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How to Start an Answering Service

Last Updated: April 12, 2023 Approved

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 12 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, 94% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 51,191 times.

Starting an answering service can be a relatively inexpensive way to start a home business. With a few companies on board and a telephone for each operation, you can earn income by providing a service to customers. You can establish your own business by answering phones and recording messages for each company. Follow these steps to learn how to start an answering service.

Step 1 Write up your business plan.

  • Specifically for an answering service business, you need to determine the type of business structure you will be creating, whether it's a proprietorship, partnership, LLC, or corporation. You should mention your services, packages, and pricing structure to determine how much capital you will bring in and how many clients you will need to book to get yourself in a profit margin.

Step 2 Check with all local, state, and federal guidelines for establishing a telephone answering service.

Community Q&A

Community Answer

  • As your business expands, secure office space and hire employees to answer phones when you are not available. Eventually, you will be able to run an answering service that is open all hours of the day for various companies. When you reach this point, you will need to consider employment applications, background checks, and drug testing. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
  • Try not to schedule yourself more than 12 hours a day, regardless of how many businesses you are helping, unless you have a support staff to assist you. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

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Answering Service for Small Business: 6 Best Options

March 21, 2024 11 min read

Alex Doan



An answering service handles calls for other businesses, primarily after hours, during weekends, or on holidays. Answering services help ensure that all phone calls are answered by real people, even during off-hours or busy periods.

Maintaining a competitive edge as a small business can be challenging in today’s fast-paced business environment. Rapidly evolving technology and ever-shifting customer demands create moving targets that are tough to capture without the right tools.

Routing calls to an answering service via a virtual receptionist also helps free up time and resources you’d otherwise spend managing calls internally. That way, you can focus more on scaling your business.

In this guide, we’ll explore the best answering services for small business owners to boost customer retention, plus what you need to look for before choosing.

Let’s start the comparison.

Most businesses Minutes offered: 100–450+
Web chat, email support, call recording
$325/month + $2.95/minute
Personal service businesses Minutes offered: 0–1,000
Bilingual answering, outbound calling
$64/month + $2.20/minute
Round-the-clock serviceMinutes offered: 20–500
Unlimited long-distance calls, free call patching
$65/month + $2.19/minute
Call forwarding and routing needs Minutes offered: 50–500
Third-party integrations, automatic inbound lead capture
$235/month + a per-minute fee
Dedicated account support Minutes offered: 100–500
Dedicated receptionist teams, call announcements, transfers
$299/month + $2.99/minute
Solopreneurs and startupsMinutes offered: 50–100
Advanced call routing, conferencing (Premium tiers)
$129/month + $1.75/minute

A complete call center solution.

See why top brands use Nextiva to handle calls at scale. Easy to use. Fast setup.

AnswerConnect

Best overall service

A screenshot of the AnswerConnect platform.

AnswerConnect is a live answering and chat tool that offers bilingual support. Their support team can help you by taking messages, routing calls, and qualifying inbound leads.

AnswerConnect can also help manage customer experience (CX) with personalization thanks to caller ID.

AnswerConnect offers a range of features in addition to live answering:

  • Caller ID to recognize repeat callers for better in-call personalization
  • Inbound lead qualification so your sales team can hit the ground running
  • Detailed message-taking so you don’t lose any important information
  • Time-sensitive call routing depending on where your teams are located
  • Appointment bookings to set up a future point of contact

Plus, AnswerConnect has an overflow response system for busy hours to ensure no call goes unanswered.

There are three main pricing options from AnswerConnect:

  • 100 minutes included: $325 per month plus $2.95 per minute and a $75 setup fee
  • 300 minutes included: $425 per month plus $2.75 per minute
  • 450 minutes included: $825 per month plus $2.75 per minute and a $75 setup fee

There are also 14 additional pricing tiers for larger companies, from 600 minutes at $1,095 per month to 100,000 minutes at $168,995 per month. Plans from 600 to 5,000 minutes have a $75 setup fee, while larger plans have no setup fee.

24/7/365 live answering
Live chat answering capabilities
Integration with most CRM systems
Bilingual Spanish and English receptionists
More expensive than some other offerings
Call reports aren’t customizable

Best for personal service-oriented businesses

A screenshot of the Posh platform.

Posh is a live answering service that offers outbound calling capabilities. Its knowledgeable agents specialize in customer service for businesses in health, wellness, real estate, and consulting.

Most notably, its outbound capabilities mean it can help capture and qualify leads and convert initial customer inquiries.

What Is IP Telephony?

Related Article

What Is IP Telephony? How Does It Work?

Posh offers several features to businesses of all sizes looking for phone answering service capabilities:

  • Live answering on every call so your customers never reach a voicemail on their first touchpoint
  • Bilingual virtual receptionist to cater to more of your customers
  • A mobile app so agents can help customers from where they’re at
  • Unlimited users so businesses don’t have to pay for more seats

Thanks to its partnership with Zapier, Posh also offers integrations with 3,000+ business applications.

