If you own a local electrical service, you know how hard it can be to acquire and retain a customer base. Each time your electrician team fails to help a customer; your business loses revenue. Considering the competition in the service sector, there is no room to miss leads and calls. Unfortunately, the traditional way of managing the front desk is ineffective and often leads to lost opportunities. Electrical issues don’t crop up with a notice. If a homeowner is dealing with a power failure, the electrician should receive the call and reach the location. An AI voice receptionist can change the way your business deals with calls. Visit this site to learn more about the benefits, but here is an overview of finding the right AI answering service.
Reasons to consider AI for handling calls
The chances are high that your electricians constantly work at different sites and one or two receptionists manage the front office. The front desk team also has other responsibilities, and even if they are assigned the task of taking calls, the staff can only connect with one customer or lead at a time. Also, the staff must take holidays, have breaks, and don’t work typically at night, but emergencies often arise at odd hours, and customers expect quick assistance. With an AI answering service, you don’t have to worry about missing calls. If a customer needs assistance, the AI system will automatically transfer the call to an available electrician.
Features to consider
- First and foremost, check whether the AI voice receptionist is designed for small businesses. Remember that a voice agent powered by AI is different from a call center or virtual assistant. This is an automated system to take calls, and it should align with the needs of your electrical business.
- Consider what you get for the price. Can the AI receptionist answer calls around the clock? Can the system schedule bookings or service calls? Can your electricians be alerted for emergencies? Will AI capture customer information? Can the overall system take care of routine calls?
- The next aspect is whether and how much you can customize the scripts and knowledge base. There will be times when you may want to change the initial greeting, run a promotional offer, or use keywords. Updating details should be a seamless process for your team who may not have technical knowledge.
- The support and uptime of the provider are other things to consider. Keep in mind that you are switching to AI instead of hiring more receptionists to ensure availability. Also, if there is any issue with the service or your team needs support with features, the provider should be proactive.
- As for the price, packages often start for as low as $75 with many providers. However, consider the tiers, especially if you expect a sudden increase in service demand. You should be able to change the package as and when needed, and the process shouldn’t disturb the call-handling process.
Will an AI voice receptionist replace your staff?
Not really! The truth is most electrical businesses have limited staff for customer support and attending calls. These people are already overwhelmed with incoming requests and often have to juggle different roles. By using an AI voice receptionist, you are reducing their work, besides ensuring all customers get immediate and accurate support. AI doesn’t make usual mistakes, and even if some callers just want service information, their details can be captured for later use.
If you are new to using AI, select a service provider who can educate your team and offer guidance on how to make the most of an answering system.