As a business owner, you can’t run all aspects of your company by yourself. If you don’t have an in-house receptionist to assist your business, a live receptionist service can give you the support you’re looking for.
Smith.AI and Abby Connect are both virtual receptionist services that work with small businesses. While services are similar, there are some major differences between the two companies and their capabilities.
Dedicated Receptionist Team & Account Manager
Many virtual receptionist companies advertise a “dedicated receptionist team” for their client, but do they really mean it? At Smith.AI, they do not offer a dedicated receptionist team. At Abby Connect, every client is assigned to a dedicated team of 5 receptionists for normal business hours answering.
Also, every Abby Connect customer has a dedicated account manager you can call or email directly at any time. At Smith.AI, they do not offer a dedicated account manager for their customers to speak with. When this is the case, questions or issues are usually put into a support queue and answered by different agents who may have never looked at a client’s account before. At Abby, the dedicated account manager works closely with the client on their account. This allows their clients and staff to get to know their receptionists and build a relationship.
Answering Hours
In any customer service business, the needs of your customers always come first. In virtual reception and answering services, each call is a business opportunity, either in new business or client retention. But what if the important call comes through outside of typical business hours and isn’t answered? For Smith.AI, that is a definite possibility.
Smith.AI only answers phones from 6 AM to 6 PM PST Monday through Friday. They don’t offer weekend answering. Abby Connect offers standard business hours phone answering (8:30 AM to 5 PM based on your time zone), as well as extended hours as a free add-on (Monday-Friday 5 am to 9 pm PST, and Saturday-Sunday 6 am to 6 pm PST), and 24/7 answering so you’ll never have to miss a call.
Work From Home Receptionists
According to Gallup, 43 percent of U.S. employees work remotely all or some of the time. Many live receptionist companies cut cost by avoiding the cost of a facility and having their receptionists work from home. Smith.AI is one of them. Work from home providers can prove to be less secure for your confidential information, might have a noisy environment during a call, a high turnover rate for employees, and many other drawbacks. This is why Abby Connect requires receptionists to physically work in one central office in Las Vegas, Nevada. There are plenty of benefits of being able to work from home, but in live reception, it doesn’t allow for an elite customer experience.
Which Virtual Receptionist Service Should I Choose?
Overall, Smith.AI and Abby Connect have their similarities and differences, but Abby Connect gives their customers more including a consitant and dedicated team of receptionist, dedicated account manager, longer answering hours, and more. Smith.AI may seem like a price-conscious decision, but the saying is always true “you get what you pay for.” Abby Connect is the wiser choice and will leave your customers with a long-lasting impression. If your business is looking into using a live receptionist service, try Abby Connect’s 14-day free trial.
*all information is accurate and cited as of 02/2019
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