Telephone Answering Services

A Telephone Answering Service is an outsourced provider of specialist operatives who respond to calls on behalf of your clients. They take messages and perform specific key business processes in real-time whenever someone calls your company's telephone number. It saves time and money for your company and means that you are always in touch with your customer base, an increasingly important aspect of all companies today.

It can get pretty confusing what exactly an answering service provider is with the number of terms in the industry. The call handling services offered can vary from enterprise to business. It can be difficult to understand the difference between a mobile answering service and a call center. We'll try to understand both of them.

Call Answering Service vs. Call Centre

Typically, call centers are synonymous with 'cold-calling' or different types of outbound marketing and customer service calls. Responding services help callers who contact your company directly via an inbound call.

Whilst an answering service will operate in call center environments, their primary functions are very different. Typically, a call center agent needs strong sales skills to resolve the adverse reaction to 'cold-calling,' while a telephone answering service agent typically has better soft skills and customer service skills, concentrating on addressing the caller question.

Why do you need an Answering Service?

An answering service is a cost-effective way to manage your daily interactions with customers. Through outsourcing, you will avoid hiring new staff to handle calls or free up time to focus on other value-adding tasks for existing staff. And unlike an employee, you don't pay for any call handling if you don't use your answering service. It ensures you can respond easily to an influx of calls without straining your workers, and when calls are small you don't have to worry about frustrated employees.

Outsourcing a reply service allows you to spend more time on other key areas of your business and gives you peace of mind that the phone calls to your business phone number are handled at all times, in a professional and approved manner.

Answering services will work outside of the office hours, ensuring that every call is answered even when the day is closed. So when you return to the office you can have complete confidence that all of your company inquiries have been conducted in a professional manner.

Benefits of Using a Telephone Answering Service

An answering service can react to peaks in demand instantly. So if you run a particular campaign, have seasonal services or products, or have your team members on holiday, your answering service can step in without notice and provide a seamless expansion of your business.

Types of Answering Services

Services can be all-embracing or very tailored to what you really need. There are various options for what your business might feel is required, so here are a couple of options that might suit your business.

• Virtual Receptionist Service

For any customer calling your business, a virtual receptionist is the first calling point. They will get all of the caller's information and will handle it according to your specific instructions. Whether the information is passed on to you or the call is forwarded to the requested person.

• Payment Processing and Order Taking

Simple or complex order processing and receiving payments for goods provided using a payment system mechanism in line with your business. All done safely and as swiftly as possible.

• Customer Service Operative

There to help your customers with whatever details they may need 24 hours a day. Working with you to adhere to the strategy and policy of your business, developing a script that suits your tone of voice.

• Emergency Calls

They will come at any moment, so it's important you are prepared and ready. You will ensure that you are always ready in times of crisis and emergency by providing an outsourced response service support team.