There are seven pricing tiers for Posh customers:

  • 0 minutes included: $64 per month plus $2.20 per minute
  • 50 minutes included: $119 per month plus $2.10 per minute
  • 100 minutes included: $204 per month plus $2.04 per minute
  • 200 minutes included: $394 per month plus $1.97 per minute
  • 350 minutes included: $664 per month plus $1.90 per minute
  • 500 minutes included: $924 per month plus $1.85 per minute
  • 1,000 minutes included: $1,794 per month plus $1.79 per minute
24/7/365 live answering
Wide variety of pricing plans
Bilingual receptionists
HIPAA compliance
No live chat
No call recording

VoiceNation

Best for small businesses needing to offer round-the-clock service

A screenshot of the VoiceNation platform.

VoiceNation is a live answering service provider and virtual receptionist solution.

VoiceNation provides agents with tech support know-how for small businesses without intensive resources. It also offers instant activation if you need an immediate live answering solution but don’t have the infrastructure to set it up quickly.

VoiceNation offers several features, including:

  • Unlimited long-distance calls so your customers get heard no matter where they are
  • Live answering on every call so customers don’t reach voicemail on the first point of contact
  • Custom call scripts to align with your brand
  • Instant activation for easy out-of-the-box setup
  • Free call patching ( warm transfers ) so you don’t rack up charges, making sure your agents are informed

VoiceNation users can also take advantage of message delivery free of charge via channels like voicemail, email, or SMS.

VoiceNation offers five pricing plans:

  • 20 minutes included: $65 per month plus $2.19 per minute
  • 50 minutes included: $135 per month plus $2.19 per minute
  • 150 minutes included: $319 per month plus $2.19 per minute
  • 250 minutes included: $525 per month plus $2.19 per minute
  • 500 minutes included: $925 per month plus $1.99 per minute
24/7/365 live answering
No fees for holiday or after-hours calls
Bilingual receptionists
HIPAA compliance
The mobile app includes additional fees for calling
Live chat is billed annually rather than month-to-month
No dedicated account managers outside of the Enterprise plan

Best for businesses with fluctuating call volumes and forwarding needs

A screenshot of the Ruby platform.

Ruby is a live answering and chat solution. Its agents are entirely based in the U.S. and have the expertise to assist with customer service, support, and even acquisition needs.

Ruby handles outbound calls, qualifies and captures leads, and routes calls to the appropriate party.

Ruby offers quite a few features:

  • Third-party integrations to mesh with your existing tech stack
  • Automatic inbound lead capture so your sales team can hit the ground running
  • Call routing and forwarding to reach the right team member

Ruby is also known for exceptional customer service, a great option if you need outside help for a CX boost.

Ruby has four different live reception pricing tiers:

  • 50 minutes included: $235 per month plus a per-minute fee
  • 100 minutes included: $375 per month plus a per-minute fee
  • 200 minutes included: $680 per month plus a per-minute fee
  • 500 minutes included: $1,640 per month plus a per-minute fee

They also offer live chat as well as bundled reception and chat options.

24/7/365 live answering
Live chat answering capabilities
HIPAA compliance
More expensive than some other solutions
Bilingual receptionists aren’t 24/7/365

Abby Connect

Best for businesses that want a dedicated account manager

A screenshot of the Abby Connect platform.

Abby Connect offers live answering, chat, and virtual receptionist services. While live receptionists aren’t available on holidays through Abby Connect, live chat is available around the clock, 365 days a year.

The features that Abby Connect offers include:

  • Dedicated receptionist teams that stay with your account for consistency
  • Call announcements for transparency and clear communication
  • Call transfers to reach the right team member

Abby also features Zapier integration for compatibility with more than 3,000 third-party apps.

Abby Connect has three live answering pricing packages:

  • 100 minutes included: $299 per month plus $2.99 per minute
  • 200 minutes included: $549 per month plus $2.75 per minute
  • 500 minutes included: $1,199 per month plus $2.40 per minute

Abby also offers live chat as well as bundled reception and chat options.

Live chat answering capabilities
Free outbound calls
Free trial
Limited receptionist capabilities
No custom script option
Live answering isn’t 24/7/365

Davinci Virtual

Best for solopreneurs and startups

A screenshot of the Davinci platform.

Davinci Virtual is a comprehensive business solution that includes live receptionist services. It’s a relatively affordable answering service offering businesses administrative services, like providing a physical address, customer support resources, and live receptionists.

Rather than compensate for business off-hours and holidays, Davinci takes over call support for extremely small teams. This means they don’t have live call answering services around the clock like other solutions.

Davinci Virtual’s Business plans prioritize their live answering services and offer quite a few features, like:

  • Free local or toll-free phone number, depending on your needs
  • Call forwarding and screening to reach the right team member
  • Online faxing for transfer of important documents and information

Live answering with Davinci is only available during standard business hours, and not 24/7/365, so callers may sometimes reach voicemai.

Davinci has four pricing tiers customers can choose from, split into two categories. Business plans are answering services, while Premium plans are more broad contact center solutions:

  • Business | 50 minutes included: $129 per month plus $1.75 per minute
  • Business | 100 minutes included: $239 per month plus $1.75 per minute
  • Premium | 50 minutes included: $249 per month plus $2.50 per minute
  • Premium | 100 minutes included: $319 per month plus $2.50 per minute

Each pricing tier has additional setup fees starting at $50 and up, depending on your needed services.

Less costly than alternativesLive answering isn’t 24/7/365
No notifications for new messages
One-time setup fees
Minimum six-month commitment with no month-to-month option
No free trial

What to Look for When Choosing an Answering Service

The answering service you choose will often be the first impression for callers contacting your business. When you consider that 83% of businesses either lost a customer, missed a deadline, or terminated an employee due to miscommunication, that first impression becomes even more important.

