3 Reasons You Should Hire Someone to Answer Your Phone
Recently, I helped one of my clients get their business to the first page of Google. When this happened, calls really started picking up for him as people searched online for his services in their local area. He would be out on a job and constantly have his work interrupted for a new customer phone call. Even though these calls were coming in while he was out on a job, this was definitely a good thing! More calls = more customers = more money!
The problem is, when you’re out in the field, I know you can’t answer every phone call. Especially if you’re driving.
So how do you work AND respond to new phone calls at the same time? Sure, you can let it go to voicemail, or answer and tell them you can call them back later. But a lot of issues happens when you do this:
People are impatient and will probably call around to find another company to schedule with.
A lot of people won’t work with a business that doesn’t answer their phone the first time.
It’s easy to become organized and forget to call people back at the end of the day.
Let’s talk about three MAJOR reasons you should hire someone to take your calls:
Converting Calls to Customers
When someone calls to inquire about your business, they may have a lot of questions. They will probably want to know when you’re available to book, how much your services cost, and what your processes are. If you’re out on a job site, you don’t necessarily have the time to go through all of those details. And you’re definitely not in front of your work calendar to put them on your schedule.
So do you just say you’ll have to call them back? You could, but the chances of them finding another company to work with while they wait on your call is very high.
It is very normal for people to call several businesses before they pick one to work with. They are gathering quotes or looking for a specific time frame. But one thing that is important as these people call around, is that you are one of the businesses that answers their call. The more calls you let go to voicemail, the less customers you are going to get. It’s that simple.
If you are serious about growing your business, investing in someone to answer your phone is a worthwhile investment to make. And if you can’t afford a full-time employee, you can consider hiring someone part-time, delegating it to your spouse, or using affordable answering service options!
By doing this, you can ensure that when customers call your business, they can get their questions answered right then and even put down on your schedule, without you having to do a thing! When they can get everything done in the first contact they have with you, you are far more likely to convert that call into a paying customer.
Staying Organized
Like I mentioned before — when you are out in the field, it’s nearly impossible to stay organized when you have dozens of calls coming in. You’re left jotting things down on pieces of paper in your truck. And we all know what happens then…things just get lost.
Staying organized is essential to effectively running your business. By hiring someone to take your calls, they can be responsible for taking down all the information you need. Even if they can’t answer all of their questions, they can get you their name, phone number, address, and all of the details of the work they need done, so you know exactly how to approach them when you call them back!
Not only does staying organized help your business out, but it resonates well with your potential customers.
Here is a personal example:
My husband lost his car keys a couple of weeks ago. We called a local locksmith to come out and make us a new key. What I really appreciated about their company was their customer service. First, a woman took down my information and told me a local locksmith would call me back within 20 minutes to discuss pricing and schedule a time to come out. Sure enough, 10 minutes later, a locksmith called and I asked him all of the questions I had. We schedule for him to come out. He arrived and took care of our key in 30 minutes. Not even 15 minutes after he had left, I got a call asking how their service was. What this company did was the epitome of organization! And from now on, they are going to be the company I call anytime I have a lock or key issue.
The point is, keeping organized benefits your business. You book more clients when you’re not forgetting who called or where you put their information. But more than that, it builds loyal customers when done the right way.
You Can Focus on Other Things!
Answering the phone is an important part of running a business. But I get it — you might just be too busy to handle them all.
By assigning phones and scheduling to someone else, you can focus on your trade. Phone calls take a lot of time and energy. And some of us just don’t have a good voice for pleasant phone conversations. So leave that task to someone else so you can focus on other important elements of running your business.
Let’s wrap up!
If you can afford it, I encourage you to invest in someone to answer your phones. If done right, it will help you grow your business in wonderful ways. The more you can delegate to others, the more you can scale your business.
If it’s not in the budget right now, don’t worry. But DO focus on answering your phone as much as possible. Keep a notebook with you at all times so you can stay organized and follow up with them as soon as you possibly can.
