As the second-largest city in the United States after New York City, Los Angeles is a major hub for business, international trade, entertainment, fashion, media, technology, and education. It is home to more than 244,000 businesses, with more minority- and women-owned businesses than any other city in the nation.
Entrepreneurs and business leaders are drawn to southern California for its diverse culture, beautiful landscape, and near-perfect weather in addition to a large, well-trained workforce and excellent access to national and international markets. But building a business in Los Angeles is not all sunny skies and warm beaches. To be successful, you must be able to overcome an array of challenges.
One of the most common challenges of thriving businesses is keeping up with a high call volume. If you’re receiving more calls than you and your staff can manage, an answering service can help. Below we will answer and discuss the following questions to help you choose the best Los Angeles answering service.
- What is an answering service?
- What does an answering service do?
- What companies are using a Los Angeles answering service?
- How do I choose a good answering service?
- Do I need to work with a phone answering service in Los Angeles?
What is an answering service?
As the name suggests, answering services are companies that businesses use to manage their incoming phone calls. An answering service ensures that more calls are picked up, and that customers receive assistance quickly and efficiently. In addition to handling phone calls, many modern answering services have SMS text message and live website chat capabilities.
What does a Los Angeles answering service do?
The live agents employed by answering services are educated and trained, and they can perform many of the same tasks as an in-house receptionist or secretary. When you partner with a Los Angeles answering service, here are some of the things you can expect them to do:
- Answer your phones quickly
- Help callers schedule and modify appointments
- Provide answers to general questions
- Qualify leads
- Transfer calls to the correct person or extension
- Take detailed messages
What companies are using a Los Angeles answering service?
Any business that prioritizes customer experience and relies on the phone to stay in touch can benefit from an answering service. With that said, businesses of all sizes, across many industries, utilize answering services to increase productivity, customer satisfaction, and profits. So whether you’re a real estate brokerage in Beverly Hills, a legal firm in Santa Monica, a funeral home in Culver City, or a general contractor in San Fernando, our friendly team of live agents is here to support you!
How do I choose a good answering service?
When choosing the best answering service for your business, it’s important to determine exactly what your needs are. Doing this will help you select a partner and features that are a great fit. Here are several things that Los Angeles business owners should consider:
- The amount of coverage you need. Make a list of the days and times where your business could use the extra assistance. We provide 24/7 answering services, meaning that our team is available day and night, even on weekends and holidays.
- Bilingual virtual receptionists. With one of the largest Spanish-speaking populations in the country, Los Angeles businesses can benefit greatly by having a bilingual person manage their phones. Here at Answering Service Care, we offer bilingual virtual receptionists at a fraction of the cost of hiring a bilingual full-time employee.
- HIPAA compliance. If you’re in the medical industry (or one where protected health information may be discussed), you’ll need to partner with a HIPAA-compliant answering service.
Do I need to work with a phone answering service in Los Angeles?
Regardless of which answering service options work best for you, you do not need to partner with a company that’s based in Los Angeles. This is because the live agents work remotely using call forwarding technology.
When call forwarding is activated, your incoming calls automatically forward to a live agent who will answer on your behalf and assist callers. These individuals work in quiet spaces and are highly knowledgeable in call handling and customer service. More often than not, the callers won’t even realize that they’re not sitting in your LA office. With that said we have offices from coast to coast including Los Angeles, CA.