Using an answering service can have a tremendous positive impact on your business. It can help your staff work smarter other than working harder. The best answering service does more than just picking the phone when it rings. They help grow your business. They simplify communication and help your company create a reputation of offering professional service. An answering service also enhances customer satisfaction.
Although Chicago has many answering services, none are similar. Each has its way of doing things. To find the best partner, you should conduct thorough research to find one who shares your vision and mission. You don’t want to place your clients in the hands of anyone, only in the hands of the best.
If you are in Chicago, Best Call Center is your answering service provider of choice. At Best Call Center, we have been in the industry for a long time. We have worked with numerous companies in different fields and have gained a wealth of knowledge. Do you want to work with the best answering service provider in Chicago? Look no further. Give us a call today!
Below are the features you should look for when choosing a Chicago answering service provider.
Choose One That Offers Flexible Service Options
You require flexibility as a business owner, manager, or entrepreneur. Due to the nature of any business, you may require the services of an answering service at some time more than at other times. It’s critical to have the ability to use the services of an answering service according to your business's demands. For example, if you are a gift supplier, you expect more traffic during the festive season. Therefore, the answering service you choose should handle the increased workload during these peak seasons.
The best answering service should also offer flexible hours and contracts. Maybe you want the services only after hours or on the weekends. You may also require the services for a limited period. The answering services should be flexible enough to offer these services to fit your schedule.
Use a Professional Chicago Call Answering Service
The purpose of using a call center in Chicago is to give your customers a human response each time they call. You should use a call center with professional staff such that your clients never realize they are dealing with call center agents. With experienced agents, you will create a reputation of professionalism which is critically important for any business.
To help the call agents sound professional and represent your brand correctly to your customers, you should offer them a customized call script. The call script highlights your company’s goal and vision. Using the script, every customer will get the same information no matter the call agent who responds. It’s critical to have a standardized script to avoid creating confusion in your callers’ minds about your company’s services and products.
You should outline your company’s policies, procedures, and business tone. If the call center agents don’t understand your mission in-depth, they may fail to represent your brand to your clients properly.
Should Use State Of The Art And Most Recent Technology
You should choose a call center that’s well equipped with state-of-the-art equipment. The equipment and software should help the agents in performing their tasks effectively. The technology enables them to check out any information a customer may ask about your company. Therefore, the call center should have high-speed internet to make such tasks easier and faster.
The software also helps the call agents place customer orders, monitor their progress, and inform them when they have been completed. It's critical to determine the kind of technology the call center you want to work with employs. You should also enquire about the tools they use to ensure the call center accords your customers with the best service. A top-notch call center will have an interactive web portal. They use the portal to manage your clients and also gather vital information from your clients who call.
The information the call center agents can collect includes the demographic of the callers, the region most calls are coming from, the most pressing inquiries about your products and services, and the time most clients call. Such information is critical as it will help you serve your clients better and tailor targeted marketing campaigns according to the data you receive.
The Call Center Should Offer High-Level Data Security
With cyber-attacks being on the rise, the threat of a data leak is ever-present. Since a call center has essential information about your company and more so about your clients, it's critical to work with a company that uses top-tier data security systems. Many clients may share their personal information through various social media platforms. They may also share this information through calls and text messages. If such information was to fall into the wrong hands, the consequences could be detrimental not only for the clients but also for your firm.
Should a hacker steal your client’s financial information, they can use the same to steal from your clients. Consequently, you may face a civil suit for the data breach, which you would want to avoid. Therefore, the call answering service provider should have high-level digital security. If you are a medical practice, the law requires the call center handling your answering services to be HIPAA compliant. The compliance ensures your patient's sensitive data isn’t leaked.
Top-notch call answering services train the call agents on the best practices when it comes to healthcare data. They train their employees on how to safeguard your patient’s sensitive medical data. No matter your industry, it's critical to employ the services of an answering service that places significant importance on the security of your client’s data.
Should Have A Track Record Of Excellence
If you want to be a leader in your field, you must offer top-level services. One of the essential interactions is between your company and the clients. Likely, most of the clients won’t come back if you provide poor customer service. Therefore, you should choose an answering service that offers professional customer care. In most cases, the longer an answering service company has been around, the more experience they have at dealing with clients. However, you should do your due diligence before settling on a customer care agency based on the time they have been around.