These are the benefits the best answering services offer small businesses.

A telephone answering service can help boost customer engagement KPIs like customer effort score (CES) and customer lifetime value (CLV). It does so by increasing convenience for your customers so they might be more likely to walk away from the experience with a positive opinion.

How to Fix VoIP Problems

Common VoIP Problems and How To Fix Them

The best small business answering services help engagement and retention by being:

  • Customizable : Look for a service that offers customizable solutions, like the ability to tailor scripts and call handling procedures to align with your brand.
  • Available 24/7: Opt for a service that can handle calls around the clock (even on weekends and holidays) to ensure you’re always accessible to customers.
  • Scalable: Pick a service that can scale with your business. That means handling increasing call volumes and adapting to rapid changes.
  • Cost-effective: Select a service that balances affordability and quality, ensuring you get the best value for your money.
  • Able to integrate: Go for a service that seamlessly integrates with your tech stack, like CRM software, to streamline call handling and data management.
  • Reputable: Single out testimonials and reviews from other small businesses. A reputable service with a track record of satisfied customers is more likely to meet your expectations.

By capturing customer attention on the first point of contact, an answering service engages and primes customers for the next step in their journey. Engaged customers are more valuable, too — according to Gallup , they drive a 23% premium over the average customer regarding wallet share among your competitors.

💡Even if an answering service checks all your boxes, you’ll still need to route the calls somewhere.

How Businesses Use Answering Services

Businesses use answering services to keep lines of communication open with their customers when the usual team isn’t available. They might add the answering service to their call flow after business hours, during a holiday, or when a service outage hits.

A typical call flow that includes an answering service might look like this:

  • A customer calls your business over the weekend while your team is off.
  • The call triggers an interactive voice response (IVR) menu that prompts the customer for a response.
  • The customer gives an input.
  • The call routes to an answering service covering for the caller’s intended destination.
  • The caller connects with a support agent from the answering service who notes the issue and sets up expectations for the next steps.
  • If needed, your team follows up with the caller when normal business hours resume or via automated email or text.

Streamlining business processes can help make operations more efficient, lead to better customer service, and lower turnover rates . Keeping customers around for the long haul is important — the longer they do business with you, the more money they spend. They might even send new business your way, too.

VoIP advantages and disadvantages

Ready for VoIP? Advantages and Disadvantages To Make the Right Choice

Be There Any Time Your Customers Call

To compete in today’s market, you must be there when customers call. That’s day or night, weekday or weekend — holiday or not. With round-the-clock availability, professional call handling, and scalability, an answering service for small businesses can improve your customer service game and retention.

A Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) solution like Nextiva is essential to manage, route, and analyze those calls so you can be there for your customers even when you aren’t actually available.

Small Business Answering Service FAQs

If you’re still curious about an answering service for small businesses, check out these frequently asked questions.

Live answering services cost anywhere from $64 to more than $300 monthly, plus a per-minute fee of around $2–3. The more minutes in your plan, the less your per-minute charge will likely be.

An answering service can help: Enhance customer service Improve call efficiency Reduce operational costs Scale business operations Be more available to customers With an answering service, you can also free up time to focus on core activities like developing new products and acquiring new customers.

Trained professionals, often called customer service representatives or agents, answer calls for an answering service. The answering service provider usually employs them, and they follow scripts and protocols provided by the businesses they serve.

Answering services and virtual receptionists serve similar purposes but differ in scope and level of service. Virtual receptionists offer more than answering services, including call answering and forwarding and appointment scheduling. Virtual receptionists can also offer customers a higher level of personalization and are more integrated with day-to-day business operations.

Answering services and call centers handle incoming calls, but the size of the businesses they serve and the expertise of their agents can differ greatly. Call centers can be larger in scale, while answering services typically serve only small and medium-sized businesses. However, answering services offer general services like call handling and recording messages. If you have broader needs, you might opt for a call center that can often offer more specialized services like technical support.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alex Doan is an experienced senior marketing professional specializing in propelling growth for both B2B and B2C companies. Proficient in streamlining marketing operations for seamless sales transitions, utilizing analytics and consumer insights to achieve measurable outcomes. Committed to enhancing lead and customer experiences through effective journey mapping.

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  • Best Answering Services

Best Answering Services (2024)

Tomas Laurinavicius

Updated: Jul 29, 2024, 5:25pm

Customer experience (CX) has become a key differentiator for brands. Readily available phone support is key to improving your customer satisfaction and net promoter scores. But hiring support staff full-time to handle incoming calls and live chat messages 24/7 may be cost-prohibitive. That’s when savvy businesses start evaluating the best answering services. Forbes Advisor selected the top seven answering service companies that offer access to live human attendants and extra software features for managing phone, email, and chat conversations.

  • Best VoIP Service
  • Best Free VoIP Phone Service
  • Best VoIP Cell Phone Service
  • Best Conference Calling Services
  • Best Call Center Software
  • Best Business Cell Phone Plans

Featured Partners

AnswerConnect

200 mins at $350 per month

Professional, customizable live answering. Real people, 24/7.

