Cost Effective Answering Service Solutions

Whether your business entity is big or small, answering services can encourage positive customer relationship management. The trick, though, is to find a cost effective answering service solution that perfectly meets your business needs. After all, every penny”display: block; text-align: center;”cost effective answering service solution

Which answering service is right for you?

Use this guide to determine which answering service option is best for your business operations.

Private Branch Exchange (PBX): Also known as automated telephone answering services. These services are normally recommended and available to big corporate offices. This option implements automated software that prompts the caller to key in numbers on the phone, which then directs them to a specific representative that should be able to address their inquiry.

A PBX is a common choice for corporations, as it can reduce business expenses and rapidly help customers resolve complaints. On the other hand, a PBX is not ideal for prospective clients and can discourage clients that want a personal connection.

Virtual Receptionist: Highly recognized and utilized, virtual receptionists usually work from remote locations and take business calls using professionally trained protocols. They are very similar to in-house receptionists. They can take messages, provide details regarding the business, schedules, appointments and so forth.

Traditional Answering Service: This type of service answers calls, takes messages and acts as an intermediate interaction for customers. These services are ideal for large businesses that need assistance with logging customer communications, complaints and queries. In addition, these services can connect customers with in-house representatives on rare occasions.

Live Answering Services: Professionals in the medical and legal fields (in addition to others) commonly use these services. Live answering services offer professionals and their clients a live option to respond to inquiries instantaneously.

Custom Telephone Answering Services: Telephone answering services which are tailored specifically to your business needs. Businesses choose to customize every aspect of their outsourced relations. This can allow internal/external staff and resources to be conducted in a customized manner, which is efficient and effective per the business’ needs.

There are a variety of answering service solutions that you can choose from. Whichever is the cost effective choice for your business, you will receive great benefits. They provide 24/7 availability, eliminate the need for voicemails, offer bilingual options, and have integrated call logging and management. They also offer immediate customer service and support and other customized solutions.

To get started today, contact your local answering service to find out how they can help your business expand its operations.

Your Competitive Advantage in 2016



Keep it Simple



Make Connections









Answering Services Make New Year’s Resolutions

Like other businesses, answering services providers need to make New Year’s resolutions. That’s where you come in. With the involvement of their clients, answering services usually take this time to strategically reflect upon areas of accomplishment. It’s also a great time to begin to address areas of growth where desired results were not achieved the previous year. They see this as another opportunity to optimize the value of perspective operations and build stronger relations.answering services new year resolution

Even though the New Year has already begun, your answering service and business can still take a moment to discuss and apply these 3 top goals to start 2016 the right way.

1. Your Success is Our Success

Right-off-the-bat, it should be known that the success of an answering service is the success of the client, and vice versa. Make it your goal to work as a boundless partnership. Together, you can see where it is fit to invest, research, and know what is best for your operations.

Maybe this is the time to talk about how you can lower monthly business expenses, how you can develop new competitive advantages or even project more responsibility on the answering service for the upcoming year.
The best part about working as a team, is that improvement is guaranteed. If you don’t communicate, and work together, you will never reach your expectations. In fact, you’ll never go beyond your expectations. (If you don’t communicate and work together you can never grow beyond your expectations. In fact, you may never even reach your current goals and expectations.)

2. Balance

Make sure there’s a balance. This means there should be room left for the expert to be the expert. Make it your goal to find harmony in your business partnership. Set individual goals that will encourage success for both parties.

For example, if you and your answering service agree it’s time to implement a new script, allow the answering service to use their expertise to develop a customized greeting for your approval. After all, you’re paying them to go above and beyond your customer’s expectations. Let them do the dirty work; while allowing yourself, the small business owner, to focus solely on the habits of a great business owner.

3. Communicate

No matter how great or rocky things are going, make it your goal to communicate expectations, goals, and needs. Set-up monthly meetings or reports and continually voice your thoughts.

Start 2016 with a fresh slate. If something from 2015 wasn’t communicated, communicate it from here on out. There’s no reason to let a hiccup in the previous year effect this year’s business relations if you can resolve the issue.

If you’re ready to meet this year’s resolutions speak to your local answering service today. Here at Responsive we make it our goal to build upon your existing business operations in a cost effective, and goal orientated manner. In other words, we use every day as an opportunity to optimize the value of your perspective operations and build stronger relations. Give us a call (day or night) to find out how we can help you and your business succeed this year

Live Answering Services Cultivate Business

On average a small business can nearly double in size within 5 years, with a 15% rate of growth annually. But, with enough stamina and a well-organized system of operations, a small business can actually double in size in just 1 year.

