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If you’ve ever experienced losing business over a missed phone call then you probably have an idea of just how important having an answering system (be it through voicemail or through a receptionist) in place is for any business. Whether you’re a startup or a thriving company, there’s no telling how far a missed opportunity could cost your business. With that in mind, you could consider three options to prevent future mishaps like this: hire a receptionist, set up a voicemail system or hire a virtual receptionist. Which should you choose?

Basically it is a battle of cost over benefit, as it always is for businesses and most things. A receptionist can give you the results you want but for a far greater cost than that of a voicemail system. In contrast, it’s a fact that most callers simply refuse to leave messages when they’re on voicemail. This could, in the long run, cost your company more than you initially thought you bargained for.

Getting a virtual receptionist will give you the services of an actual receptionist at the cost of a voicemail system. The better question to ask then would be: can you benefit from hiring a virtual receptionist?

To find if you can benefit from hiring a virtual receptionist, answer the questions below. Each answer carries points that you will then add up at the end of the test.

The Survey

1. Are you a small business? Yes +5 points,  No +2 points
2. Do you have a voicemail system? Yes +3 points,  No +3 points
3. Is your time in the office erratic? (Eg. One day you’re in the office all day; the next, you’re out, the day after the next, you’re in the office in the morning, out of it early afternoon and back again in the late hours?) Yes +5 points,  No +3 points
4. Have you ever missed an incoming phone call from a customer because you were busy with something else? Yes +5 points, No +0 points
5. Do you think your business would benefit from having your appointments scheduled and your calendar organized for you? Yes +5 points, No +1 point, Maybe +3 points
6. Do you find your work gets distracted by the phone? Always +5 points, Sometimes +3 points, No +0 points
7. Have you ever lost business because you were unable to pick up the phone at that moment in time? Yes +5 points, No +2 points
8. Do you have a staff or employee who can answer the phone for you? Yes +2 points No +5 points (If answer is Yes, proceed to No. 9; if No, proceed to No. 10)
9. Do you find it difficult training your employees to use proper phone etiquette? Yes +3 points No +0 points.
10. Do you have the budget to hire an employee to answer calls? Yes +3 points, No +5 points

How’d You Score?

• If your score is 22-40 points, you should think about a virtual receptionist service.
• If you score more than 40 points, your business would seriously benefit from the services of a virtual receptionist.

We’ve all experienced the command prompt runaround when phoning any number of companies. We’re instructed to “please press x,” followed by ten minutes of automated directions. Realistically, people would much rather be directed to customer service, so why has it become a mission just to be re-routed for human interaction?

Statistics show that 90% of US consumers prefer to resolve their customer service issues using the telephone. 75% prefer the face-to-face method and online options take the backburner, as company website or email options account for 67% of consumers. Not far behind are the 47% who use online chat help, along with 22% turning to both text messaging and social media sites.

Independent studies have demonstrate conclusively that cost-saving voicemail/automated prompts simply aren’t worth the savings. In contrast to automated responses, most consumers have better receptivity and satisfaction rates when speaking to a live operator for assistance.

Consumer Telephone Facts

Did you know that over 70% of callers do not leave messages on voicemail? This means that businesses are at risk in losing 7 out of every 10 calls when their “money-saving” voice mail system kicks in. Below are a handful of customer service facts, ringing in loud and clear:

• People are 3 times more likely to leave a message with a live person than they would with voicemail.
• 45% of consumers initiated a purchase over the phone in the last year.
• 70% of consumer initiated phone orders were placed on hold.
• The average caller’s time on hold is 57 seconds.
• Business executives spend 15 minutes a day on hold.
• 94% of most marketing budgets is spent on persuading a customer to call.
• 6% of most marketing budgets is spent on handling the customer’s call.
• 68% of callers stay on the line if they hear relevant information.
• 12% of callers stay on the line if they hear silence.
• 34% of callers who hang up do not call back.

Poor customer experiences result in an estimated $83 billion loss by US enterprises each year, due to defections and abandoned purchases. Additionally, 89% of consumers began doing business with a competitor, following a poor customer experience.  $289 is the average value per year of each customer relationship that’s been abandoned or lost to a competitor. Furthermore,  86% of consumers will pay more for a better customer experience, whereas only 26% of companies have a well-developed strategy in place for improving customer experience.

