Virtual Receptionists for Virtual Assistants – what does a telephone answering service do and how can it support virtual assistants?
You might be wondering why would a Virtual Receptionist would be beneficial to a Virtual PA. Perhaps you are even wondering if I have lost the plot. But you see, over the years, I have used a Virtual Receptionist for both my business, my husbands business and for many of my clients businesses – why they answer the phone in my business name and it stopped me getting interrupted when I was head down on a task. So, I was delighted to meet the team from Face for Business initially on line and then in person at the PA Show earlier this year. I know the power that a virtual reception team can deliver for VA businesses so I reached out to them and asked if they wouldn’t mind writing a blog to show you how using a service such as theirs can help. So let me hand over to them now so that between us we can learn more…
The role of VAs and PAs is ever changing and whilst your working life might be more interesting as projects become more diverse, the added responsibility can lead to higher stress levels. The phone will always ring (and you need it for new business) and will always need to be answered, but, is it you who needs to do that? The secret to a more efficient balance for you could be a telephone answering service…
My name is Susan Holme and I’ve been working with Face for Business since its inception back in July 2013, and we’ve been answering calls on behalf of all types and size of business.
We’ve increased from a 5-person business, answering less than 50 calls per day, to an established telephone answering company which has seen a 500% increase in recruitment over the last 5 years and now answering over 1300 calls per day. Furthermore, we have recently answered our one millionth call!
So, how can working with a telephone answering service help you in your virtual assistant business? Let me share seven reasons here…
1. Never miss a call again – a telephone answering service means you won’t miss a call ever again. Whilst we live in a digital age, people still like human interaction and that is exactly what we do. If you rely on your phone calls for new business, having a back-up means that any new enquiries will be captured – we can even ask those all-important first questions for you so you can make an informed call back.
2. Give the right impression – you are virtual to your clients, but also want to ensure that you care about their calls. At Face for Business you will be allocated a Lead PA who will answer your calls in a friendly, professional tone to continue building the brand you have already created. Whilst they might be sitting in our office, you can be confident that they will be an extension of your business and will get to know your clients, acting as your very own PA!
3. Keep your costs down – as a virtual assistant you possibly won’t have the office space or room to hire someone to simply answer any calls you have coming in. A virtual receptionist is an alternative and cost effective option to hiring another member of staff.
4. Complementary opening hours – a lot of VAs we’ve spoken with often work their hours around the school day. We’re open from 8am – 8pm Monday to Friday and 9.00am – 5.30pm on Saturdays, so we can answer your calls for you within this time frame, meaning you feel rest assured that you’re not missing any new business calls.
5. Totally organised – at Face for Business our PAs can book, cancel and rearrange appointments for you as well as take payments, which means you have less admin and are impressively organised. We’re essentially your VA, too!
6. Increase your productivity – when you are in the flow of your VA duties for your clients or are planning and preparing quotes, our telephone answering service is a great way to help you focus without interruptions. Important new business enquiries or client calls can be answered by your PA and forwarded to you by email or text. We can tell your existing clients when to expect a call back.
7. Be confident it is being done correctly – as a virtual assistant you will appreciate how difficult it can be for new clients to put their trust in you, and we are in the same boat here at Face for Business. Not only will you have your own, trained virtual receptionist who understands you and your business, but we invite you to listen to the calls we answer on your behalf. All of your calls and messages will be accessible to read and listen to, 24 hours a day, via our smartphone app and bespoke online portal.
Outsourcing fears?
We let all our clients listen in to their calls as we know how difficult it can be trusting someone else to answer your business calls – after all, first impressions count and you want your business to be represented by people you know, like and trust, so we decided on an open and honest approach to help alleviate any fears.
One of our clients told us… “It is very important for me to be able to listen to how my calls are answered and dealt with and this was a huge selling point for me. I like to be able to assess the quality of the answers from my PA and I can 100% say that my client calls are well handled by Face for Business.”
What next?
Having a telephone answering service to help you in your business can provide you with the security of having your calls answered, showing your clients that you care about their calls.
We offer free call recording, we don’t charge for sales calls and we also have a feedback function that allows you to send your PA feedback on their calls.
If you would like to have a chat about how Virtual Receptionists can support Virtual Assistants, or about our service and how it helps other Virtual Assistants, please call me (Susan) for an informal chat on 0333 323 1007.
You can find Face For Business on social media in the following places:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/faceforbusiness1
Twitter: https://twitter.com/face4business
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/face-for-business