

Voicemail is Bad for the Client, and It’s Bad for You, Too

Voicemail is dying out. It’s true. Think of your personal cell phone. Do you listen to every voicemail you receive, or do you just return the call without listening to the message? Checking voicemail messages is an interruption in your day when you could be using that time more productively to accomplish other things. It’s a chore that must be crossed off your list, not a way to progress your business.

Just like you, your customers are avoiding voicemail messages more and more as well. Most millennials avoid leaving messages at all: texts and emails are more practical, and more likely to be seen and get a response than a voice message is to be heard and a call returned. So if they can’t reach a real person? They just hang up. That’s the end of their interaction with your company.

You can’t rely on a voice mail system to catch missed calls when you’re unavailable to answer the phone because more and more people just aren’t leaving voicemail messages anymore. And in addition to missing out on those calls? You’re taking valuable time out of your busy day to listen to each voice message and then return every single call.

So What’s the Solution?

If IVR and voice mail systems don’t work, and missed calls equal missed business, then how can you ensure that every call gets answered? The best, simplest solution is to use a virtual receptionist. Of course, you can’t be available to field every call yourself: You have work to be done, and clients to attend to, not to mention a real life outside of your job.

A virtual receptionist is more than just an answering service. Like voicemails, answering services pile up messages for you to answer later: it’s another chore to do and another list of calls to make when you could be growing your business and accomplishing your goals.

With Reliable Receptionist, you get a trained professional who is well-versed in the intricacies of your company, who can field questions, set appointments, and connect callers with the right person within your company to best meet their needs. Instead of a curse-worthy IVR menu or a voicemail, your caller encounters a friendly, knowledgeable, professional voice on the other end of the line. Calls aren’t missed, and the business opportunities for your company aren’t missed either.

Ready to see how a virtual receptionist can transform your company, increase your productivity, and help avoid missed business? Request a live tour or online tour today, or contact us for more information, and never miss another call.

Your business is booming; that’s great! And while that’s definitely cause for celebration, you might be a bit worried. You know that a thriving business means more phone calls from established and potential new clients— are you ready for that?  

You’re considering hiring virtual receptionists to handle the increased call volume to your office. There are numerous benefits to having virtual receptionists answer calls from clients, no matter which industry you work in. Perhaps most importantly, callers get to speak with a real person and not an automated system when they call.

This matters because 90% of your callers want to speak to a person when they call your business; they want to feel that their needs and concerns are going to be addressed with respect and expediency, whether they are making an appointment, asking a question about a product or service that you offer, or calling to resolve a problem.

How can a virtual receptionist help callers?

Virtual receptionists can be a valuable asset to your team. They are trained before taking their first call; you’ll be working with professional individuals who are additional ambassadors for your business, additional invested staff who can help your clients. With access to your scheduling system, they can easily set up appointments for clients to come see you or other members of your staff.

Virtual receptionists are trained in your company’s history, policies and procedures, frequently asked questions, how to upsell your products or services, and in any specific do’s and don’ts that you may want followed when they speak with your callers. For example, if you own a law practice, you might instruct that they not give legal advice over the phone. If you are a contractor, you might not want them to attempt to offer estimated amounts for homeowners’ new siding or roofing projects.

How can a virtual receptionist help you?

An expanded business means that your time is going to be even more valuable (and scarce). Did you know that the average business call lasts 4 minutes and 52 seconds? While 5 minutes here or there might not seem like a lot of time, it’s going to add up over the course of a day and week.

If you delegate answering the phones to virtual receptionists, you and your other staff will be able to spend more time providing excellent face-to-face service to clients (which is what led to your booming business in the first place)!

Don’t forget about your own meetings and appointments!

In addition to an influx of calls, if your company is busier than usual, it’s also likely that you are going to have an increase in the number of meetings and appointments that you’ll need to attend. Whether they are in your office, across town, or on the other side of the country, you’ll want to make sure that you’re able to meet with prospective clients, vendors, and other colleagues in your industry.

These meetings provide opportunities to convert potential clients into actual clients, to meet directly with representatives from companies whose products and services you use, and to meet with others in your industry so that you can learn more about what other companies are creating, making, building, and doing, and share your own success stories. In short, meetings and appointments allow you to network and to continue to expand and grow your business.

Virtual receptionists are able to schedule appointments for people who are calling to meet with you. They can just as easily schedule appointments and meetings so that you can meet with others, whether that means attending a meeting with one client, a couple of colleagues across town, or attending your industry’s national convention with several hundred or thousand other business owners.

Your virtual receptionists need to have access to your scheduling system so that they can put meetings on your calendar, and you need to make sure that they know:

• Any previously scheduled meetings that you arranged yourself
• When you aren’t available to meet
• Contact information for individuals whom you would like to schedule meetings with

With that information, they’ll be good to go! Let your receptionists take care of the scheduling, so you can focus on the networking.