*As demonstrated in the infographic below, it has become essential in today’s competitive market to implement effective customer retention strategies. Easy access to live assistance is crucial in maintaining both customer loyalty and satisfaction. For all owners eager to improve their business reputation and sales, consider www.courteouscom.com. This award winning company has been providing dependable, call-answering services for the past 40 years to both large and small clients. Don’t let the buzz of your dial-tone drown out the prospect of consumer interest.

Source: http://fonolo.com/blog/2012/03/customer-experience-statistics-2012/
Source: http://blog.kissmetrics.com/customer-service-statistics/
Source: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/09/prweb290996.htm

We are truly a “family” at A Courteous Communications. Along with meeting and exceeding the needs of our clients, we help one another and we are reaching out and opening our hearts for people in need. It is important to all of us, especially during the holiday season, to give to our family and loved ones. But there are so many less fortunate and homeless people in our world, in our community. Many of our Courteous family have organized to help out by volunteering every month at the Christian Service Center for Central Florida whose mission is to address the most prominent needs of those struggling in the Orlando area. Our group meets monthly to help out by serving lunch at the Christian Service Center.

The experience is more for us than solely serving food. The smiles and friendly exchange between us and those we are helping is a reward we all share.

Embed 5 Fun Facts About Alexander Graham Bell on Your Site: Copy and Paste the Code Below

5 Fun Facts About Alexander Graham Bell – An infographic by CourteousCom.com

Embed 5 Fun Facts About Alexander Graham Bell on Your Site: Copy and Paste the Code Below

On March 3, 1847, a boy named Alexander Graham Bell was born at Edinburgh, Scotland and at the young age of 29, he invented the first practical phone and soon opened his own telephone company. His family, particularly his father and grandfather works with speech and elocution and Alexander himself continues to find more ways to communicate with deaf people as his mother and wife were deaf, which basically plays a big influence of Bell’s life and achievements.

Alexander grew up in Edinburgh which is known for its rich culture in arts and science. Young Alexander was homeschooled by her mom, which even though deaf, is a good pianist. His mother made Alexander open his eyes to see beyond the physical capabilities of people and lead him to unveil the mysteriousness of life through a deep curiosity. When Alexander was 16, merely a teenager, he became a teacher of elocution, just like his father and grandfather, at Weston House Academy.
Around 1865 to 1870, the two brothers of Alexander died of tubercolosis, while they were living in London. He wanted to stay but when his health was affected, the family decided to move to Brantford, Ontario, Canada where his health improved and continued to pursue his passion of studying the human voice.

The year of 1871 was one of the highlights in Alexander’s journey to success when his father was invited to Boston School for Deaf Mutes and his father saw it as a good opportunity for Alexander to showcase what he got so instead of going, he let Alexander take his place to teach. He was so inclined to be successful and making his dreams come true so he opened a tutorial for deaf in Boston, where he continued to teach students, one of them is Mabel Hubbard, who became his wife on 1877.

When Mabel told her father about Alexander’s ideas about telegraph, her father asked help from other people, one of them was Thomas Watson, a skilled technician who makes instruments and tools. Alexander was the brain making and planning ideas on voice transmission while Thomas was the hands in making these ideas come to life. On March 10,1876, they tested their invention in the laboratory and Alexander stated, “Mr. Watson, com here. I want to see you!”, although not very clear and loud, Thomas heard on the other line and it became the first sentence to be ever transmitted through practical telephone.

Alexander continued to have public demonstrations with his wife in different places and he eventually came up with ideas to make the device even better. He then opened the Bell Telephone Company on July 9, 1877. He faced a lot of patent battles in the court but his company just continued to be more successful. The telephone improved when Thomas Edison added a microphone to it which makes the sound louder and the voice clearer.

Alexander Graham Bell never stopped inventing and finding new ideas to help people’s lives be better. Some of his late inventions were the tetrahedral kite, photophone and hydrodrome. When Alexander passed away on August 2, 1922, all telephone system were shut down for a minute to pay tribute to the great inventor. His body may perish but his legacy and contribution will always live. Until today, life and communication has been very easy because of telephones and cell phones. All thanks to the curiosity in life of Alexander Graham Bell.