Whether someone walks through your front door or calls your main number, a receptionist creates that vital first impression for customers. In this article, we explore how receptionists can play an important role in your organisation.
The traditional duties of a receptionist
When you ask yourself “do I need a receptionist?”, you need to consider the tasks you want them to handle. Experienced receptionists are great at multi-tasking, communicating and managing a busy work environment.
The exact nature of the role will depend on the size and type of operation. Consider if you need help with any of the following?
Welcoming customers and visitors
Receptionists are more than just a friendly face when someone walks through your front door, they can efficiently deal with queries and point people in the right direction. With a thorough knowledge of the business, they know who will be able to best deal with a particular query or piece of paperwork.
If your premises receives a high volume of walk-in customers, receptionists act as a gatekeeper, minimising the impact of visitors and deliveries on your daily operation. Safety is also paramount, so receptionists can ensure visitors sign in, get a parking spot and are provided with name badges or PPE.
Answering the phone
As your business grows, so will the volume of phone calls. Missing calls mean missed opportunities, so a receptionist can maintain business activity by booking appointments and providing quotes or details of the products and services you offer.
If you don’t answer the phone, your customers will simply head across the road to a competitor. Without the need to answer incoming calls, the rest of your team can concentrate on their day-to-day duties.
If answering the phone is your main concern, there are alternatives to hiring a receptionist such as a telephone answering service from Best Reception.
Managing mail and deliveries
Being on the front desk means receptionists can receive and sign for packages or transfer letters to the correct people. Depending on the level of deliveries you receive, this can be a real time saver. If you send out a lot of mail, receptionists can handle this too.
Stationery and other supplies
When asking “is a receptionist necessary to my business?” you need to consider if you need someone to manage the office. From printer cartridges to toilet paper, every business needs supplies to keep it running smoothly.
Filing paperwork
For smaller businesses, the receptionist is often the person responsible for filing important documents such as expenses, company policies and personnel records. Whether you use paperwork or digital files, a receptionist can store, find and maintain your essential information.
Appointments and meetings
Receptionists can manage the office diary by scheduling appointments, communicating with patients and clients, and booking meeting rooms. Receptionist duties can also include taking notes, writing minutes of meetings, listing action points and arranging follow-up meetings.
How important is a receptionist?
There are many advantages to hiring a receptionist, but the overall effect is to become a more professional operation. They are the face of your business and can greatly influence the customer experience.
By understanding how your business works, receptionists can bring productivity benefits too. Other employees can be released from admin tasks, while procedures and records are maintained correctly.
Are receptionists necessary for small businesses?
While some people might feel that receptionists are outdated, others consider them to be vital cogs in their company. For small businesses, a key consideration is cost as hiring a permanent employee is a significant investment.
Not every business will be able to afford the cost of recruitment, salary, pension, National Insurance, holiday cover, training and all the other expenses associated with a new employee.
You might wish to explore alternatives, such as a small business call-handling service from Best Reception that uses experienced, UK-based virtual receptionists. For example, many businesses have scaled down their offices since the pandemic, but still require someone to answer the incoming calls or handle appointment bookings. Using a virtual receptionist service means calls will be answered promptly but you don’t need a physical front office.
Another option is to explore whether existing members of staff could undertake other duties. For example, you could have a rota for greeting customers on the front desk, delegate admin tasks and provide headsets so calls are answered quickly even when staff are moving around the building.
Do you need a receptionist?
If you’ve decided that you need an in-house receptionist, then our detailed insights into the hiring process and job description for a receptionist is a recommended read. Plus, take a look at what skills a good receptionist should have.
However, hiring a full-time receptionist might not be the best and most cost-effective route for your business. With the support of the friendly professionals at Best Reception, your business can gain the capacity to handle extra incoming calls, without the need to employ a new team member.
Our packages are designed to help growing businesses gain the additional support they need – without incurring substantial upfront costs. Improve the well-being of your staff, by removing the burden of answering calls, sending out sales information and booking appointments.
In our experience, outsourcing call answering improves customer experience, increases return business and improves efficiency and productivity.
By opting for one of our call-handling packages, our team of UK-based receptionists will allow you to get on with your day-to-day business. Our aim is to offer an honest and transparent service, so our customers don’t need to worry about facing hidden costs and pages of small print.
If you buy a Best Reception telephone answering package, a virtual number will be included FREE of charge. Your incoming calls will be diverted to a UK landline or mobile number of your choice.
Don’t forget, when you use a virtual phone number from Best Reception your callers will not be charged.
Talk to the team at Best Reception today.
