The customer care portal is one of the essential departments in every business, but especially in IT and web design. This is the customer’s first line of contact before he/she can start transacting with the company.  Although most already established IT and web businesses have a customer care department, small businesses rarely have a customer care portal. This is because they aren’t in a position to afford customer services agents or even a receptionist.
If your business has been losing customers due to lack of a customer care service, you could then take advantage of a virtual receptionist. AnswerFirst virtual receptionists provide an affordable way to handle customer queries and calls on time. Outlined below are some of the benefits of hiring a virtual receptionist for your IT and web design business.
1 – Affordability
You don’t need to hire a full-time receptionist when on a tight budget – a virtual receptionist will handle everything the receptionist would have done, and at an affordable rate. Another benefit of hiring a virtual receptionist is that they can work with your schedules even on the busiest of hours when customers require undivided attention. This way, you can be assured that all customers will be attended to, and all-important calls forwarded to you as well. In addition to this, you won’t have to foot expenses that come with having an in-house customer support service.
2 – Ever-Available Customer Support During Business Hours
Virtual receptionists can be trained to handle your customers however you like. They will also be always available during working hours. This is a bonus considering an in-house reception will sometimes call in sick, go for a holiday, or even fail to show up at work. The convenience of an ever-available virtual receptionist means all customers are attended to, and that you get to have peace of mind to run the business. This translates to a smooth customer service experience, which gives you a competitive edge over business rivals and increased sales.
3 – A Boost In Productivity
You never have to spend the entire day (or any time at all) answering customer phone calls simply because you don’t have a receptionist. A virtual receptionist not only handles all incoming calls but your appointments as well. This leaves you with enough time to focus on your work. None of your employees will be tasked to handle customer calls either. They too can concentrate on their responsibilities hence increased productivity.
4 – Maintain A Professional Image
Lack of customer support, or a poor one, is one of the reasons most people stop transacting with a company. Nonetheless, if a cheerful receptionist greets all callers and customers, and their worries and queries handled professionally, chances are the customer will come back. Companies with professional and well-trained customer care assistants perform much better than those without. The best thing with hiring a virtual receptionist is that he/she has been trained professionally to do just that, hence keeping the stakes high. This helps preserve and even build your brand. Any questions that the receptionist cannot answer are directed to the right person for an even better service.
5 – No Training Required
Many companies train their receptionists personally. This can be too much an effort for a startup or small business. Training receptionists also requires time and money. With a virtual receptionist, you never have to worry about interviewing candidates or training them. There’s already a pool of trained professionals ready on the other side of the line. This eliminates the need to hire and train receptionists from scratch.
A virtual personal assistant is the best thing a small business or startup can have in this time and age. You get to have the industry experts handling all your calls, hence allowing you to focus on building the company. With the various packages provided, you should be able to find one that suits your budget.