It’s a given that starting a new business is difficult, but maintaining a successful one, is even harder. To be successful, a small business knows that these 9 quality characteristics of a live answering service are of great benefit to their growth.

9 Quality Characteristics

characteristics of live answering service

A business that wants to grow looks for these outlining characteristics in an answering service. Although, a smart business that wants to grow, knows that each and every characteristic of a live answering service will not only shape their image but their future.

If your small business is ready to blossom, contact your local answering service for a free consultation today. And before you know it, business will be booming.

5 Tips for Excellent Customer Service

customer service

Customer service is the forefront of all business operations. And quality customer service can go a long way.

Read the following five tips that many answering service agents use for positive caller experiences.

  1. Answer calls with enthusiasm. Avoid becoming robotic. Smile and greet the caller with, “Good morning/afternoon/evening,” and thank them for calling. Use the business name that you are representing and ask questions such as “How may I assist you this morning?”.

  2. Don’t be afraid to be personal. Use the caller’s name more than once throughout the conversation. This type of personalization makes the caller feels important.

  3. Set the tone. Ask questions to understand why the caller is contacting the business. When you are pulling up data you can ask simple questions such as “How are you?” which can also help build a relationship.

  4. Service with care and compassion. If you need to place a customer on hold, ask them for permission. Assure them you will be back on the line shortly. Make sure that if it is going to be a significant period of time, either ask the caller if it is ok to give them a call back during a time that is convenient for them or offer to check in every so often. Avoid negative phrases such as “no.” Be polite and use age-old manners to make a strong impression.

  5. End the call on a positive note. Say goodbye in a friendly manner such as “Have a wonderful day, Bob!” or “Great to hear from you Bob, don’t hesitate to contact us again.”

By following these steps your brand’s image and customer service will play a huge competitive advantage. If you would like to find out more contact Responsive Answering Service today!

How Bilingual Answering Services Can Work for You

billingual answering servicesSavvy businesses are employing bilingual answering services to accommodate their callersand increase the number of potential customers. Within the next few years the Hispanic population will make up nearly 20% of the population in the United States. Those answering service agents that can speak fluently in both Spanish and English have the capability to handle any call that comes their way.

You can’t deny that bilingual services are a crucial part of a successful business, but what about your needs? The versatility of an answering service iskey. A bilingual answering service should be able to meet your demandsby providing one or more of the following:

• English speaking caller – agent takes message – delivers message in English
• Spanish speaking caller – agent takes message – delivers message in Spanish
• English speaking caller – agent takes message – translates and delivers in Spanish
• Spanish speaking caller – agent takes message – translates and delivers in English

As you may notice, there are many ways to record and deliver messages. You may even ponder(consider) the idea of having a Spanish answering Service that strictly handles your Spanish calls. To do this, all you need to do is create an automated greeting that fields your calls and asks callers to press 1 for English or 2 for Spanish. The bilingual answering service can gather details, translate the message and forward it to you immediately.

Every call is important. Understanding the needs of the caller, providing customer solutions and feedback is essential for superior customer service. Don’t let this limit your business. Find a bilingual answering service that offers alternatives and provides your business with that extra support needed no matter what comes its way. So, what are you waiting for? Get bilingual phone coverage today to provide superior service.

The Expertise of a Virtual Receptionist

Whether you employ a live or virtual receptionist, they are usually the first voice that an external party hears when they get in touch with your company. The key to making a good first impression is to answer phone enquiries in a professional, respectful and helpful manner. Receptionists that master these techniques will positively impact the entire business.

External parties often base their judgments on a single interaction with the receptionist. If they’re treated with disrespect, or the receptionist is unfriendly in anyway, the caller will automatically be prejudiced against the company as a whole. This means there’s a possibility that the external party will take their business elsewhere.

virtual receptionistDon’t be fooled. It is important for every receptionist to be positive and friendly. They are the image of the company and every time they pick up the phone they should embody the persona of the establishment.

Your virtual receptionist has basic knowledge of your industry, but with this guide they’ll be able to answer phone calls with the utmost efficiency and win the caller’s respect and business.

