You make so many decisions for your business that it seems like you’re starting to get lost in the details of running it.
The last thing you want to do is make another call, but when it comes to deciding if it’s time to hire an after-hours answering service, you’ll want to pull the trigger for all the right reasons. After all, hiring an after-hours answering service might be an added expense to your company if it’s not something you really need, but you could also benefit hugely from the help if it is the right move.
Here are a few signs that it may be time to consider calling in some help:
- Business has really picked up. Obviously, more business is a great thing — but it also means bigger expectations from the community at large. If your customer base is expanding, your reach should be expanding, too. An after-hours answering service can give your customers a way to reach a real person at your business without your having to staff extra shifts with new or existing employees.
- You get lots of messages overnight. More than a few messages every night is a good sign that a lot of people are calling—after all, there are always some people who will call and hang up when they get voicemail. Instead of losing those calls forever, take advantage of the power of the human voice with an after-hours answering service. It’s amazing how simply having someone to answer the phone can increase your customer base and improve your marketing ROI.
- Your customers call you at home. Although some professions are certainly more prone to getting at-home calls than others, it’s a sign of the same problem: your customers feel like they need to reach someone right away and they can’t. Instead of spending all your free time fielding calls, partner with an answering service to handle the calls that come in after you lock the doors. Downtime will give you a chance to rest so you’ll come in refreshed the next day, instead of developing a bad case of business burnout.
- People are always asking about your services, but calls aren’t increasing. It often happens that your customers want to frequent your business or use your service, but you make it hard for them to work with you for various reasons. Maybe they’re not sure where you’re located and by the time they call, you’re already closed for the night, or perhaps they don’t get off work to make an appointment until after hours. In any case, having an after-hours answering service makes it easier to reach you, get common questions answered and figure out how to build that new relationship.
Running a business is no small feat for anyone, but as your company grows you’ll have to start making some harder decisions. Expanding your hours is a huge leap, but you can test those waters by instead expanding your reach with an after-hours answering service. For a fraction of what it would cost to hire the extra staff to man the phones, you could be increasing your customer base while you sleep, so why not give it a try?
