As we all know, most business is conducted over the phone and if your incoming business calls are mishandled for any reason, the consequences could be dire. Such is the importance of telephone answering, that many companies go the huge expense of directly employing a receptionist – who is charged with a number of tasks.
If you are wondering about the possible telephone scenarios that could damage your business, here are the main ones.
Unanswered Calls
This is the “Kiss of Death” for any business and to make it worse, you have no idea how many calls have gone unanswered and subsequently, how many orders you let slip away. Of course, no business owner sets out to do this, but with a small operation run by a couple of working partners, it is very much whether someone is in the office, as to if a call is answered.
You simply cannot afford to leave a call unanswered, as the caller will likely have a negative impression and if they happen to be a potential customer, they will simply rub you off their list and move on to the next listing.
Incorrect Greeting
If a person answers the phone who has no experience of greeting in a business environment, you are likely to have a problem. The young apprentice might be rude to one of your biggest customers and that could have serious repercussions. Answering a business call in a casual manner does nothing for your image and with a virtual receptionist at hand, this would never happen.
All virtual receptionists are able to work with a customised greeting script, ensuring that all callers will be suitably impressed and with sound knowledge of your business activities, she can handle any situation that might arise. If you would like to talk to a leading telephone answering service in Australia or in your local area, an online search is all it takes.
Incompetent Message Taking
If the person receiving the call knows little about the business, they might not pass on the correct information, which will certainly lead to a problem. All virtual receptionists are professional people, who are more than capable of message taking and can quickly adapt to any business environment.
Repeated Holding
As nice as it is to sit and listen to some nice background music, people prefer to be transferred to the person they wish to speak with. If your lines are all busy, there’s no need to have an automatic hold system – simply contact a virtual receptionist provider, who can ensure that every single call is promptly handled.
The Dreaded Answering Machine
While it might have been novel for a few years, people are no longer happy when a machine responds. If you were to ask any of your friends what they dislike most about telephones, the answering machine would figure pretty high on the list. For a small outlay, you can have all of your calls (24/7) answered on your behalf by a qualified telephone receptionist.
If your business isn’t doing as well as it should, it might be due to any of the above and in that case, contacting a call handling provider just might be the solution.