Common Problems

Before we begin, let’s address some common problems. Virtual receptionists are faced with calls day-in and day-out. Sometimes the job can become dull and the receptionist can become bored, and it shows in their work.

Our number one rule of thumb is to allow the receptionist to be themselves and let their personality shine- as long as it does not affect service standards. Their employer should encourage a fun and relaxed pace(place) of work as well as smiling when communicating.

Tips for Enhanced Communication While on the Phone

Receptionists should be prepared to answer the phone in a polite and friendly manner. They should aim to speak clearly and smoothly. The receptionist will want to state the business’s name, as well as their own to reassure the caller that they have called the right place.

If you are the receptionist you need to listen carefully. As soon as you have enough information you must provide results. Take the time to verify the request and reassure the caller that it is being taken care of. Then you must explain to the caller what the agenda is and inform the caller of an estimated timeline of results. Or, follow through by providing answers to the caller’s questions immediately thereafter.

If at some point you have to put a caller on hold, it’s OK. Just remember the two minute rule of thumb; never leave a caller unattended for more than two minutes at a time. If you expect that it is going to take longer than two minutes, be considerate and ask the caller if it would be more convenient to contact him/her back at a different time.

Throughout the conversation you should take notes. This will prevent the caller from having to repeat the same information several times to different people.

The Impact of Hiring a Virtual Receptionist vs. Live Receptionist

Virtual receptionists are experts at what they do. Remember that many of them have had extensive training and know all of the tricks of the trade concerning handling calls.

Learn how a virtual receptionist could positively impact your business by contacting your local answering service. You’ll see the benefitsin the blink of an eye!

10 Tips for Answering Services in South Florida

It’s the little things in life that bring joy to people’s hearts. Answering services in South Florida have found that a little bit of quality customer service can go a long way. Read the following tips for answering services that many agents and receptionists use for positive caller experiences.
tips for answering services

  1. Answer calls with your personal spunk (enthusiasm). Avoid becoming robotic. Smile and greet the caller with, “Good morning/afternoon/evening,” and thank them for calling. Use the business name that you are representing and ask questions such as “How may I assist you this morning?”

  2. Use the caller’s name more than once throughout the conversation. This type of personalization makes the caller feel important, which is a vital feeling to convey over the phone.

  3. Ask the caller a question to set the tone. From there, ask questions to understand why the caller is contacting the business. When you are pulling up data you can ask simple questions such as “How are you?” which can also help build a relationship.

  4. Use enthusiastic phrases such as “my pleasure” or “absolutely” instead of “okay” or “all right.” Remember when your parents taught you dining table etiquette? Re-apply those lessons in these situations. “May I,” instead of “can I,” can make you appear more professional and polite.
    With that said, saying “please” and “thank you” never go out of style. These two words can save a challenging call.


  6. Avoid negative phrases such as “no.” Answering services in South Florida know that keeping the conversation light and focused on positive phrases can significantly help customer satisfaction. For instance, “Mr. Bob stepped out of the office for a moment, but I’d be happy to take a message or transfer you to his line.”

  7. When you do take messages for an associate, never tell the caller that that person will be back right away, unless you are certain he/she will be back at a certain time. Telling the caller that whoever they are trying to reach will be back right away will make the customer think they should receive a return call very soon.

  8. End the call on a positive note. Say goodbye in a friendly manner such as “Have a wonderful day, Sarah!” or “Great to hear from you Sarah, don’t hesitate to contact us again.”

By following these steps answering services in South Florida will improve their (your) brand’s image and convey a client-focus strategy. Customers will dissociate any bad stigma they have with answering services and go into future calls with your company more positively. If you would like to find out more contact Responsive Answering Service today!

How to Navigate Communications with Rude Callers


    handle rude callers


  2. Maintain control and keep your cool


  3. It’s not personal




Every Call Is Important



Why is every call important?






Organized Call Logs Done Right


Call Log Data


• Date
• Time
• Caller ID
• Duration
• Operator servicing call
• Number of rings before answering
• Call abandon time
• Hold time
• Caller details and much more




Answering Services to the Rescue: Call Overflow


Controlled Call Overflow



How to Use Call Overflow



How a CRM Can Elevate Your Business

How a CRM Can Elevate Your Business




Build a Plan








Improve Answering Service Scripts

Improve Answering Service Scripts




  1. Engagement



  2. Empathy



  3. Personal



Call Confirmation Made Easy

Call confirmation is the key to taking telephone calls and messages. Any high-end virtual receptionist, call center or answering service is equipped with a spelling alphabet. Every representative has this list located at their desk and is familiar with it. Spelling alphabets may seem silly, but in fact they are a vital part of making call confirmation easy.

