Industry Hacks

Turn on any news channel, and you’re bound to hear at least one story where drug and alcohol addiction plays a starring, nefarious role. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, conducted by SAMHSA, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, in 2014, 21.5 million American adults battled…

Picture this. You're a landlord for a small apartment complex. For emergencies, all of your tenants have your personal cell phone number. However, you're finding that your tenants are reaching out all hours of the night for every little issue that comes up. You keep telling them to contact you after hours…

Tax season is here, which means accounting and tax prep firms are working diligently filing taxes, doling out financial advice, and answering the most important question - 'So, how much am I getting back?' Because this is a taxing time (pun intended) for both accountants and civilians alike, accountants often hire answering services like…

The first major snowfall has hit the northeast, and you know what that means. Mother Nature has made the incredible leap from summer to winter, barely skimming fall on her way. For regions of the country that are already frosty and expecting more of the same as the season rolls on, local…

Receptionists of the world will tell you that the gold standard in telephone answer phrases is, "Thank you for calling [insert company name here], this is Jamie. How can I help you today?" Simple. Straightforward. Boring. Work is mundane enough without bringing such low expectations to the repetitive task of serving customers.…

Updated July 2018: Please click on this link "The Ultimate HVAC business plan" to download the ebook. You love what you do, but you can’t stand your employer. So you’ve decided to go solo and parlay your HVAC career into your own business. It shouldn’t be too hard, right? You have a…

When recalls happen, set up a recall hotline with an answering service to supercharge your customer service. Recalls can affect any company, from auto dealerships, to electronic shops, to grocery stores (lettuce remind you of the romaine recall that most recently made headlines), so you should formulate a plan in advance to prepare…

Remember the Jerry Lewis Telethon? If you're under 30, you probably think I just made that name up - but I didn't. The Jerry Lewis Telethon was an annual television event, hosted by Jerry Lewis, that raised money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Celebrities would pop in to say hi, people would…

How you answer the phone in your office versus how your answering service answers may not always be the same. While it's important that both you and your answering service are on the same page, what works in your office may not always work in a call center environment. For example, you…

Answering services are great resources for real estate agencies! They can make sure you aren't missing calls from your listings, handle your calls while you're on a showing, provide lock box codes to your properties, transfer calls to any agent on your real estate team, and schedule appointments. If your real estate firm…