Bilingual service, appointment scheduling, live chat

AnswerConnect

On AnswerConnect’s Website

AnswerForce

200 minutes at $349 per month

24/7 call answering. Flexible plans. Always real people.

Bilingual service, Lead capture & qualification, Appointment scheduling.

AnswerForce

On AnswerForce’s Website

VoiceNation

20 minutes from $63 per month

Live bilingual agents available 24/7 in English and Spanish

Appointment scheduling, lead qualification and outbound calling

On VoiceNation’s Website

30 minutes for $129 per month

Live & virtual attendants; 24/7 in English or Spanish

Microsoft Teams, appointment scheduling, lead qualification & outbound calling

Moneypenny

On Moneypenny’s Website

The Best Answering Services of 2024

Why you can trust forbes advisor small business, methodology, how to choose an answering service, benefits of answering services, frequently asked questions (faqs), next up in business.

  • AnswerConnect: Best overall
  • Specialty Answering Service: Best value for money
  • VoiceNation: Best bilingual call answering service
  • PATLive: Best virtual receptionist services
  • Davinci: Best for remote companies
  • MAP Communications: Best for custom scripting
  • Moneypenny: Best for global support

The Forbes Advisor Small Business team is committed to bringing you unbiased rankings and information with full editorial independence. We use product data, strategic methodologies and expert insights to inform all of our content to guide you in making the best decisions for your business journey.

To find the best answering services for small businesses, we considered over 25 of the leading services in the space and narrowed it down to 15, which we then evaluated across five key categories and 27 different metrics. Our ratings consider factors such as transparent pricing, features, service quality and inclusions, and access to customer support and ratings. All ratings are determined solely by our editorial team.

Best Overall

AnswerConnect

Starting price

$350 (200 minutes), plus $2.50 per minute and $49.99 setup fee

Phone answering service

Live and virtual attendants available 24/7 in English or Spanish

Extra support channels

Web chat, email, knowledge base

AnswerConnect offers a 24/7/365 phone answering service and a live chat answering service in English and Spanish. Your virtual support team can take messages, reroute calls, book appointments, qualify leads, and answer general customer queries using provided scripts. All call flows are tailored to your business operations. Plus, you can personalize every customer experience thanks to AnswerConnect’s called ID technology.

AnswerConnect also stood out due to its exceptionally high reviews on Trustpilot (4.8 out of 5) and G2 (4.7). Existing users say it’s the best answering service regarding reliability, consistency, and overall agent professionalism. Unlike other answering service providers, AnswerConnect offers monthly plans based on an estimated number of minutes, which adds predictability to your budget.

Who should use it:

Small to mid-market service companies seeking comprehensive and predictable coverage.

  • 24/7/365 coverage
  • Phone answering & live chat answering services
  • Appointment booking service
  • Detailed call recordings
  • Easy integration with popular CRMs
  • Flexible pricing plans
  • Occasional transcription errors
  • Non-customizable reporting on call details and types

Best Value for Money

Specialty answering service.

Specialty Answering Service

$38 per month, plus $1.39 per minute and $50 setup fee

Live agents available 24/7 in English or Spanish

Web chat, email, knowledge base, social media

Specialty Answering Service (SAS) has been in business for 30 years. The company operates a US-based bilingual inbound call center in Philadelphia. Users can select among five support packages — general phone answering, 24/7 call center services, a dedicated call center with agents exclusively working on your account, lead-gen services, and virtual receptionist services.

Each service has the same pricing tier: for example, $139 for 100 minutes per month (plus a standard $50 setup fee). SAS doesn’t charge extra fees for handling calls during weekends or holidays. However, voicemails, interactive voice response (IVR) services, and call patching minutes are billed separately.

A 14-day free trial is available. Billing is month-to-month, meaning you can cancel anytime without any extra fees.

Companies looking for flexible service levels at a competitive rate.

  • Established, award-winning brand
  • Free 14-day trial, no credit card required
  • Month-to-month billing, no contract, cancel anytime
  • US-based telemarketing and telesales services
  • Dedicated virtual receptionist service
  • No toll fees
  • Lead generation services
  • Geotagging features aren’t available
  • IVR only supports basic canned messages
  • Live chat and email service is 10/5

Best Bilingual Call Answering Service

From $70 per month

(20 minutes included)

Phone call answering service

VoiceNation phone support services include basic message taking, call patching, outbound call handling, and over-the-phone ordering. Unlike other answering service providers, VoiceNation doesn’t offer full call center services — such that include customer support, lead qualification, or phone marketing service. However, you can ask your agent to process orders or book appointments.

On the pro side, VoiceNation has a sleek mobile app where you can be notified about processed calls, review messages, listen to call recordings, and block calls you don’t want to accept (to save on minutes).

The company also offers specialized bilingual (English & Spanish) support for healthcare and legal services providers. VoiceNotion is HIPPA compliant.

Small healthcare providers, legal firms, and real estate companies with bilingual customers.