When a client or customer calls in, the agent representing your establishment needs to make sure that they are listening attentively, as well as providing information that is easily understood by the client. For example, a client calls into your medical answering service. They are hard of hearing and they are asking for the date, time and directions for their appointment. If at any time there is a miscommunication and the agent never uses call confirmation, or their spelling alphabet, the medical practice could have a serious mix up.

The perfect way of utilizing a spelling alphabet, (a list of words that are used to clarify letters) is by generating a list with unique words known and used by your faculty and regular callers. This is a list of common words to your region and audience. Creating a spelling alphabet for call confirmation can be fun and exciting. You will want to have words with distinguishing sounds to separate similar-sounding letters.

If you would like an example, you may be similar with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) alphabet. This is used by military, as well as police radio communication. So take for example, you have “A” for Alpha, “B” for Bravo, “C” as in Charlie and so on. We have provided a copy of the ICAO spelling alphabet so that you can use it as a reference.

call confirmation

By using this spelling alphabet, or by creating your own, you can have top-of-the-line call confirmation. Ask Talk to your answering services representative today to see if you’re using a suited spelling alphabet for your practice. This will elevate your communication and provide excellent customer service!

Why Use a Medical Answering Service?

Medical Answering Services offer doctors the critical solutions they need in order to assist customers even when the client isn’t in the office. Their profession is demanding and medics find that answering services are a smart solution. Every phone call is important, especially when it’s regarding your health, wouldn’t you agree?

71% of customers end a business relationship due to less than impressive phone communication. When a thriving medical practice has a busy line all day, it is hard to manage calls efficiently. In fact, managing calls can create a huge burden and requires time and attention. If you miss a call or cannot offer immediate assistance to a client, you could lose business.

A smart strategy is to allow a professional medical answering service to assist you and your medical answering servicecustomers. You won’t need to worry about the lack of personnel, assigning medical support staff to cover the calls or hiring new staff. A medical answering service can allow your medical staff to focus on onsite clients, save you money on in-house expenditures and help deliver superior medical phone services.

Think from your customer’s point of view. They want whoever is assisting them to provide them their undivided attention. Medical answering services are sensitive to customer needs and are trained to handle the nature of that call.

Many answering services offer medics 24/7 assistance. This is a huge advantage to both the doctor and the client. The technology that is used by a medical answering service ensures that physicians can be reached when needed. You will never have a lost or misrouted call again.

Our services offer the perfect mixture of quality telephone answering compassion and concern. See why other medical professionals request to have medical answering services join their team!

How to Put a Customer on Hold

How to Put a Customer on Hold

Ever wonder how to put a customer on hold? Sometimes it’s unavoidable. If you have to do it, do it right. Use this guide to ensure superior customer service when having to place a client on hold.

Get Permission

When you take a call and you find that you HAVE to place the caller on hold you must get the callers’ permission before taking further action.

Take for example you are the live operator that must direct the call to the correct department. You should initially answer the call with a smile and ask the customer if it is OK to put them on a brief hold while you transfer the call.

At any point in time, this procedure does stand true. We recommend that regardless of the situation, a live answer followed by a brief hold is more efficient when handling excess call volumes.

Provide Insight

When the customer is placed on hold this is a great time to place fillers. When done correctly, fillers can provide value to the caller. You can optimize the filler by providing helpful information that is free of charge to the customer. This way the customer remains engaged and as happy as they can be during the hold time.

To optimize the filler we recommend providing answers to common questions, pointers about your company’s experience and simply fun facts. Whatever can keep the customer engaged. Do not use repeated recordings apologizing for the hold time or anything that may disengage the customer.

Note: This is not a time to do sales pitches.


Make sure that the hold is as brief as possible. You have to be considerate; the customer doesn’t want to be listening to the same information and music during the wait. If they have to wait longer than necessary you will just have an annoyed customer.

Consider contacting your local professional answering service today to track and manage calls. They will be able to provide you and your customers a fresh method of communication that has never been more efficient!

