The work of a small business is never done. There’s always something to do—carefully selecting vendors, managing taxes and insurance, devising growth strategies, and more. It can be overwhelming for one person to manage. That’s why savvy business owners often decide to work alongside a virtual assistant (VA). This type of worker often acts like an administrative assistant you communicate with online. In-person, an administrative assistant can help you manage your accounts, prepare reports, and track and compile information of interest, and a VA does exactly the same. To ensure the success of your business and collaboration, you’ll need them to have essential skills like attention to detail and excellence in expressing themselves and their ideas.
A great VA should also be proficient in using the best tools available to heighten your business productivity. One of the strongest out there is a VoIP system, which can optimize administrative processes to save time and increase customer satisfaction. The following is an overview of the many capabilities of the VoIP System and why your VA should use one.
It will address straightforward inquiries
While some customers who call your small business will have complex reasons for doing so, like placing an order or registering an urgent complaint, many will have simple queries they want answered right away. Your VA will likely be more capable of handling this—however, the job can be time-consuming and distract from more important tasks, especially if the calls come frequently. A great alternative is to have your VA record responses in the VoIP system that customers can access when they call. That way, your customers have an answer to their concerns, and your VA will only be notified if someone chooses to escalate.
It will streamline calls to the right person
Part of the time expenditure that comes with a customer asking to speak with a live agent is the confusion of which person the customer should be directed to. For example, your customer may want to ask how to join your sweepstakes challenge, which calls for your social media manager, or someone might have a business proposal that should be directly discussed with you. Your VA will have to discern this from a direct conversation with the caller—which can be confusing if said caller is impatient and refuses to cooperate. A better way to do this is to allow the VoIP system to sort the calls out for the VA via its automatic call distribution feature, which can route calls to the appropriate person or department within your business. This will lessen the friction and get the caller to the appropriate person faster.
It will ensure a response to customers
Small businesses have to be constantly available. That’s part of the task of a VA—they should be ready to step in whenever a customer needs immediate feedback or assistance. However, you likely won’t be hiring your VA to be online all day. They’ll have lunch breaks, off hours, and vacations. To prepare for these times, you’ll want your VA to activate your VoIP system’s ability to transfer calls to the next
available person. When your customer calls, then, they’ll be able to reach a helpful employee when your VA is unreachable.
It can recognize repeat callers
Your VA can unlock even more of your VoIP system’s capabilities if they link it to your CRM system. One of the most helpful capabilities is registering repeat callers and identifying them to your VA before they pick up. Your VA will have time to look up the previous concerns or notes of the customer. Because of this, they’ll be able to offer the caller a consistent, personalized service, which is a critical component of any
successful marketing strategy. Customers feeling a genuine connection between them and the person on the other side of the line can enable higher conversion rates, brand loyalty, and growth. Combining your VA’s competencies and your stellar VoIP system makes that possible.
To make the most of a virtual assistant, grant them great tools to do their jobs. A VoIP system and a talented VA may be just what your small business needs to succeed.