  • Competitively-priced plans
  • Free 7-day trial
  • Automatic screening for solicitations and robocalls
  • Easy on-call scheduling for your team
  • Convenient online management dashboard and mobile app
  • Training, competent, confidentiality-oriented bilingual agents
  • Occasional accuracy issues with name transcriptions
  • No virtual attendants available
  • Per minute cost is on the higher end

Best Virtual Receptionist Service

PATLive

from $205 per month, plus $1.82 per minute

PATLive is a pure-play phone answering service. They don’t offer support for other channels but excel in phone communication. The team does more than pick up the phone and relay messages. A trained virtual receptionist can also book appointments, manage event registrations, pre-qualify leads, take orders, and patch callers to the correct person based on their availability. The team continuously provides training to all hires and has cultivated a productive work culture. Employees rated PATLive at 4.6 on Glassdoor and customers gave them an A+ on Better Business Bureau .

Integrations with other business products are another standout feature. You can sync the service with popular calendar apps, such as Calendly and AppointmentPlus, so that the receptionist adds calls straight to your agenda. You can also provide PATLive staff with access to your CRM apps like Zoho or Salesforce to facilitate lead management. PATLive also has integrations with popular e-commerce platforms (BigCommerce, Shopify, Etsy and Magento), legal (Clio and Zolo Suite), and property management software (TrueRent and AppFolio).

Pricing-wise, this answering service isn’t the cheapest, but its pricing reflects the quality of service, according to numerous users on Trustpilot.

Anyone looking for an A-level virtual receptionist.

  • Transparent, low-cost plans
  • Free 14-day trial
  • Prevetted, trained, polite virtual receptionists
  • Onboarding, customized to each client
  • Good performance for lead generation campaigns
  • Support event registrations
  • User-friendly online and mobile account dashboards
  • No live chat or email answering services
  • No IVR service available
  • More expensive than other similar services

Best for Remote Companies

Davinci virtual.

Davinci Virtual

$129 per month

(for 50 live answer minutes)

Davinci is best known for its virtual office services, which hook you up with a business address in major global hubs, mail forwarding services, on-demand meeting rooms, and workspace for rent.

However, the company also offers convenient live phone answering services. Customers receive a free local, toll-free number and all the standard back-end support: Call screening and forwarding, voicemail setup and management, advanced call routing, and even faxing services.

On a more expensive Premium Plan, you also benefit from outbound call support, such as lead generation campaigns, client confirmations or follow-ups, phone sales, appointment scheduling, or market research. Likewise, your virtual receptionist can be tasked with simple admin tasks like order processing, appointment management, meeting planning, travel coordination, or calendar management.

Davinci teams take time to settle into the required call flow and master your scripts. But when they do, the service levels are consistently high.

Fully remote companies or branches in other countries.

  • Customizable call flows
  • Unlimited long-distance calling
  • Auto receptionist service with customizable greetings, gingles, and customer messages
  • Conference phone calls handling
  • Extra virtual office services (priced separately)
  • Extra admin support
  • The mobile app is a bit outdated
  • Doesn’t offer many integrations with other business apps
  • Live chat support is quite expensive

Best for custom scripting

Map communications.

MAP Communications

$49 per month, plus $1.37 per minute

Live and virtual attendants available 24/7 in English or Spanish.

MAP Communications is an employee-owned company headquartered in Chesapeake, Virginia. This means the company’s staff (including call center agents) have a stake in the company and receive financial incentives based on the business performance. Such culture creates a greater sense of ownership and productivity among the personnel, positively reflecting their service levels. MAP Communications has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau .

The company offers three types of customer support services: general answering, call center, and virtual receptionist. The answering service can be designated as a primary or backup line of communication 24/7. The company’s agents are well-trained to work with custom call scripts and carefully follow all the provided requirements, policies, procedures, and language preferences.

Call center services offer more advanced support, including customer issue troubleshooting, tech support, product recalls handling, disaster recovery services, order management, and more. In other words, MAP Communications teams can handle any customer scenario your business faces.

Rapidly growing companies looking for a long-term partner.

  • Trained, bilingual operators
  • Full setup within 48 hours
  • Voicemail and IVR services included with all plans
  • Scalable, cloud-based call center solutions
  • Lead qualifications and management services
  • E-commerce business support services
  • Extra fees charged during holidays
  • Occasional issues with billing
  • No live chat support

Best for global support

Moneypenny

(up to 30 minutes)

Live and virtual attendants available 24/7 in over 100 languages.

Help desk, live chat, chatbot, email, social media.

Moneypenny is a UK-based phone answering services provider with a branch in the US and an international presence. Moneypenny is also the parent company of VoiceNation, but the two brands operate independently.

The company claims to have handled over 20 million calls and chats on behalf of its clients, who range from one-person teams to multinational enterprises and government agencies. For each customer group, Moneypenny has a bespoke solution.

Small businesses usually use the phone answering service, which includes scripted and free-flow conversations. On the backend, Moneypenny integrates with your corporate business systems so that the receptionist always knows the company background, staff availability, and messaging preferences. Unlike other answering services, Moneypenny can also transfer calls to Microsoft Teams or send a transcription message in an email or text.

Larger companies usually use Moneypenny’s outbound calling service or dedicated customer support team service. Both can handle more complex call flows and business processes, e.g., for lead generation or market research, plus offer multi-layered service across multiple channels.

Customer-centric startups looking for lean support services.