Using a Quality Answering Service

Using a Quality Answering Service

Your clients are important, and though it may be another expense, a quality answering service is worth your while. If you have an answering service provider that is taking emergency calls or after hours calls it is important to make sure you are getting your money’s worth and more importantly, your customer’s. Here are some pointers to take into consideration when selecting or using a quality answering service.

The Vision of Quality Service

Quality answering services are ones that not only act as your trusted provider, but as your partner. They will want to see your communication needs being met. You will know that they are true quality when they are proactive in major changes and help to provide feedback to optimize any additional alterations that need to be made.

It’s not all about communication. You have to think about the overall characteristics of the answering service provider as well.


You know you have found quality services when your answering service holds frequent trainings. The more in-depth training an agent has, the better equipped they are to handle situations and questions.

If you haven’t selected a provider yet, consider how much value a professionally trained associate can bring to the table. You won’t want just any old answering service; select a provider that has experience in your industry. Think of it this way: their employees are your own human capital. Find the best fit for your company.

Customers Satisfied

If your answering service (or prospective) has a track record, check it out! You will want to verify and make sure that their clients are happy with the services and the callers are happy as well. If the answering service can provide details and statistics (client sales for example) you will want to look into that as well.

It is important to have all the facts and go above and beyond for your clients. If you are ready to discover what quality answering services means for your business, call us today! It will be worth your while.

Call Patching Services

Call Patching Services

Call patching is the perfect solution for businesses to continuously as call loads grow on larger scales. Some businesses may even find that a variety of customers need immediate attention that their normal telephone answering services simply cannot provide. With call patching you can optimize customer devotion while implementing a hardy solution.

What is Call Patching?

Normally when your answering service, equipped with skilled operators, receives a call from one of your customers they are able answer common questions and assist that customer the best that they can. Of course, there are times when customers call with an immediate need and need YOUR professional assistance.

Call patching allows you to designate specific problems, situations, and customers that should be redirected to your personal line. Here’s how it works: your patching guidelines will notify the virtual receptionist to place the caller on hold. They dial the number you’ve provided for forwarding the calls. The answering service agent will explain, to the contact provided who the caller is and how the contact can help them before connecting the two calls. If you or the contact cannot be reached the caller will be reconnected to operator and will be asked to provide a message.

Intrigued? Here are the Benefits

  • Privacy: As a business owner you may feel hesitant to give customers your personal line or home phone number. With call patching you can have calls directed to your home phone, or cell phone while protecting your anonymity. Callers will never know your number.

  • Flexibility: You have the power to decide which situations you would like to handle in immediate manners. This way your customers get the service they deserve and meet regardless of the dilemma.

  • Personal Touch: Let’s say your customer cannot be patched and is reconnected to the operator to leave a message; your customer is still receiving personalized services. They will feel relieved to know that someone is taking care of the situation instead of dealing with an automated system.

When customers need to reach you with an emergency, call patching can improve your response time and help you manage calls in a way that suits your needs. By providing availability to your customers at any time of the day or night you can win over their hearts in less than 3 rings.

The Impacts of Being Bilingual

The Impacts of Being Bilingual

Language is a leading factor in communication. In the year 2011, the U.S. Census Bureau conducted a survey illustrating that of the 291.5 million people aged 5 and over, 60.6 million people spoke a language other than English at home. It is crucial to be equipped with bilingual employees in order to builda more prepared and effective customer service team.

In total there are over 100 languages are spoken in the US. The 2012 U.S. Census report states that Spanish is the most common language among non-native English speakers. According to the University of Georgia’s Selig Center for Economic Growth, within a span of ten years the Hispanic spending power in the U.S. had climbed 118%,to $452 billion dollars, and continues to climb.

Nielsen reports that the Latino buying power in the US will increase from approximately 1 trillion dollars in 2010 to 1.5 trillion by this year, 2015.

Imagine how much your business can benefit when you can offer these increasingly essential bilingual services. Bilingual employees offer immeasurable benefits to your business. Consider the following:

  • Excellent communication skills

    Bilingual employees have been found to conduct exquisite communication and listening skills. Researchers from Northwestern University have found that people that speak several languages can process information more quickly and efficiently than those that only know one language.

    These cognitive benefits facilitate bilingual employees in distinguishing relevant and irrelevant information. As well as act in a more alert manner, offering a quicker ability to deal with ambiguities and resolve conflicts.

