A virtual receptionist can save you loads of time, money and customers. They can take away nearly all the phone-related stresses related to your business, while saving tens of thousands a year in expenses over a physical receptionist holding down an office for you.
A good physical receptionist will cost you anywhere between $60 – 70,000 per year when you add up their base salary, overtime pay, benefits and tax obligations paid to the government.
If you’re a vagabond entrepreneur that runs your business from the road, renting an office is the last thing on your mind. It’s a given that you probably don’t have the time, nor the inclination to spend every minute of the day fielding phone calls either.
Here’s exactly what you actually want: Go virtual.
In that case, the benefits of hiring a virtual receptionist start to become very clear.
Virtual reception companies want your business
One of the sad realities about hiring an employee to do a stressful and often mundane job, such as answering the phone, is that few can sustain maximum customer service levels for long periods. Eventually, a poor attitude and less attention to detail take over.
It’s hard to monitor this in a traditional employer/employee setting, as you’d have to monitor every single call coming in. This not only affects service levels, but also sales and your brand reputation.
Not good for a growing business and it certainly doesn’t bode well for your desire to stay on the move while working. A virtual reception service can monitor their employees and replace those who don’t enjoy doing their job, so service levels never drop while you’re busy working and growing your business.
No more lost business due to missed calls
It’s estimated that a missed call costs the average business somewhere between $50 to $100 dollars, on the low end. This is by no means universal, considering there’s a big difference between selling a $100 leather coat and a $20,000 advertising service contract to a big client!
Missed calls mean missed business, that’s a fact. Callers that are sent to voicemail are 75 percent less likely to not leave a message, and 85% of that same group will never call your business again.
Those who call your business want immediate attention; particularly those who’ve never done business with you before. A virtual receptionist fills the gap, as the caller gets the personalised attention they’re looking for and are much more likely to give their callback details, as well as other essential info that can help you close a sale later on.
A virtual receptionist can boost marketing ROI
This is delving somewhat deeper into the cost-per-lost-call equation. Consider a print ad, or online advertisement boldly displaying your business phone number in a call to action. The customer calls and gets a voicemail recording or worse, someone on the other end that doesn’t know anything about the promotion you’re running.
We already understand how this will look to the customer. However, what’s the true impact on your advertising ROI?
The simple truth is, there’s absolutely no way of tracking ROI when you don’t know who called or for what reason they were calling (Ie., responding to your ad versus the IRS calling to schedule your audit appointment!) Call logs are useless without data including who called, and their reason for calling. A virtual receptionist has but a few key jobs that included answering the phone, taking a message/forwarding the call to you or a team member, and logging the details of that call for later reference.
Don’t forget to consider a virtual phone number!
A virtual phone number is an essential tool for businesses that are built on a travel mindset. Callers can ring your toll free business number from anywhere in the world, get connected to your virtual receptionist and leave a message or be forwarded straight to your phone, wherever you are at any given time.
Virtual numbers also offer a variety of features using VOIP including: virtual reception, call queues, unlimited call logging, easy conference calling, blacklisting, eliminating data fees, and much more. All this equates to fewer hassles on your end, allowing you to take calls or have them answered, routed elsewhere, or sent to voicemail on your command.
Virtual reception saves you on the number one cost to your business
There’s never enough time in the day to do XYZ, right? There are too many things to worry about in your business’s day-to-day without worrying about the phone ringing every second. It’s hard to be proactive and plan for growth, when you’re obligated to be constantly reactive answering the phones.
Aside from all the things already mentioned that a virtual receptionist can do to help you stay on the move — flying around the country or globetrotting from one destination to the next — a virtual receptionist allows you to laser-focus on coming up with new ideas and seeking new areas to do business in.
Next steps in your business…
If you’re convinced hiring a virtual receptionists and potentially embracing other virtual services such as a virtual office, virtual assistants and virtual phone number is a good idea, what’s holding you back?
Virtual services are the way of the future. Running a business from the cloud is the only way to go if you want to stay on the move and not be encumbered by the trappings of a traditional business.
If cost is a concern, you’ll not find a more affordable way to run your business. Virtual services such as virtual reception and others are here to stay. Don’t wait another second debating how to take your business to the next level!