  • Bespoke call handling for various industries
  • Seamless integration with standard operating workflows
  • Trained virtual receptionists and customer support agents
  • Dedicated regional, national, or freephone numbers available
  • High-quality live chat support
  • Call forwarding to Microsoft Teams
  • Level 4 PCI compliance for secure data processing
  • Minimum contract length of 3 months
  • One month notice required for service cancelation
  • Standard answering hours are 8:30 am to 6 pm. 24/7 support costs extra

To determine the best answering services for small businesses, Forbes Advisor researched providers in the space and narrowed it down to the 15 top providers. These providers were then analyzed across five primary categories for a total of 27 different metrics. The criteria were then weighted to favor features that matter most to small businesses. The best answering services had the best overall scores based on our methodology.

Here are the metrics we used to evaluate the top answering services.

For pricing, we considered the cost per month for each paid plan, the number of minutes included in the monthly fee, if there are any setup fees and the ability of free trials or a money-back guarantee. Pricing accounts for 20% of our total score.

Key Features

We analyzed each answering service based on key features such as the inclusion of live human attendants, virtual attendants, the availability of canned responses, custom scripts, geotargeting, calling functionalities, web chat, call transfers and routing. These key features make up 30% of our score.

Unique Features

In addition to the key features, we also devoted 20% of our score to whether or not the services included unique features that could make a difference for certain businesses and use cases, such as email functionality, user knowledge base, call recording, third-party integrations, customer satisfaction surveys, legal agents, and healthcare agents.

Ratings and Reviews

We analyzed third-party customer reviews to determine if user experience matches marketing promises. We considered each provider’s average rating as well as how many reviews each had and weighed them at 20%.

Expert Score

Finally, we included our expert opinion based on first-hand experience using answering services. This category also considered factors such as ease of use and value for price based on the quality of the available features. This accounts for 10% of the total score.

First, evaluate your needs against the offered service models. A small service business may just need a virtual receptionist for office hours to pass on messages and re-route calls. A larger product company may need a dedicated call center with bilingual operators and 24/7/365 coverage to handle complex customer support cases.

Create an itemized list of tasks you’d like to outsource. Identify a provider that covers the majority of them. When making the comparison, pay attention to the price structures. Some answering services charge a one-time setup fee on top of a monthly plan. Others bundle this fee into the initial pricing.

Most answering service providers bill by the processed minute. Some, however, offer separate per-minute prices for inbound and outbound calls. Call patching and voice message minutes are sometimes billed separately too. Therefore, it’s always worth asking for a precise quote, e.g., offering a sample price of 100 minutes per month.

Remember that companies that provide the cheapest answering services probably aren’t investing in attracting, training, and retaining talented people. The “you get what you pay for” maxim will likely hold here, so pinching pennies might be unwise.

Ideally, you want to check out several options before committing to one, which should be possible with the companies that offer free trials.

Also, ensure you test each answering service by making calls yourself so that you can evaluate them by how quickly the calls are answered, how polite and friendly the live operators are and how good the company is at following your specific instructions.

On AnswerConnect's Website

On AnswerForce's Website

On VoiceNation's Website

On Moneypenny's Website

Listed below are some key benefits of using answering services.

A ringing phone can become a nuisance for growing businesses. Leaving it unanswered means a potential opportunity is lost. Picking it up round the clock is unfeasible. Answering services ensure that all calls get sorted fast and professionally. Using a service is almost always more affordable than hiring and training full-time employees.

Cost-effective

Answering services are competitively priced, especially as you only pay for minutes used. Hiring full-time employees to handle calls and live chat messages 24/7 is more expensive. You need to account for the cost of the hiring process, the onboarding process, salary, benefits, employment taxes, etc.

Improved Customer Service

An answering service provides 24/7/365 coverage, so potential and existing customers can always contact your company. A reputable answering service also has well-trained agents who can resolve customer queries, process orders, book appointments, or pre-qualify warm leads.

What does an answering service do?

Answering services process calls on behalf of their customers. Most provide 24/7 phone support: take messages, transfer calls, schedule appointments and perform other admin tasks. Providers follow customizable scripts to ensure consistency in communication and offer bilingual support. Some answering service providers also answer live chat messages or help desk tickets.

What is the average cost of an answering service?

Prices vary, but you can expect to pay a fixed monthly fee plus $1 to $2.50 per minute. Alternatively, you might pay a set monthly bill for a specific call time and an additional $1 to $2.50 per minute if you exceed the monthly plan.

Do people still use answering services?

Automation can’t replace humans just yet. No one wants to be stuck interacting with a canned responder or a voice bot. People want to know they can talk to a real person if needed.

Is an answering service the same as a call center?

The answer is they are not the same., although they may be similar A call center may only provide call answering services, but many call centers offer many different phone-related services, such as those related to sales and services.

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Tomas Laurinavicius

Tomas Laurinavicius is a writer and designer. He's a co-founder of Best Writing, an all-in-one platform connecting writers with businesses. He has built multiple online businesses and helps startups and enterprises scale their content marketing operations. He worked with TIME, Observer, HuffPost, Adobe, Webflow, Envato, InVision, and BigCommerce.

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8 Best Small Business Answering Services of 2024

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Have you ever calculated the benefits that having a business answering machine can have for your business?

Right from saving the cost of having to pay an in-house receptionist, to paying for their health care and benefits, to paying for overtime, there is so much more that it has to offer.

Deploying a business answering service makes sure that you never miss a single call again.

Your business is always accessible throughout the year , even on holidays, and is represented by a team of professionals who have been trained to answer calls.