  • Better at Multi-tasking

    Recent studies suggest that bilingual employees have advanced mental skills since they are constantly excising their brains and developing brain power.

    Dr. Bialystok at York University in Toronto states that jugglingthe comprehension of two languages boosts one of the most important parts of the brain known as the executive control system. This concept has as well been supported by the National Institutes of Health which funded a study which found that people that speak more than one language have an easier time switching between two tasks. Furthermore, switching between tasks indicates anability to multi-task.

  • Reach International Arena

    Bilingual employees can be a valuable member(s) of your staff because they can reach a larger variety of clientele. Employees that speak two languages can usually differentiate regional interests and customers. They provide an open door to not only localizing services but geo-targeting to a larger pool of possible customers.

It has been said that bilingual employees offer a certain cultural experience that offers a higher tolerance and open-mindedness.

Over the next ten years, 70 percent of employers are predicted to search for Spanish-speaking and bilingual employees. Can you see why?

Interested in taking the necessary strides to becoming a bilingual company? For bilingual assistance in customer service contact us today!

Emergency Answering Service Must Haves

Emergency Answering Service Must Haves

It is undeniable that businesses may run into the forces of nature. Your firm may be located in a hurricane zone, an active fault, or in a tornado valley, but what are you going to do when actual disaster hits? An answering service designed to handle emergency calls may offer the solution you are looking for while you are picking up the aftermath.

Every call that is missed, is a job lost. Here are the must haves that your answering service should be equipped with in case you encounter an emergency:

  • 24/7 Answering

    You will want a firm to represent you during the down times that meets customer demands. When natural disasters hit and emergencies affectboth companies and their clients, customers could be calling at all hours of the day and week. They will try to contact you when it is most convenient for them. Everyone affected by emergencies will be trying to work through the situation they may have been dealt, which means their time is valuable.

  • Bilingual Support

    During emergencies we rely on those that are closest to us, to work through our to-do recovery lists. It may be the client, the client’s family member, or a friend of the client.Bilingual staff help your company to be prepared to assistance anyone that may be calling in regards to your services.

  • Appointment Scheduling

    Chances are when an emergency hits you won’t be able to hold appointments that same day. In fact, your client may cancel, but how are you going to control the flow of calls, appointments and planning for recovery all at the same time? Answering Services that are able to provide appointment scheduling are the perfect solution to your concerns. They can allow you to focus on what you need to focus on, while still keeping the company’sattention directed on those that matter the most; the customers.

  • Back-up to Your Back-up

    If you have been providedwith the assistance of an answering service, it important to make sure that your backup has a backup. See if your answering service has backup generators, data backups, battery backups and the vital, as well as reliable, dial tone provider and internet provider.

To ensure company growth and customer satisfaction during a catastrophe, contact your local answering service to see if they can assist and protect your customers while controlling company flow in an emergency.

Professional Phone Skills

Professional Phone Skills

A customer contacts your firm; their first impression of your corporation is typically made by the receptionist or representative. It is their job to uphold a professional appearance throughout the entirety of their job tasks. Answering the phone is just one of the many tasks in which they are assigned to, but it is the most important.

Some representatives are born with the natural talent to engage clients where it matters most. While others have to work a bit more to effortlessly come off as friendly and helpful. Here is a guideline of professional phone skills to help those strive at providing quality assistance.

  1. Timely Manner
    Whether it is a receptionist or virtual office assistant taking calls, it is important to always be on time and answer the call within the first two-to-three rings. A customer that calls and allows the phone to continuously ring is probably not going to leave a voicemail. This means that new business is potentially lost and your reliability has sunk. The more reliable the business, the better chance customers will use your services.
  2. Be Polite
    Every customer that calls is a VIP customer. You want to greet and assist the 1000th caller the same as you did with the very first client you ever spoke to; professionally and pleasantly.

    The top five phrases, from 2014, that customers hope to hear from your company include:

    • Let me take care of that for you.
    • I’m not sure, but I’ll find out for you.
    • I’m sorry.
    • Thank you for contacting us. How can I help you?
    • I see you’ve been a customer for many years. Thank you for your loyalty.

    These are simple phases, but the reality of it is, your client is a human being and they should be treated as though their business matters to you.

