The hiring of a secretary for a lot of smaller businesses could be too expensive and for a home-based company it's probably completely uneconomical, however there is an alternative. With the explosion of mobile phones and increase of the World Wide Web, many decide to outsource some of or all of their incoming calls and use a telephone call answering provider.
In the present day's extremely competitive business world, businesses need to take full advantage of all sources of business that present themselves, however many could be losing opportunities or possible sales without even knowing it. It is thought that around 4 out of 5 callers hang up when he or she hears a voicemail message. So if a company is unable to manage their telephone calls and leaves it to an answering machine, for every 10 possible clients, 8 may well be sourcing their business somewhere else with a rival.
Many smaller sized businesses and in particular sole-traders appreciate the flexibility that using a telephone call answering provider provides them, for many in skilled employment it means that they can actually be out servicing their clients and at the same time be happy in the knowledge that their calls are being seen to professionally, politely and quickly. An excellent plumber may not always be the most communicative person to speak to, especially if he has just removed his head out from under a sink to answer a call but by using a telephone call answering provider the plumber is able to get on with what he knows best and service his clients.
Staff at call answering providers generally work in compact groups of 4 or 5 so that they can become more familiar with each customer. Upon taking a call they will be directed by on screen guides on what information to collect being anything from callers name, contact telephone numbers, company names, reference numbers - whatever the client requires to organize his or her business effectively. The virtual PAs can then either transmit the message to the small business or can act as a front desk secretary and patch the call through.
For a fraction of the cost of a full time secretary, the virtual PA deals with the caller in the same manner.
Disclaimer
NB: This web log is in the public domain and is presented here for public benefit, not for the purposes of business generation.