Yes! Your callers will no longer hear a dog barking in the background or all the noise happening in the office.

You will also never be bothered by a tele-caller again when you have been waiting for urgent calls if you deploy a business answering service.

Still not convinced?

Let us walk you through what different business answering services offer and how your business can benefit from them. In our guide, we will also help you choose the best answering service for your business.

If you are ready, let’s get started.

Best Small Business Answering Services

1. ringcentral, best answering system for small businesses with offices in multiple locations..

RingCentral is the Best answering system for small businesses with offices in multiple locations

RingCentral’s auto attendant feature makes sure you never miss another call even when you may be out of the office. Its automated phone system ensures that your callers get connected to the right department and even external numbers anywhere in the US and globally.

You can greet your customers with a custom greeting that you can record using the voice of your choice. You can either choose from the pre-recorded messages available or even hire professional voice talent to record the messages for you.

Suppose you are running an offer or are off on a holiday, you can also record a custom message for those days and then automatically go back to your regular greeting.

It even lets you set advanced rules for specific caller IDs , for example, your vendors, or investors. So when they call, they do not hear the message that you want your customers to hear.

If you have offices in different parts of the country, or the globe, the multi-level auto-attendant feature lets you direct all your calls to a single number . You can then set extensions for each location which will then direct customers to the location they want to connect to.

You can also very easily offer language options to your callers so that they can choose the language they want to use.

With RingCentral, you can set up conditional forwarding as well so that when your customers call beyond office hours, they get directed to a number out of the office. While connecting to the other number, you can also play a custom message.

While your agents attend to customers and solve their problems, you can play hold music for them so that the wait does not seem that long.

Using their multi-level auto-attendant feature you can manage call routing for multiple locations, add up to 250 voice menus and submenus for each location , deploy different IVR menus for each of the locations and add a separate number for each IVR.

RingCentral Pricing Plan

RingCentral’s auto attendant feature is available with all of their plans and their most basic plan starts at $19.99 with which you get other features as well like unlimited calls within the US and Canada, business or toll-free numbers, document sharing, and team messaging.

If you find RingCentral’s pricing expensive and are looking for a complete package you might want to compare RingCentral’s alternatives as well.

2. Ruby Receptionist

Best professional live receptionists and web chat services..

Ruby Receptionist is the Best Professional live Receptionists and Web Chat Services

While many businesses choose business answering services, many other businesses prefer that their callers are greeted with a personal touch by a real person. This is where services like Ruby Receptionist come in.

Ruby Receptionist has a team of US-based live receptionists who help small businesses manage their calls and make sure no caller is turned away. These live receptionists are real people working to handle your calls and sound like they are located within your office.

They can receive calls on your behalf, transfer them to another number that you assign, take messages for you, schedule appointments , answer FAQs, and forward calls to voicemail. It all depends on how you want your calls to be handled.

Even though you outsource your receptionist, you have complete control over the message you want your callers to be greeted with. They are available round the clock throughout the year so your callers can call you anytime and they will be greeted by a real person.

When you deploy Ruby Receptionists at your office, you can be assured that all your calls will automatically be screened by your receptionist and you will not have to waste your time on spam.

They also have a mobile app through which you can access all the forwarded calls, read transcripts of voicemails, and set call handling rules.

Even if you choose your calls to be forwarded on your personal phone, with Ruby Receptionist, you can keep your personal number and your business number separate .

Along with handling calls, Ruby’s receptionists also help businesses handle their web chat s. These chat specialists answer customer queries on your website, answer FAQs, schedule appointments and connect them to someone in your office if needed.

If you are looking for a HIPAA compliant service, you are in luck as Ruby also offers a HIPAA compliant call handling and chat service .

It is also quite easy to get started with them. All you have to do is call the number given on their website and an onboarding specialist will walk you through the process.

Ruby Receptionist Pricing Plan

There are three broad categories of plans that you can choose from depending on whether you want Ruby’s receptionists to handle calls, provide chat services or do both.

If you are looking for bundled services, the Bundled Chat Ruby 30 is ideal and fits perfectly with small business needs.

3. MAP Communications

Best feature-rich small business answering service..

MAP Communications is the Best feature rich small business answering service

With MAP Communication’s business answering service, you can have a team of US-based agents attending to your callers twenty-four hours a day, round the year, so you do not have to miss another call again.

Even when your customers call you beyond office hours , the team is available to receive calls on your behalf. This can be of great help especially if you have customers across different time zones.

Also, if you cater to Spanish-speaking demographics , you are in luck here because MAP Communications provides answering services in English and Spanish.

Like other best small business answering services, MAP Communications lets you determine the experience your callers will have. You can set the message you want them to be greeted with , determine how your calls will be handled, and set numbers where they will be forwarded.

Every time your business receives a call, all the details are logged into a system, where you can log in and access them. Their live answering service makes sure that your callers speak to real people and not automated voice messages.

Along with the live answering service, you can also provide directions on which calls qualify as urgent. When such urgent calls arrive, MAP Communication’s team makes sure that the right person receives the message even if it is after working hours.

They also offer a Disaster Recovery Answering Service through which you can ensure that your phone lines are active and all your callers are attended to even when a disaster strikes or there is an emergency.

Some other features that you get with this answering service are call routing, appointment scheduling, reporting tools, and RSVP answering service among others.