To learn more about how Reliable Receptionist can help you with your busy schedule call us at (925) 627-4200 or click here to contact us today.

A virtual receptionist can do everything an in-house receptionist can do – and more. They can take incoming calls, handle complex inquiries from customers, check an order’s status, schedule appointments, and even upsell callers into buying more services from your company.

In fact, the right kind of virtual receptionist is a productive salesperson, converting callers into customers every day. So how do they learn how to do all this? Here’s how it happens.

Hired Right, Trained Right

It starts with the reception company hiring the right professionals. Virtual reception companies must seek out the best applicants from around the world. The ideal candidates have a high level of natural ability combined with extensive learned skills.

A great virtual receptionist has a special combination of 6 qualities:

Warm patience. Their voice conveys warmth, understanding, sympathy, and compassion.

Ability to stay on-brand. They stay laser-focused on the brand image of the company.

Unflappability. Nothing shakes them up or prevents them from acting professionally. Ever.

Respect for the rules. They remain within the boundaries of what’s allowed.

Organizational skills. They have a reliable way of staying completely organized.

Determination for Follow-Through. When they say they’ll follow up, they always do.

After being hired, they go through a rigorous customer service training session that ensures they meet high standards for professional behavior. The company may test their response time, typing skills, organizational skills, and ability to stay cool under pressure.

Professional Tone and Demeanor

A virtual receptionist’s phone voice is a crucial part of their success. Your customers judge them – and your company – instantly based on their tone of voice and inclination to help.

Virtual receptionists are trained to handle customers patiently, with sincere dedication to serving them. A person doesn’t usually call your company unless they need something; the right receptionist gets to the bottom of their needs quickly and provides a positive resolution.

Your Company Background

When you hire them, virtual receptionists are trained extensively on your company background, mission statement, products, services, and rules. They might be instructed to read through your company’s website and sales materials before spending a moment on the phone.

This means when your customers come calling, your virtual receptionist will sound exactly like someone who’s sitting in your building. The experience will be seamless from an outsider’s point of view – in fact, it’s likely to be much better than the service provided by an ordinary receptionist, who may not have the same skills or training.

Your Customers’ FAQs

Every company has a long list of questions customers ask over and over. “How much do you charge?” “Do you offer free estimates?” “How soon can I get an appointment?”

Virtual receptionists are trained on the answers to a long list of FAQs. And they know how to take questions to the next level: using your products and services to solve customers’ problems.

With the help of a scheduling system, they can book appointments and meetings without your involvement. You can focus on the money-making part of your business, rather than taking phone calls all day long.

Do’s and Don’ts

Virtual receptionists are also trained on the boundaries you have established. For example, an attorney’s office must require that its receptionists never offer specific legal advice. Instead, those calls should be transferred to a legal assistant for more help.

What kind of boundaries does your company have? Maybe your CEO wants your receptionists to handle 100 percent of company calls, without ever interrupting your staff, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. That’s easy to accomplish. The receptionist simply answers all the inquiries they can, checks with you each day after 5 p.m., and returns calls later.

Receptionists can also be instructed to use a decision tree, where they handle most day-to-day calls themselves but certain calls are escalated to a designated person like a department manager. You can also keep certain people totally off-limits, like a busy CEO.

Upsells and Conversions

Did you know a virtual receptionist could be your key to customer conversion? With their friendly, upbeat style and wide base of information, they make perfect ambassadors for your company.

Here are some tips for working with your virtual receptionist to make more sales:

• Ask receptionists to follow up on callers’ questions
• Empower them to offer tempting deals to first-time customers
• Encourage them to mention your latest special offer
• Train them on your company’s “conversion words” like discount, sale, and free
• Have them use proactive language, like “Let’s get you scheduled for an appointment.”

Need more information about how virtual receptionists are trained? Connect with Reliable Receptionist. We have world-class receptionists who can help your business shine.

Why do some businesses have much better customer conversion rates than others? For example, in the medical field, call conversion rates vary from 15% to 70% – which is surprising, considering that most people call a medical office specifically to make an appointment.

The variation comes from how your receptionists handle each call. There are some “insider secrets” any company can use to increase conversions day after day.

Here are some things to keep in mind as you develop scripts and tips for your receptionists.

Eliminate Subtle Negatives

One of the biggest secrets to converting calls into appointments is eliminating subtle negative language from the discussion. Let’s look at an example.

Imagine someone is calling to see if you have an appointment open this Friday, but you’re fully booked through the end of the week. Your receptionist must be careful to phrase their answer in a positive way without the word “No.”

Avoid saying, “No, we don’t have an appointment on Friday, but we have one on Monday.”

