Hire your Next Virtual Phone Assistant with Confidence

Focusing on the core tasks or addressing the customers calls; a dilemma that almost every business owner faces today. If you're among those, you can get out of it and keep yourself set aside for your core business aspects by hiring a virtual phone assistant. Let them handle all your customers' calls and inquiries while you pay attention to your important business tasks. A virtual phone assistant can be either an IVR (interactive voice response) or personnel receiving the company's all incoming calls. To get you started with this, we have highlighted in this article what is the virtual phone assistant all about, the tasks they can handle and why should hire the one to reap the benefits. For your further convenience, we have also included some top virtual assistant service providers that you can assess and hire the one most suitable to your needs, instantly.

What Is A Virtual Phone Assistant?

A virtual phone assistant (also called a virtual receptionist) is either an independent professional or software that offers a virtual call answering service to customers. Usually, companies hire the services of a virtual assistant firm or a freelancer for this. They usually give a virtual service from a virtual location but can access the required planning documents, like shared calendars.

The Working Mechanism

All your company’s incoming calls are directed to the virtual phone assistant who answers your company’s inbound calls, directs the calls to the concerned person in the company, and/or takes a message. Moreover, the virtual phone assistant can also be made to make outbound calls to the existing and potential customers of the company. Usually, they also handle the social media inquiries, answer the FAQs, set appointments, do a live chat, manage the company's management schedule, reserve the venues, etc. from a distant location. Serving also as a virtual assistant, you can engage them for customer support, secretarial tasks, and admin duties. Virtual assistants are great for all industries especially call centers, real estate, healthcare, and hospitality.

These Businesses Get the Most Benefits from a Virtual Assistant

1. Startups and SMEs (Small & Medium Enterprises)

It is the most common and cost-effective way for startups and SMEs to start their professional business phone system. The least hardware requirement and no office space requirement further cut the cost down, making their overall operational expenses reduced.

2. E-Commerce Businesses

Using a virtual assistant for your virtual business that doesn't have any physical location, is a smart, easy, and economical solution. This is because an e-commerce business receives more calls from customers. A virtual assistant, promptly handling all those calls, can help such a business get more customers. Moreover, the customer waiting time on the call can also be reduced, which boosts customer service quality.

3. Businesses Having Clients in Different Geo-Locations

Businesses having operations and customers in different geographical locations, can use virtual assistant services that can handle various time zones and locations at a time. This ensures 24/7 operations.

Why Should You Hire a Virtual Phone Assistant?

Let's take a look at its benefits divided into two classifications; one related to the setting up such a phone system, and the other with hiring the assistant.

A. Virtual Phone Assistant Systems

1. Remote Work from anywhere

Since these are virtual phone systems, they are 100% managed online. These are integrated with your current phone numbers. Hence, it is possible to run the business using a cell phone.

2. Cost Saving

A virtual phone system has all the features like those of a traditional phone system, but with a cost-efficient package. There is no requirement for costly telecommunications equipment that should be installed on-site.

3. More Credibility

Getting such a system is a cheap way to have a toll-free number that increases your credibility among the customers. Having your business 1-800 number or toll-free vanity number establishes your company's reputation.

B. Virtual Phone Assistants

1. More Business

A professional virtual assistant helps your business gain more customers and sales. This is because almost all customer queries can be answered timely and resolved. There will be a lower number of missed or unattended calls going to voicemail. Additionally, with a human dealing with your customers, a more personalized experience delivery is ensured – improving your customer satisfaction and sales.

2. Team Scaling

As the virtual assistant receptionist functions from a remote location, adding a new assistant to your physically located teams is easier, which in turn, scales up your team without resulting in additional overhead costs.

The Tasks of a Virtual Phone Assistant

1. Calls Screening

A virtual phone assistant is assigned the task of handling call routing and forwarding important calls to designated people.

2. After-Work Calls Handling

Do let the after-work calls disturb your work-life balance. Let the virtual receptionist handle and acknowledge after-hour customer calls.

3. Making You Free for Business Goals

By outsourcing your calls to the telephone answering service or some remote working professional, you get more time to pay attention to your core business activities like financial management, marketing, etc.

The Top Virtual Phone Assistant Service Provides

1. Abby Connect

Abby Connect’s virtual receptionists manage all tasks including appointment scheduling, receiving calls, doing research on potential customers, etc. Key features include 24/7 answering services as per your customized hours, message-taking ability and screening and forwarding as per importance, bilingual answering services (English & Spanish), appointment scheduling integrated with Google and Outlook calendars. Paid plans are available from $2.79 per minute.

2. Virtual Headquarters

Its trained and experienced virtual phone assistants answer all calls when you are unable to handle the calls. Key features include handling all incoming calls, taking messaging, business information sharing like postal address, parking info, services offered, etc. with the new callers, redirecting of the office landline calls to designated people's mobile phone, and call transferability to a different department. The paid plan is available from $20 per month.

3. Ruby

Ruby is a live virtual receptionist and chat company specifically offering services for small businesses. Its staff is based in the United States. Key features include custom call handling, personalized greetings, in-house chat tool, call recording, and analysis, etc. The paid plan is available from $319/month for up to 100 virtual assistant minutes.

4. Grasshopper

It offers a virtual phone system at affordable value rates with many business phone system features. The tool can be integrated with your current devices. Key features include custom greetings or an auto attendant to, calls making ability from a mobile phone, desktop, and mobile app, Grasshopper’s virtual number, screening business messages, and voicemail via Grasshopper’s voicemail box. The paid monthly plan is available from $29/month per user.

5. Unitel Voice

It is a cloud-based virtual PBX more suitable for startups and small-size businesses. With this service, your business phone number can be added as a second line to your existing cell phone or office phone. All its cloud-based components are managed online. Key features include call forwarding, notifications on email or Unitel’s smartphone app for faxes or voicemails, automatic voicemail transcriptions, caller ID to display the caller’s number or your virtual phone systems number. The paid monthly plan is available from $9.99/month per user. You can also use their 30-days free trial.

Our Top Pick for Virtual Phone Assistant Professional In 2021

If you already have a virtual phone assistant professional in place, you will also need to track their work hours. Use Clockbook as a tool to track the same and to calculate the productivity of your virtual assistants.

About Clockbook

Clockbook is a tool that tracks your virtual assistants' work time and performance. Big companies like Ericsson and Verizon and even small businesses, like Thrive Market and Firehouse Subs are using this incredibly helpful tool to manage their remote and virtual staff effectively. Let your virtual receptionist know that they are being monitored during work hours so that they remain focused and productive.

The key features of Time Doctor’s are:

• Real-time Time Tracking
• Task tracking
• Project management
• In-Depth Reports

Final Thoughts

Hiring a virtual assistant is not enough to scale up your business successfully unless you make sure your virtual assistant is productive and working consistently. Time Doctor makes a perfect solution to monitor your virtual or remote employee’s performance. Make the most of its easy user interface and exclusive productivity features that can help you manage your virtual assistant like a pro.