How Answering Services for Small Businesses Drive New Revenue

Posted May 9, 2012 in business call answering, small business by admin

We all know it, but small business owners seem to know this best – The ability to manage your time effectively is the difference between success and failure. When you ‘wear a lot of hats’, you don’t have the luxury of extra time to spend in any one particular area. You know your main focus has to be on revenue producing activities, but there are also several other process and overhead activities that require your attention in order to keep things running smoothly.

Divide and Conquer

Time Management 101 tells us to divide big tasks down into manageable chunks and to schedule our calls for a specific time each day. But for most service driven small businesses, attempts to improve time management fall short, specifically because of answering phone calls.

When the phone rings, you have to answer it because chances are it is a client with an issue that you need to address or a prospect opportunity for new business. The schedule of activities you had planned for the day are all-too-often derailed by these calls.

A Better Balance

We have been providing answering services for small businesses for many years, and of all the benefits the service provides, the most repeated response we get from small businesses is ‘I can’t believe how much better our time management is’. By focusing less on ‘fire-drill’ phone calls and more time on revenue generating activities, clients have been able to drive new revenue and improve client satisfaction.

Where the Savings Come From

The large majority of phone calls can be broken down into four groups:

A client calling in with a need
A prospect seeking information to determine if you are a fit for them
A vendor or associate that in some way provides support to your business
Someone trying to sell you something that you may or may not be interested in

When a client or prospect makes the effort to call in, they want two things: First they want to talk to a live person (not voice-mail!); second they want their issue addressed or at least guided to the next step in resolving their issue or questions.

By using a quality answering service, you always have your calls answered by a live person and you always have them guided to the next step. Customizing your answering service program enables you to have all inbound calls prioritized based on your specifications so they are properly routed to you or your employees, in whatever method you choose. This can save anywhere from a few to several hours per week, per employee. If you are looking for ways to focus more attention on revenue generating activities, investigating answering services or upgrading from your current provider may be a good move.

Want to learn more? Download our free guide: Free:10 Tips For Choosing A Telephone Answering Service

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