If your business doesn’t have an in-house receptionist and is getting a lot of phone calls, you might want to consider a virtual receptionist! A professional virtual receptionist can handle incoming calls, screen our spam callers, route callers to appropriate departments or staff, take messages, and convey information.
And the best part? They can do this at a fraction of the cost of an in-house employee.
Still, it’s an added expense and one you should weigh the pros and cons of before making any decisions. With that in mind, we’d like to offer our insights into how most businesses can easily justify the cost of a virtual receptionist!
The cost of a virtual receptionist depends on your needs and the service provider you select. For example, at Ruby, we offer businesses a range of affordable 24/7 plans—and the return on investment quickly adds up to even more in savings!
Worried about budget constraints?
Answering services are pretty simple. They’re third-party companies that handle your incoming calls. That’s about it. They pick up the phone, give general responses to callers, and take messages (especially during off-hours or busy times when you need extra support).
What comes with an answering service?
Budget constraints are a top concern for any smart business, but small businesses must especially operate as lean as possible. Every dollar spent should be justified…but integrating new technologies and time-saving services is often a safe bet.
The average salary of an in-house receptionist is $38,500—and the true employer cost is roughly 1.25–1.4 times that amount, bringing it up to $53,900 (or $4,491 a month)!
Ruby’s plans are a fraction of the cost of a full-time employee. And unlike an in-house receptionist, our team is available 24/7, 365 days a year!
So the question is, can you afford NOT to use a virtual receptionist?
You can save money by hiring a virtual receptionist.
Of course, the salary is the biggest cost of hiring an in-house receptionist—but it’s not the only cost.
There are also taxes, benefits, added utilities and supply costs, and infrastructure costs such as a desk, chair, computer, monitor, phone, etc. Then there’s a virtual receptionist, which requires none of these things, or at least not from your end.
But the savings don’t stop there. Time is money, and you won’t have to spend time training a virtual receptionist. They also won’t be there to distract your team with chit-chat…and you’ll never have to deal with time-consuming HR issues, such as sick days, vacations, running late, or workplace injuries.
With a virtual receptionist package, you’ll never miss a call—and thus never miss a chance to gain business. And it’s easy to scale up or down based on demand, so you only pay for what you need (instead of paying a full-time employee to be there all day).
A compelling case for using virtual receptionists for your business
Okay, maybe you’re still on the fence. Or maybe you’re convinced—but you’ve got to consult others before moving forward with the decision to hire a virtual receptionist. Here are a few bullet points to consider if you’re unsure, and highlight if you need to compel others!
Missed calls equal missed opportunities.
A virtual receptionist service can answer calls 24/7, 365 days a year. No more missed calls means more chances to engage potential customers.
In-house employees are expensive.
With added employer costs, an in-house receptionist can cost about $4,491 a month. That’s a whole lot more than Ruby’s pricing (with pricing built for businesses of all sizes, and bundled options that include live chat agents for your website).
Within just five years, your business could save as much as $250,000 by outsourcing versus bringing on a full-time receptionist.
No HR issues.
Any in-house employee comes with the usual range of HR issues you’ll have to deal with, such as recruiting, hiring, onboarding, and training. Then there are vacations, sick days, childcare troubles, workplace disputes, and worker’s compensation claims.
Just imagine not having to deal with any of that! Ruby virtual receptionists integrate with your team, but we’re 100% responsible for their training and management.
The biggest companies in the world are doing it.
From Facebook and Google to Nike and Wells Fargo, the largest, most successful companies outsource many of their operations, reaping huge savings they can invest elsewhere. Maybe they’re onto something!
It’s easy to test the waters.
Once you onboard a new hire, it can be tricky if things don’t work out.
Who wants to deal with awkward meetings, office drama, and disgruntled ex-employees? With a virtual receptionist, you’ll never have to.
It’s easy to do a trial with a service provider for a month or two! We work hard to ensure total customer satisfaction, which is why we’ve successfully partnered with over 14,000 businesses to date. Our plans are subscription-based, and canceling is simple.
Streamlined customer experiences.
With Ruby’s virtual receptionists, your business will be able to deliver improved customer experiences day or night, including holidays and weekends. Not only will such availability impress callers, they’ll also appreciate the professional touch our team brings to your table!
In conclusion…
Some of our thousands of clients have told us they were hesitant about outsourcing to a virtual receptionist—until they tried it! It doesn’t take long to reap the financial and operational benefits of investing in our affordable, scalable plans.
Below is an overview of what you’ll get when you partner with Ruby!
Professional receptionists
- Available 24/7/365, as full time, part time, or back up support
- Trained to sound like they’re part of your staff
- Conversations in English or Spanish
- Live transferring
- Outbound calls placed on your behalf
Robust mobile app
- Ruby-hosted business numbers
- Local and toll-free business numbers
- Call and text from the Ruby app
- Call notifications sent to your phone
- Immediate access to messages
- One-touch call holding
Expansive capabilities
- HIPAA-compliant services available
- Automated lead capture tool for your website
- Appointment scheduling
- Call routing by type of call
- Custom after-hours call routing options
- Voicemail transcriptions
- Usage alerts
Customized experiences
- Pricing to fit your business
- Personalized greetings
- Customized frequently asked questions
- Specific customer/lead information collected
Quality customer care
- A dedicated Customer Success team
- Quick response times
- Product information and how-tos in the Ruby Help Center
- Convenient call handling updates
Efficient integrations
- Clio Manage
- Clio Grow
- Rocket Matter
- MyCase
- Zapier