The receptionist should say, “Our next available appointment is Monday at 10 a.m. Should I put you on the schedule?”

See the difference? The second response sounds more proactive and helpful. By following this style of scheduling, you’ll find that your receptionists convert more calls to appointments because people feel more positive about their interactions with your company.

Watch Shades of Tone

Again, subtlety is everything – especially when it comes to your receptionists’ tone of voice. We’ve all interacted with a waiter or salesperson who comes across as rude, but it’s hard to put your finger on exactly why. Something in their tone just puts you off.

Your receptionist’s tone should be friendly and welcoming. Their voice should sound warm, cheerful, upbeat, like they’re eager to help. It should seem that they’re smiling right through the phone and into the room with the caller.

This is where it’s a huge advantage to work with a professional reception company. They train their receptionists on how to achieve the right tone in a consistent and authentic way.

Use Phrases That Convert

Your receptionist is the first company salesperson your customers ever encounter. So don’t be afraid to arm them with phrases that are slightly salesy, but still friendly. Here are some examples.

“Yes. We can definitely help with that.”

By starting any sentence with “Yes,” your receptionist reinforces the idea that you’re a company that takes a positive approach. The more Yes-es they sprinkle into the conversation, the better.

“I’m so glad you called us.”

This is the kind of phrase that shows genuine appreciation for your clients’ business. It’s a great thing for your receptionists to say when your customers are expressing frustration or even anger. It eases the tension and makes it clear your receptionist is ready to help.

“May I ask your name, please?”
Whenever your receptionists ask for personal information, they always should use courtesy words: may, please, thank you. It puts callers at ease at a moment when you’re asking for something valuable, like their name or phone number.

“You’ll love the June special,” or “You’re going to love Dr. Wilson.”

If your receptionist can share something in particular that they think the client will love about your company, the caller will pay attention. Maybe the receptionist thinks they’ll love your June special because it’s designed for their exact situation. Train your receptionists to make these kinds of personal connections with your clients.

“Is there anything else I can do for you?”

This is the best way to wrap up a call. It shows the customer your receptionist isn’t trying to hurry off the phone and cares enough to see if they need more help. You might be surprised at how many last-minute upsells your receptionists can make with this simple phrase.

As your receptionists interact with your customers, they may notice other phrases that boost conversion and improve your bottom line. Be collaborative with your receptionists and take their feedback. Put it all into a training document, so your future receptionists can always be just as successful.

Choose a Professional Receptionist

We provide highly-trained virtual receptionists who understand how to consistently convert calls to appointments. Connect with Reliable Receptionist now for world-class reception services.

What do the Apple Watch, Amazon Alexa, and Google search engine all have in common? Well, they have two things in common, actually: They come from the most successful companies in the world, and they’re personalized.

They’re following the biggest trend in the consumer marketplace, which is assisting people through individualized responses. Instead of mindlessly blasting out generic answers, they give custom results every time. Is your company doing the same?

2019: The Year of Personalization

People love personalization – and they’re starting to expect it. Today everything from their smartphones to their coffee pots can call them by name.

Consider these statistics from a new study on the importance of personalization:

• 81% of customers want brands to understand them better – including how NOT to approach them.
• While 77% of marketers think personalized service is important, 60% struggle to provide it consistently.
• By the end of 2018, more than 50% of companies will be redirecting their budgets toward innovations that improve the customer experience.

Consumer spending experts are predicting that 2019 will be the year of personalization, a shift in thinking where consumers simply expect customized experiences. If companies can’t provide personalized help, consumers will just turn to the internet and find a competitor.

How Personalized Are You?

As 2019 dawns, it’s a good time to take a hard look at your customer service and see if it has a personal touch. When people reach out to your company, how personalized is the service they receive?

Many small business owners assume their service is more personal than it really is. They figure they have a good reputation and a loyal following and don’t give much thought to the actual messages people hear from them.

For example, what do people hear when they pick up the phone to call you? Is it an automated voice? If so: Uh-oh. That’s not good.

People hate hearing automated voices. A study by Consumer Reports found that a staggering 72% of consumers will hang up as soon as they hear an automated message starts to play, no matter what it says.

What do these frustrated customers do next? Most likely, they seek out a competitor. But if they’re determined to contact your company, they’ll usually go to your website. Hopefully, you have an email address or contact form front-and-center.

Humans: The Tried-and-True Solution

Personal service – the kind provided by real-life humans – is what most customers really want. When they call, they need to hear a person on the other end of the line. When they send an email, they’re looking for a genuine response.

A remote receptionist can provide this kind of personalized service. These professional receptionists might not be located in your office, but they offer seamless interactions with your clients. Every customer is greeted with a warm human voice, every time.

 

Connect with Reliable Receptionist to find out why a remote receptionist is your best bet for 2019: the year of personalized service.