  3. Listen Carefully and Stay Organized
    This skill is key to success. Clients do not call to get the run-around. Make sure to take detailed notes and practice active listening. Make sure to focus on what the caller is saying and determine what the best action is, whether it is to transfer the customer to another department or quickly assist right-then-and-there.
  4. Communicate Effectively
    Do not speak to quickly nor to slowly. Do not mumble; rather speak with confidence and clarity. Do not use slang words or company jargon. Adjust your tone and pitch to ensure that you are willing to help and serve this customer. As well, a skill that you can easily implement is to speak with enthusiasm and at a comfortable pace.
  5. Verify
    If you need clarification or are taking down important information, always take a moment to repeat what was indicated and verify if it was incorrect. This includes the phone number, address, credit card information, current issue and so on, depending on situation.
  6. Rules of Hold
    Before placing a customer on hold make sure to ask the customer for permission. If the client agrees to the hold, the customer is not meant to bewaiting for long, extended periods of time. In fact, if you are planning to have the client on hold for even more than 2 minutes, you should ask the customer if it is more convenient to call the customer back once you know more information. One minute can feel like forever, and a client’s time is precious; this is an important skill to always implement.
  7. Thank you
    A skill used in professional etiquette is to always thank the customer.
  8. Best Face forward
    Customers want to feel that they are welcomed. Put a smile on, even while on a phone. It is guaranteed that that small amount of positive energy will be transmitted through the phone line.

It is important to go above and beyond for a client regardless if it is on the phone or in person. Follow this guideline of professional telephone skills to boost the customer experience. For further assistance in providing an outstanding first impression to your clients, contact us today for your free quote!

After Hour Calls

After Hour Answering Services

The concept of the telephone has been around for hundreds of years. It has beenembodied in our culture and lives. We pick up the phone to call our Grandmothers, our friends and our service providers. It does not matter what time of the day it is, we just do it. This is why it is so important to have relevant information and personalized sales interactions 24 hours a day, 7days a week.

Customers want instant solutions and results. Think about it, you do not call the doctor’s office to potentially receive a call a few days later in regards to your inquire. In fact, many customers come to the conclusion it is not worth the wait and do not leave a voicemail. Regardless of the hour of the call, a customer expects a speedy and personal response.

Managing Expectations

For many companies it is incredibly difficult to keep the business open 24/7. Which is not issue, it just means it is time to find an alternative to please clients. Some options include automated workflow, social media channels, alerts and apps that can help you keep an eye on customer activity. Though, the most productive form of managing expectations is through outsourcing an answering service.

Businesses that choose to outsource an answering service manage expectations by developing a service level agreement. A contract, between the service provider and representing telecommunication company, that defines the level of service expected from the service provider. It establish a mutual understanding in capacities such as services, areas prioritized, responsibilities, guarantees, and warranties provided by the service provider.

Furthermore, the representing answering service should take several measures in order to go above and beyond the expectations of the service provider. After all, the clients of the supplier are clients of the answering service.

The service provider took an innovative stand and hired an answering service to meet customer expectations and offer communication services 24/7. Now it is vital for the telecommunication services to make their own impressions on the customer.

These representatives must be clear. Without hesitations, or confusion the employee must learn to speak with passion, understanding and clarity in tone and message. When delivering their message they need to keep it simple. Too much information or too little information could lose a customer right off the bat.

More specific measures such as, changing it up daily, and reviewing should as well be taken by the outsourced answering service. Representatives with the answering service need to provide the specific information expected by the service provider. Though, they should not be talking to a client as though they are reading from a script. So in order to measure the success of the representative, within their own creativity as well as meeting standards, their calls need to be reviewed daily.

To conclude, it is vital to be honest and thorough with your representatives and customers. Provide them that in which they can expect. With the help of an answering service and utilizing these specific measures, it is guaranteed that a company will meet customer expectations 24/7. Call us today for a free quote!

Trends in the Industry: Rising Customer Expectations

Trends in the Industry: Rising Customer Expectations

Think about the product or service that you are offering. What matters to your customers when they call? They don’t demand the impossible; they just expect the exceedingly reasonable. Customer expectations are rising and with an outstanding service performance, they can come into equilibrium and be satisfied.

Nearly 59% of all customers will test a new company or brand because they were not satisfied with the services provided from the last one they were using. 86% of customers are actually willing to pay for a more vigorous customer service. This means that they want to be treated with respect, be listened and not ignored, and don’t want to be transferred from one department to another.

