Month: September 2016

How Should your Live Call Answering Service Identify Itself

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Using a live call answering service such as TOUCH Communications offers business owners a number of advantages, yet there always seems to be that touchy question as to whether or not they should have TOUCH’s CSRs identify themselves as working for an answering service. There is no one right answer to this question – there are good reasons for an answering service to say they are an answering service as well as many good reasons for them not to.

In the following article, we will discuss the advantages of each.

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Reasons NOT to let your customers know that they are dealing with an answering service

Many business owners do not want their customers to know that they are dealing with a live call answering service provider because they feel doing so makes service seem less personal. They may also wish to give the impression that they are a larger business than they actually are. Believing that a business is open and available to take calls 24/7 can give many customers a sense of security and trust in the company that they are dealing with.

In general, if a CSR needs to collect personal information from a client, they will have an easier time doing so, if the customer feels that they have reached the business rather than a live call answering service.

Reasons TO let your customers know that they are dealing with an answering service

The professional CSRs at TOUCH Communications can do an amazing job at representing any company, but they are never going to be as knowledgeable about your business and your staff as your own employees.

Your clients would have a lot higher expectations knowing they are dealing with your staff, which would lead to higher levels of frustration if your staff can’t deliver the level of expertise that was expected. However, with a live call answering service, your clients would be more understanding and wouldn’t question the reliability of your company.

Is there a middle ground?

There are a few – but no really great ones.

You may have CSRs answer the call with a script such as “Hello, you’ve reached the after-hours receptionist of Acme Corp, do you require urgent service … “. The advantage of this is that it lets the caller know your business is prepared to handle after-hours emergencies. The disadvantage is that they will probably be able to figure out that they’ve reached an answering service.

Another approach could be to have the CSR answer with a script like, “Thank you for calling Acme Corp. You’ve reached the off-site receptionist, how may I help you.” The advantage here is that the caller feels more like they’ve reached someone at the company. The disadvantage is that they may still expect more expertise or knowledge to be offered than a call centre CSR is able to give.

Nope, I still want my callers to think they’ve reached my office

Should you decide you still want your callers to believe they are speaking with your staff when they reach as TOUCH CSR, there are a number of things that you can do to help make the caller experience better:

  • Provide complete information when you set up your account through well-written FAQs
  • Only have CSRs collect basic information from callers
  • Have stock answers such as, “sorry, I don’t have access to that information but I’ll have Alan give you a call and answer all of your questions when he gets back to the office.”
  • For more complex calls, have the option for CSRs to transfer the call to someone in your organization.
  • Try to cover all likely scenarios by providing a complete list of employees and explaining which types of calls go to whom.

If you’ve never worked with a live call answering service before, it can take some getting used to, but with a little planning, it can take your business to new heights of efficiency. If you’re still unsure as to how best to set up your account, contact the professionals at TOUCH today. We can help you come up with the plan that is right for your business.

The Critical Components of Live Call Answering for Your Dental Practice

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Owners of dental practices understand how hectic and busy thing can get around the office. In addition to your regular patients and emergency appointments, people are constantly calling in to schedule, reschedule and cancel appointments. While patients who are physically present in your office are clearly priority, you also can’t afford to ignore those who are calling your office. Every missed call can mean lost revenue and potentially losing a patient.

receptionist at dental office answers the phone

A call answering service can help free up time from your office’s own staff so they can be of greater assistance to your in-person patients, answering questions, helping with insurance forms, etc. A service such as that offered by TOUCH Communications can help ensure that your dental practice never misses another call.

So what qualities should you be looking for in a live call answering service for your dental practice? Let’s review:

24/7 Service

Having 24/7 answering is a great way to give additional value to your patients – especially those with busy lives or those with erratic work schedules. It is also a way that your practice can offer help in the case of a dental emergency – by forwarding patients’ calls to a number that you assign.

Secure Networks to Protect Privacy

As a medical professional, protecting your patients’ health information is of utmost importance. For most, this means being able to call in and check voicemails through the normal means. When selecting an answering service for your dental practice, you need to look for a service that can either provide a secure web portal or encrypted text messaging.

Appointment Scheduling Services

In any medical practice, by far the largest volume of calls come from those who are scheduling or changing their appointments. For this reason, it is critical to work with a call answering service that can manage a calendar for you. At TOUCH Communications, our professional CSRs use a cloud-based computer program that allows them to see your availability and input, cancel or change client appointments as necessary. Again, this frees up a considerable amount of time for your own staff to assist patients who are in your office.

Personalized Scripting

Especially when it comes to any kind of medical information, you want your callers to feel that they can trust the person on the other end of the phone. By using personalized scripting that is specific to your practice, TOUCH’s CSRs can help your patients to feel more at ease and comfortable sharing the necessary information. Be wary of any service that uses stock scripts as these can feel cold and impersonal to the caller and negatively affect their perception of your practice. With a personalized script designed just for your practice, you can be confident that our professional CSRs are accurately representing you and your brand.

If you are ready to take your dental practice’s customer service to the next level, then live call answering from TOUCH Communications can help.  Give Us a Call today to learn more or visit us on our Facebook page.

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