Running a small business is a labour of love and a challenge that can feel like working multiple jobs at the same time. You have to take care of customers, respond to emails and answer the phone lines. Small business owners might view managing a reception desk as a burden that will take time away from the “real work”; however, it is an essential part of ensuring a positive first contact with your clients.
The good news is that this is where artificial intelligence receptionists are helping bridge that gap. They still won’t provide the warmth a human touch gives to a business; however, they will take over the simple, repetitive tasks like answering the same questions over and over, recording leads and breaking the communication wall that many businesses have.
Can AI Really Replace a Human Receptionist?
Replace is quite a strong word; however, enhance is right on the money. AI virtual receptionists are not about kicking out your awesome human employees, but rather about making sure that your employees, regardless if they are busy, off the clock, or multitasking, don’t leave anything to fall through the cracks. Modern AI receptionists can:
- Manage schedules and appointments in real time
- Answer phone calls and respond to everyday inquiries
- Route calls to the appropriate team member
- Respond to FAQs like a real person in a conversational tone
- Send follow-up messages, reminders and confirmations
And, AI receptionists do all of the above without the need to call in sick, take holidays or have a Monday mood.
Is It Worth the Investment for Small Businesses?
Of course! AI tools are generally thought to only be within reach of the big players, the corporations with deep pockets and dedicated tech teams, but that is not the case. AI virtual receptionists are becoming more and more accessible and can be customised for small businesses. In fact, these are the tools that are most likely to deliver the biggest return for the smallest businesses.
Consider the consequences of not answering a call; a potential customer goes to the competition, a customer escalates a frustration because no one is available to help, and on top of the opportunity loss, a voicemail is never left, and therefore, the opportunity is never captured. All of the above scenarios happen when calls are missed due to busy reception desks and are minimised when an AI receptionist answers these missed opportunities.
Will My Customers Actually Like It?
This is the important one. Not to worry, today’s AI virtual receptionists are far better than old call centre experiences and “press-1-for-billing” services. They are able to understand and engage in a natural and unstructured way, in the way humans do, and have more “conversations” than many call centres have customers.
The secret lies within the configuration. A well-set-up AI receptionist will:
- Greet customers in your desired brand voice and tone
- Comprehend context and manage multi-step conversations
- Provide adequate justification
- Evoke emotional and empathetic responses
- Seamlessly adapt to the various needs of customers
Customers appreciate speed and availability, and AI will always be able to provide this.
How Do I Get Started?
Getting up and running with an AI virtual receptionist is far simpler than you might think. Most platforms are designed with non-technical business owners in mind and offer guided onboarding. Here’s what a typical setup process looks like:
- Select a platform that aligns with your industry and the number of calls that you expect to receive
- Personalise the greeting; it should be unique and provide a good first impression
- Provide useful answers to FAQs and develop procedures for answering and routing calls
- Connect the AI receptionist to your calendars and your CRM systems
- Conduct extensive testing before you launch the system
- Use the data that you receive from the calls to improve your operation
Most companies have the system in a matter of days rather than weeks. Once your AI receptionist is live, it will continue to learn and grow from its experiences.
Is My Business Data Safe?
As with any tech tool, adopting an AI receptionist comes with some safety concerns. However, reputable companies implement strong tech safety measures. To mitigate risk, you should:
- Find a provider who operates within your jurisdiction regarding protecting personal data
- Confirm the call data is encrypted while stored and while it’s being transmitted somewhere
- Limit access to data to authorised individuals (allow just a few people)
- Understand the provider’s policies on retention and deletion of data
- Choose a provider who has independent information protection audits on a frequent basis
- Coach your staff on the proper methods to use to handle any and all cases that have been flagged
By taking some time to practice due diligence with your selected provider, you should have all of the benefits without the headaches.