Customers will use a company that not only provides a good product or service, but that also goes above and beyond to provide them the best customer service. That should not be so hard to accomplish, but in fact, a lot can go wrong during an exchange of information and/or sales processes.

Follow these steps to be able to fulfill your customers’ expectations:

  1. Understand their needs:

    Identify the customer expectations and understand that these are constantly changing, developing and evolving.  They may include speedy, efficient and accurate services; prompt responses to inquiries; trained and friendly staff able to attend their requests immediately.

    Nowadays, based on Dan Pink’s ABCs of selling, sales are not all about the cash, but also about the commitment with the client which includes attunement, buoyancy and clarity.

  2. Reconsider after the fact:

    After your sale has taken place, go back to the customer and ask about their product or service satisfaction. Review the situation to see if the representative was able to provide everything that was promised and was actually doable.

  3. Apologize if necessary:

    Errors may happen from time to time; when this is the case, be honest and apologize to the client. Follow up with them and hopefully save any sale that may have been lost; remember you need to solve their problem and they must be the priority of your business.

When customer expectations are met and their satisfaction is reached, there are various benefits: they become loyal clients, your company receives more referrals, you get additional business via word of mouth, and sales increase.

For further assistance, call us today for a free quote to see how we can improve your customer service from the moment we receive their calls.

Secure Messaging

Secure Messaging

Secure messaging is a server created to protect sensitive data and to provide an agreement with industry regulations such as HIPAA. Responsive Answering Service offers HIPAA Compliant Medical Answering; with confidential and secure new patient screening, 24/7 emergency relays, and medical appointment scheduling solutions, it sets a new standard for Health Care Communications.
Responsive Answering Service is fully HIPAA compliant, and protects your patients’ privacy with the latest and most innovative technology to keep your information secure. We are constantly upgrading our system to include the newest advances in software security Information. In addition, all representatives are professionally trained on privacy protection and HIPAA compliance.
We are a certified partner with “miSecureMessages”, which is a powerful secure text messaging and paging application built for Android™, Apple® and BlackBerry® mobile devices. miSecureMessages replaces paging and SMS technology and enables HIPAA-compliant; offering a two-way instant communication using the miSecureMessages App to easily reply.
The use of these secure messages offers many different benefits such as: instantaneous message delivery; completely secure messages; confirmation and reports of delivered, read, and replies messages; fast and convenience use on any smartphone; elimination of errors; eliminates pager expense, and adds security to keep your information safe.

The steps to enroll to a secure messaging platform are very easy, just log into your account with your username and password, type your message, select the recipient and send it over a secure SSL-connection or via other equally protecting methods. One secure message can be sent to different recipients with different types of secure delivery. Secure Messages are encrypted bi-directionally, and stored on an internet server, which allows achieving the data centrally and providing added security.
Secure messaging is used in many business areas, such as, financial institutions, insurance companies, public services, health organizations and others.

Whistleblower Hotline

Whistleblower Hotline Services

The Whistleblower Hotline is a system to record and follow up on complaints about internal accounting controls. The Whistleblower Hotline, is a fully-programmed solution, that helps companies take action on innumerable important matters before they escalate into problems. Responsive Answering Service offers this mechanism in order to provide customer’s employees with a safe and secure means of reporting incidents, without the risk of any intervention or manipulation.
Complaints may come from employees, customers or vendors. Many accounting organizations recommend companies to utilize an external hotline service to receive, analyze and report on complaints that may affect the company’s integrity; therefore, the motivation and participation of employees making these types of reports is essential.
Responsive Answering Service can work with you and establish a confidential hotline for your employees, customers or vendors to report expected problems. The Whistleblower hotlines offers availability 24 hours a day, 7 days a week via phone or fax using a toll-free number, via the Internet on a page customized to you or by an anonymous email address. It is totally confidential, and also anonymous, if requested; this fact allows employees, customers and vendors to report suspected problems without fear of retaliation.
Responsive Answering Service has highly trained representatives who pass a certification program to use the right interview techniques to get accurate and un-biased complaints. Responsive Answering Service sets up confidential methods to report complaints to your management or executive committee. In addition, we follow up on complaints and we report the results to you.
The reports are entered directly in a secure server to prevent any possible security breach. They are only available for authorized individuals in charge of investigating the incident. The Whistleblower hotline is designed to ensure that any report is shared with implicated parties or their subordinates.

Direct Response and E-commerce

Direct Response and E-commerce
