When a caller calls your business, whether they are a supplier, potential customer or existing customer, you should definitely have a standard of answering the phone in order to showcase the best customer service possible.
However, if you work from home sometimes you may miss certain calls, causing the callers to become irate that they can never get through to you. You may also not have a separate home and business line so you possibly answer the phone with a simple “hello” rather than your business name.
This gives off the wrong impression of your company, so some freelancers and at-home businesses choose to hire a virtual address and a business number which is sent straight to a call centre.
Call centres have changed in recent years. They are not what they used to be, they are quick at responding and provide at-home businesses with a larger, more professional presence.
With a call handling service, Your callers will be directed to the call centre, not knowing they are getting through to the centre – they will think they have called you directly. The call is then transferred or a message taken as appropriate, much like having your own virtual PA.
A virtual address is a service which can run alongside the call answering service which means that post is sent to a professional, business looking address rather than your home address. This post is then redirected onto you.
The benefits of this is that your customers feel they are dealing with a really professional company, and you can even set up several virtual addresses so your company looks as though it has a presence in major cities like Manchester, London and so on. This again gives your customers and potential clients confidence they are dealing with a professional company.
Sometimes it can be hard to know how to reflect this “professional image” to your customers. With a virtual address combined with a telephone answering service, all your calls are answered properly and you project a competent company and brand image.
