Month: November 2015

Contracting a 24-Hour Call Centre for Your Business

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Being accessible to your customers whenever they need you is a great way to gain an edge over your competition. But realistically speaking, it’s not very practical to hire a night shift if you only have a small team; or to sleep with your cell phone under your pillow if you only receive nighttime calls a few times a week. The solution to this problem is making use of a 24-hour call centre. This way, your calls will always be answered and your customers will always be served no matter when they decide to call you.

Phone Unanswered

Why 24-hour access is important

In today’s digital age, customers have grown accustomed to having instant access to just about everything. They can make purchases online regardless of whether it is 3 am or Christmas day. This desire for instant service has spilled over into telephone service as well. If a caller gets a voicemail instead of a real, live person, there is a good chance she will simply hang up and call your competition rather than leaving a message.

Another reason to consider offering a 24-hour call centre for your customers is that some calls are urgent and service can’t wait. For example, if you run a medical office it’s important for people to get assistance in the event of a medical emergency; or if you’re a plumber, you’ll want your customers to have access to you in the event of a middle-of-the-night flooded basement.

And then there’s the fact that some of your target customer base just might not be able to easily call you during the day. They may work odd hours or may even be calling from a different time zone. These calls may not be emergencies – they may simply be calling to set up an appointment or to get more information about a product they saw on your e-commerce site. If your business is accessible to them, while your competitors’ businesses are not, that can give you a huge competitive advantage.

Who can benefit from 24-hour call centre service?

While just about any type of business can benefit from this type of service, here a few types of business that find it especially useful.

  • E-commerce sites – If you sell any products online, your retail operation is accessible to the entire world – and, therefore, all the different time zones. While customers may be able to purchase items online, some customers will invariably have questions and want to talk to a real person.
  • IT Services and Computer Equipment – the 9 to 5 workday is quickly becoming a thing of the past. If you supply corporate clients with software and computer equipment, it will pay off to always have someone accessible who can offer support.
  • Medical Offices – whether someone is calling to book an appointment or is having a medical emergency, 24-hour call centre CSRs can help them – booking their appointment in an online calendar or helping them get the emergency service that they need.
  • Tradespeople – Especially if you’d like to offer 24-hour emergency services for plumbing, electrical, etc., then you’ll need someone to answer those emergency calls. Since these calls may not come in every night, it makes sense to use 24-hour call centre service rather than paying a dedicated staff person to man the phones.

Making use of 24-hour call centre service will let your customers know that you care and it’s a great way to set yourself apart from the competition. To learn more about this affordable and convenient way to gain a competitive edge, contact Touch Communications today.

Improve your Brand Identity with Touch Communications

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With technology evolving the way it is, it’s getting easier and easier for smaller businesses to compete with larger ones. Regardless of whether your business is a young tech start-up in your business partner’s mom’s basement or you have a small operation in a downtown office or shop, one way to improve your brand identity and make your business appear more professional is to use the services of a call centre such as those offered by Touch Communications.

laptop and cup of coffee

Let’s examine some of the ways call centre services can improve your image:

Customers don’t have to know you don’t have a fancy office

There are many types of businesses where the customer never has to visit a brick and mortar location in order to get service. These businesses include website design firms, tradespeople, real estate agents and several others. Typically what customers will observe first is your company website and how they are received and treated when they call your company.

Make a good impression in these two areas and it will leave a positive brand image in the minds of your customers.

Small staff? No problem

As a small business, you might not always have enough manpower to answer every call that comes to your company. It is likely more important for your people to be out on sales calls, or otherwise dealing face to face with clients or working on projects rather than answering calls from people who may just be kicking tires.

When you use call centre services from Touch Communications, it frees your staff up to perform these other duties. Our professional CSRs can provide callers with basic information, set up appointments through a web-based portal, and even forward emergency calls to an assigned staff person in your organization.

This helps boost your brand image both in the eyes your callers who are dealt with in a friendly and professional manner as well as in the eyes of your face to face customers who will have the full attention of your staff.

24/7 Service

Most businesses today simply don’t have the capacity to be available for callers 24/7 – and this is especially true of smaller organizations. Despite this fact, customers and potential customers want information when they want it, and many will not bother to leave a message should their call be forwarded to voicemail.

With call centre services from Touch Communication, however, it is like having someone in the office all the time who is ready to take your customers’ calls. Your callers will appreciate the fact that someone is there to answer their questions, listen to their concerns or book their appointments.

But how will customers feel about getting forwarded to a call centre?

That’s the truly beautiful part about all of this. They won’t know! When you contract call centre services from Touch Communications, your unanswered calls get transferred to our call centre, where our professional CSRs will answer the call using a script that you provide.

Our CSRs will have the ability to perform a number of other functions decided by you – such as appointment booking, or transferring certain calls to your cell phone. From the customer’s perspective, they are dealing entirely with your business.

And it is this reliable, professional, and friendly service that will help to set your brand apart from the competition. So if you’re ready to take the next steps in growing your business, contact us and our team will be ready to help you get started.

Using a Call Centre for the Holiday Rush

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As the holiday season approaches, many businesses are facing their busiest time of year. To cope with the added demand, companies are stocking up on inventory, hiring seasonal employees and looking for ways to maximize their efficiency.

One way to manage the extra calls is to employ the call centre services offered by Touch Communications. Especially during this holiday season, you want to ensure that you never miss a call – let us explain how this service can help you.

Woman on Phone at Christmas

Seasonal call centre services

At Touch Communications, we have a professional team of customer service representatives dedicated to ensuring that your business provides the best customer experience possible. When a customer calls your business number, and you are not able to take the call, it gets automatically forwarded to one of our CSRs.

Our people will answer the call just as you would at your own business with a script provided by you. From the customer’s perspective, it is just as if they are speaking to one of your own employees. We can provide basic information, set up appointments or even forward the call to a designated person in your organization.

Better than voicemail

Some business owners may think that they don’t require call answering services because they already have a voicemail system in place. But callers who get put through to voicemail are less likely to become customers. More often than not, they will simply hang up and call one of your competitors.

After all, when you’re busy putting up the lights and decorating the tree, buying presents for the kids, and trying to organize turkey dinners with extended family, who has time to sit around and wait for someone to return your call?

And with our call centre services, callers can speak to a live person seven days a week at any hour.

Give your customers more face time

Especially if you operate a business that involves serving your customers face to face, then utilizing call centre services this holiday season can be a big help.

Instead of keeping your employees busy talking on the phone, hand that job over to our qualified CSRs. It’s much better for your own employees to be on the floor helping customers who are visiting your place of business. Whether your customers are visiting you because they are doing their Christmas shopping, getting their home ready for guests, doing winter maintenance or any other task that becomes more common this time of year, they will appreciate the extra attention they receive from you and your staff.

Meanwhile, the potential customers who call in and receive service from Touch Communications’ call centre will feel just as taken care of and valued.

Unsurpassed service – even if it’s just for a season

At Touch Communications, we are known for the high quality call services that we provide to our customers every day of the year.  But even if your business only requires call centre services seasonally for a few months – or even a few weeks – you can expect to receive the same professional service and expertise.

The holiday rush shouldn’t be sending your customers to voicemail. Call us today and let us put together a plan for your company.