Summer is right around the corner; after over a year of uncertainty, stress, and government mandated lockdowns, you’re probably looking forward to taking a long vacation, ideally somewhere that allows you to disconnect from work to some degree.
But if you own or run a small business, you can’t drop completely off the grid, right? Wrong.
While that may have been the case a few years ago, today there are many business resources that you can use to ensure that things continue to run smoothly, even if you’re out of town and out of reach.
There’s project management software you can use to make sure everybody knows what their tasks are while you are away; business communication platforms to stay in the loop whenever you need to; cloud services so you can easily access any document or file remotely; and virtual offices where you can forward your email and pick it up once you’re back.
But there’s one other business service that can help you relax while you’re on vacation: a live receptionist service.
Here are 6 Ways a Live Receptionist Can Help While You’re Out of the Office:
#1 – Handle All Your Business Calls
A live receptionist service can answer all incoming during regular business hours; they answer in your company name and use a scripted response so they sound like they are part of your organization. This means that when you come back to the office you will find that your clients’ calls were all answered, and instead of feeling neglected and ignored they will feel valued and respected. This is important because the alternative would be to either leave somebody else on telephone answering duties, which means that they won’t be able to fully focus on their normal work, or just letting all calls go unanswered, which could lead to unhappy clients.
#2 – Manage Your Schedule
Coming back from a vacation, no matter how short, usually means having to spend the first few days just filling up your completely empty schedule. This happens because there is nobody to manage your schedule other than you. This isn’t the case with a live receptionist service since they are able to not only manage your schedule but also set up appointments for when you are available again. This means that you will be coming back to a full schedule and ready to take care of business.
#3 – Provide Stellar Customer Service
Customer service can make or break your business. When you go on vacation you want to make sure that your clients are well taken care of; with a live receptionist service you can be certain that you are providing fantastic customer service to all your clients and potential clients who call your company during your absence.
#4 – Take Messages
It is easy for important communications to get lost while you are on vacation. A live receptionist service makes sure that this doesn’t happen by taking note of all the messages your clients, partners, and other stakeholders leave you. Then they can forward these messages to you via text message or email so you never miss any key information that you might need to act upon immediately. This also means that you can relax knowing that if something important comes up you will be informed wherever you are.
#5 – Forward Calls
When it comes to getting business calls while on vacation you used to have two choices: you either kept your line available to all callers, which meant wasting time answering unimportant calls and dealing with spam, or you turned your phone off and were not available for anyone, which meant missing important calls and opportunities.
With a live receptionist service, you can set up to forward calls in whatever way works best for you. This means that you won’t miss out on any important calls, and you also don’t need to waste your precious vacation time on useless calls.
#6 – Complete Attended Transfers
Whenever a key client, an important supplier, or any other important call comes in while you are on vacation, it won’t do to just cold transfer the call. This is especially true if the caller is irate or agitated in any way. A live receptionist service can complete attended transfers for you so whoever is calling doesn’t have to repeat his story 20 different times and feels like you care about solving their issue.
These are just a few of the benefits that a live receptionist service can offer your business while you are on vacation. If you’re hoping to relax and keep your business running smoothly, then a live receptionist might just be the right answer for you and your company.