If you work in HR, you’ll no doubt be juggling interviews, contracts, payroll, policies, meetings – and everything else in between. So, what do you do when the telephone rings? You try not to miss it – it may be an important piece of company news, a candidate confirming a job, or the CEO needing to speak urgently. But sometimes you just can’t physically get to the phone every time someone calls.
Many of us have answerphones that are programmed to work within about 15 seconds – that’s usually about five rings of the phone. Lots of people, however, don’t like to leave a message, so they’ll usually hang up before the beep. Answering the phone too late not only leaves a bad impression on your colleagues and clients. Support and performance are key to a successful HR team and if you take too long, people will be left feeling unimpressed with the level of service.
Never miss a call again
So how do you ensure your phone gets answered within five rings whilst keeping a working balance that allows you to continue to get your job done effectively? And what about those times when you’re in a meeting or interview, at lunch or immersed in an all-consuming piece of work?
It’s not always easy, especially when you consider that until you pick up the phone, you won’t know the nature of the enquiry. There will certainly be some calls you really don’t want to miss – especially if it’s an important memo or a query from one of your VIP clients. But you’ll also inevitably receive a few nuisance calls. And who really has the time to take unsolicited sales calls for products or services you really don’t need? The truth is it’s impractical and inefficient for you to be available to answer your phone all the time, which means you need a different approach.
Smart tactics to manage your phone
A growing number of firms are taking control of their incoming calls by outsourcing to a call-answering service. Here are some of the reasons why this can be a highly effective approach:
Create protected time: You can do this by diverting calls to your call-answering service when you don’t want to be disturbed. That way you can relax in the knowledge that they will continue to be professionally answered even when you can’t take them.
Screen your calls: You may just want to filter out the unwanted calls, for example unsolicited sales calls, from the genuine enquiries. By doing so, you only need to speak with the people you really want to.
Take a break: Everyone is entitled to a lunch break or a holiday. To ensure you’re not tied to your phone when you should be enjoying some down time, allow a call-answering service to answer your phone when you’re not available.
Never miss a call again: It’s frustrating to run for the phone, only for the caller to have just hung up, without leaving a message. You may miss a potential lead or an important client – which won’t happen if a call-answering service is in charge.
More than call answering
Call answering services these days can offer much more than basic telephone answering. From managing bookings and diaries to transferring calls or collating information, outsourcing your telephone calls to virtual receptionist is a great way to manage a busy schedule and help you to get more done. A call-answering service will also give you a professional image and a consistent level of service. Callers will feel looked after, having received the best service possible from you and your answering team, every time.
The post How to answer your phone within five rings appeared first on HR News.