In most cases, though, they have experienced staff who know how to deal with clients. The team is also experienced at offering services for a variety of businesses. You can find the best answering service in Chicago by checking on the internet. You will have enough feedback by performing a search on Google about a particular answering service company. No business can have a hundred percent positive feedback. However, you should choose the company whose positive feedback far outweighs the negative feedback. You can also ask for referrals from your business partners, friends, or family members.
The Chicago Answering Service Should Have Dealt With Clients In Your Profession
You should also find out if the answering service provider has ever dealt with a company that offers similar goods and services as your firm. If the answering service has ever dealt with a similar company, there is a high possibility they have the relevant experience of handling your customers.
If the answering service hasn’t dealt with a company like yours, you may have to teach the company the complexities of your business. Doing so is both expensive and time-consuming. For example, an answering service dealing with a law firm has to understand various aspects of the law to handle your clients’ inquiries satisfactorily.
Therefore, if you are a law firm, it's critical to deal with an answering service that has dealt with law firms before. The same goes for any other industry.
They Should Have Live Answering 24 Hours, Seven Days A Week
The purpose of using the services of a call service is to ensure you don’t miss any calls. Although email and other forms of communication are gaining prevalence, phone communication is still critical for any business. According to research, over 75% of clients call to inquire about the services and products a company offers.
Various answering service providers offer differing packages. Although some may provide live answering services, they may not offer the live answering service 24/7. Some companies offer live answering services up to a particular time or may not offer this service on specific days. It’s therefore critical for your business to be reachable 24/7.
To be competitive, you must choose a call center that offers a live answering service 24/7. A client wants to interact with a human being when they call. Clients don’t want to deal with automated answering machines. If your clients call and a machine responds, they may hang up and call your competitor. If a client calls and a machine responds, they aren’t likely to call again. Most will hang up and call our competitor. Missing calls is not an option for any business. Therefore it’s critical to use an answering service that offers round-the-clock live answering services.
Look For An Affordable Option
Using an answering service for your business is a sound business decision. However, many companies operate on a budget. When choosing the ideal Chicago answering service, pick one that’s within your budget. You shouldn’t make your decision based on the price the answering service is charging alone. Some will charge an exorbitant fee while their services aren’t worth that much. Other companies are reasonably priced, and their services are way much better.
You should strike a balance between the price you are paying for the services and the quality of service you receive. Various companies also have different payment plans. Some will charge a monthly fee which is inclusive of all the services they offer. Others will charge a monthly fee for picking calls and maybe extra for any additional task they perform.
Others charge on a per-minute basis. The per-minute charge means you only pay when the center receives calls on your behalf. The nature of your business will help you determine the best payment plan to use. If your company has a high call volume, the monthly payment plan may be better. However, you have to consider all factors and choose the least expensive payment plan option.
They Should Be Seamless With Your Office
Having a real person answer the phone even when you’re out of the office is great and gives your company a competitive advantage. But you may have a lot of issues if the call center agent can’t transfer the information to your office in a seamless manner. They should have the ability to transfer it as it is without any distortion. It should also be easy for you and your staff to identify the calls made in your absence, what the callers wanted and how the answering service handled the inquiry.
The best answering service provider should not only take calls and pass them to your staff, but they should also perform other additional tasks. They should have the ability to create support tickets, qualify leads, onboard new clients and transfer calls to the most qualified person to handle a specific inquiry. The answering service staff should also be able to use any CRM systems your organization may be using.
Choose An Answering Service Which Can Grow With Your Business
One factor you should consider when choosing a Chicago answering service is handling a large volume of incoming calls. You may presently have an average number of phone calls. But as your business grows, you expect the volume of the calls to increase. It's critical to check the answering service provider’s infrastructure. If the incoming calls stretch the company, they may face challenges handling a higher volume of incoming calls.
Call An Answering Service Near Me
Selecting the best fit Chicago answering service takes time. You don’t want to make such a critical decision hurriedly. Finding the best answering service can be a challenge. You should look for a provider who meets the above qualifications. They should have the necessary experience in your niche, offer seamless integration with your company, be reasonably priced, and offer 24/7 answering service.
If you are in Chicago and need a top-notch answering service provider, look no further than Best Call Center. As our name rightly states, we are the best answering service in Chicago and the surrounding area. Contact us today at 800-385-4656 for a free consultation.