Rather than paying employees to stand by phones that may or may not ring, companies can partner with a telephone answer service and put on-call operators in touch with customers only when they’re needed.
Plenty of businesses keep at least one on-call employee after regular business hours. Home-repair industries—like plumbing, electrical and HVAC—regularly handle late-night emergency calls. Legal firms often target late-night television watchers. IT support services handle computer emergencies. And for doctors and pharmacists, keeping someone available at all times is literally a matter of life and death.
The problem with keeping someone available at all times: It’s expensive. An employee, standing by for calls that may or may not come in, costs money.
Telephone answer services are much more affordable. Remote operators can be available throughout the night, during weekends or on holidays, yet a company only pays for incoming calls.
What’s more, answering services are efficient. Virtual receptionists act as intelligent filters, separating calls that genuinely need immediate assistance from calls that can wait until the next business day. If technicians aren’t available, the answering service’s operator can call, text or email until they’re reached, or call back-up phone numbers. Each call is recorded, letting businesses confirm that calls are being handled to their standards.
In a perfect world, emergency situations would arise only during business hours. In the real world, on-call employees need to be ready any time. Partnering with an answering service adds one more layer of efficiency—without the extra cost.
