Outsourcing/Canceling Phone Lines - Anyone Have Any Experience?

[ukdropshipper]

I run an ecommerce company. At the moment we have phone lines that are open from 8am-4pm. I am now living in Asia and so that means a cut off time of 11pm. Ultimately the phone lines are the only thing tying me to the business in any fixed capacity and I am currently trying to work on the business so that I can take more time off.

Has anyone dealt with making a decision on phone call handling before?

The options I see are:

1. Use a call handling service - I'd want one that would process orders etc. as I wouldn't want to rack up a list of callers to action each day. I've found companies that do this with good feedback but I've seen comments here and elsewhere from people who haven't had great experiences using them.

2. Get rid of the phone lines and just offer email support along with increased FAQs. This wouldn't be ideal die to potential lost revenue but I do get quite a few timewasters on the phones (people ringing for free advice who then never order) along with the issues with hours outlined above.

3. Find a virtual assistant and work with them 1 on 1. I've found ones that will handle emails. Does anyone know where I might find one who would handle calls?


Appreciate any feedback from anyone who has been in a similar situation. Ultimately I think I might just have to test out the options and see what works best. But the virtual assistant who will handle calls is something where I'm stuck even finding someone.

 

[ukdropshipper]

Update: after looking at it further, I'd probably be making a loss on the sales made via the phone if I were to employ a call handling service (unfortunately there are a number of calls that are time wasting/have little intention of purchasing). I'm going to retain a phone line with voicemail and a message directing people to the other support options available.

 

[UcallJohn]

It all depends on the volume of calls you receive. If you get a manageable amount and most calls are "time wasting", it might be worth optimising your phone support system first.

One option is to route calls based on business hours so that during your usual operating hours, calls can be taken directly or forwarded. Outside of those hours, you could set up a call divert to a virtual assistant (if you decide to get one) or send calls to voicemail (which can be converted in an audio file and forwarded to an email address).

Since you’re getting a lot of non-serious inquiries, an IVR system could be useful. You can set up a custom menu that directs calls based on their purpose, such as orders, support, or FAQs. Common customer questions can be answered through pre-recorded messages, which will reduce the number of repetitive inquiries. You can also implement smart routing, where important calls are forwarded to you or the VA, while non-urgent ones go to voicemail/email.

Depending on your ecommerce setup, you might also consider integrating an AI chatbot that can handle basic order tracking, cancellations etc. This could reduce the number of customers resorting to calling you right away.

You can try setting up these options and see if they streamline your operations and keep the workload less. However, if you expect a high volume of calls, then a call-handling centre might be a better choice. But if you prefer to keep things more "personalised" and still maintain "control" over your customer interactions and reduce your direct involvement, then hiring a VA might be worthwhile.

 

[ukdropshipper]

It all depends on the volume of calls you receive. If you get a manageable amount and most calls are "time wasting", it might be worth optimising your phone support system first.

One option is to route calls based on business hours so that during your usual operating hours, calls can be taken directly or forwarded. Outside of those hours, you could set up a call divert to a virtual assistant (if you decide to get one) or send calls to voicemail (which can be converted in an audio file and forwarded to an email address).

Since you’re getting a lot of non-serious inquiries, an IVR system could be useful. You can set up a custom menu that directs calls based on their purpose, such as orders, support, or FAQs. Common customer questions can be answered through pre-recorded messages, which will reduce the number of repetitive inquiries. You can also implement smart routing, where important calls are forwarded to you or the VA, while non-urgent ones go to voicemail/email.

Depending on your ecommerce setup, you might also consider integrating an AI chatbot that can handle basic order tracking, cancellations etc. This could reduce the number of customers resorting to calling you right away.

You can try setting up these options and see if they streamline your operations and keep the workload less. However, if you expect a high volume of calls, then a call-handling centre might be a better choice. But if you prefer to keep things more "personalised" and still maintain "control" over your customer interactions and reduce your direct involvement, then hiring a VA might be worthwhile.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. Your post has given me food for thought, i appreciate you walking through the different options. Do you have any experience in hiring VA's? If so, any recommendations on a reliable source?

 

[UcallJohn]

Thank you for taking the time to reply. Your post has given me food for thought, i appreciate you walking through the different options. Do you have any experience in hiring VA's? If so, any recommendations on a reliable source?

Glad I could be of help. Hiring a VA isn't something I have experience with, so I wouldn’t want to steer you in the wrong direction. But if you ever need support with phone systems, I’d be happy to assist.

 

[cjd]

We run a VA service on top of the telephony services that John describes above but it's call answering and simple tasks only. What you appear to need is someone more hands on.

You may be able to find what you need here:

Find A VA - Society of Virtual Assistants

The Society of Virtual Assistants has over 6000 virtual assistant members in the UK and our aim is to raise the standards in the Virtual Assistant Industry

societyofvirtualassistants.co.uk

They will often have the telephone side sorted - sometimes with us - but you need to be a bit careful there because you'll want to keep control of you own number, not use one of theirs, and you don't want the hidden costs of call transfers between you.

We can help with the telephony part.