MAP Communications Pricing Plan

There are three different pricing options that you can choose from. Each of these plans comes with 24/7 receptionist service, text and email delivery, a nationwide 800 number, and real-time portal access.

However, for small businesses, the Business plan is ideal where you get all the basic features, 125 minutes of calling, and other additional features.

Best answering service for small businesses with a very responsive customer support team.

PATLive is the Best answering service for small businesses with a very responsive customer support team

PATLive is another great business answering service that is available to take calls for businesses 24/7, 365 days of the year. They are quite well-known for having a very helpful and responsive customer support team .

If you face any problem , they also keep an eye on your account and ensure that the problem gets remedied. With PATLive you can decide and provide instructions on how you want your calls to be answered.

Through their web and mobile app , you can also update your status in real-time, so that their receptionists get notified and your calls or texts are handled accordingly.

You can also log in to the system and check the calls you’ve received , the messages that have been taken for you, and listen to your voicemail.

PATLive offers several third-party integrations with scheduling apps, CRM tools, eCommerce platforms so that the receptionists handling your calls can directly update the system from the calls they receive for you. This can take a load off your shoulders and streamline processes.

Some of the tasks that your PATLive receptionist can do for you are transfer calls, take messages, schedule appointments, collect leads, process orders, take event registrations and of course, answer your calls.

PATLive Pricing Plan

PATLive offers five pricing plans for businesses to choose from. However, their Basic and Started plans may be too basic and have limited functionality. For small businesses, the Standard plan is ideal and has all the important features.

They also have Spanish Language Support like other best business answering services, but it is optional and you can get the service for an added fee of $20 per month.

5. VoiceNation

Best professional business answering service for streamlined communication with customers..

VoiceNation is the Best professional business answering service for streamlined communication with customers

Whether you want a virtual receptionist or an answering service for your business, VoiceNation offers both to businesses. Whichever service you choose, you get live receptionists who handle your business calls as if they were located within your office.

Setting up your system with VoiceNation is very simple. Once you sign up for their services, an onboarding specialist will guide you through the process and will also help you set up custom scripts for your calls and the way you want your calls to be answered.

Later, if you want to make any changes to the script or call handling rules, you can directly do so from their mobile app or from their online portal. VoiceNation converts all the calls you receive into data so that you can gain insights about your callers from their reporting feature.

Depending on what you want, the receptionists at VoiceNation can take calls for you , make appointments, take product bookings, forward calls, attend calls after business hours, and much more.

You can access real-time records about your callers from the VoiceNation mobile app . Suppose you would like to call back a caller, you can do so using the VoiceNation number so that your personal number stays private.

Every new member who signs up gets a VoiceNation number where all incoming calls to your business are forwarded or you can even give that number to your customers to reach you.

They also have a very helpful customer support team to help you when you get stuck. Moreover, every business gets an account manager who makes sure you have no problems with the system.

VoiceNation Pricing Plan

There are five plans that you can choose from at VoiceNation. They offer a free trial for seven days. After that, depending on the number of minutes you require, you can choose a plan. For small businesses, the Pro plan is ideal where you get 150 minutes included.

6. Abby Connect

Best straightforward business answering service with a personal team of receptionists for every business..

Abby Connect is the Best straightforward business answering service with a personal team

Abby Connect is a very straightforward business answering service and is ideal for small businesses that are looking for a small team of receptionists to handle their calls rather than having a call center.

With Abby Connect, you will be assigned a dedicated team of receptionists who will soon become a part of your team. These receptionists also offer bilingual support, so it is especially appealing to international businesses.

Instead of having to get in touch with all these receptionists if you face any issue, you can directly get in touch with your account manager , who acts as the head of the team and solves your problems.

Your Abby Connect Receptionists will handle calls for you the way you want, i.e. they will forward calls, take messages, screen all incoming calls, answer FAQs and make appointments on behalf of you.

Depending on whether you want to read or listen to your messages, Abby Connect lets you choose between written messages and voicemai l, where you get separate inboxes for each.

When they transfer your calls to your employees, they also play transfer music instead of the usual hold music.

Abby Connect has a mobile app called AbbyGO , that lets you manage all your calls from one place. You can access all your messages, a list of callers, messages from receptionists, update your status on the system, and much more.

Abby Connect Pricing Plan

Abby Connect offers three pricing plans to choose from and they offer a 14-day free trial. However, when compared to other service providers, these plans might seem quite expensive. They even charge quite high for every added minute after the receptionist minutes are over.

Small businesses might only find the plan with 100 receptionist minutes within their reach.

7. Davinci Virtual

Best live virtual receptionist service with auto-receptionist and advanced call handling features..

Davinci Virtual is the Best live virtual receptionist service with auto receptionist features

Davinci Virtual lets businesses choose between live virtual receptionists and auto receptionists to handle all your business calls.

With their auto-receptionist solution, you can be assured that your calls will be answered as professionally as they would be by a human receptionist.

Getting started with their services is easy. Within an hour a dedicated customer care representative will reach out to you to help you get started. Each of their plans is customizable.

All you have to do is fill out an online form and let the team know how you want your calls to be attended , the greeting that you want your callers to hear when they call, and even give any special instructions about the way you want your calls to be handled.

With the virtual receptionists as well as auto receptionists, all your calls are screened so that you receive only the messages that contribute to your business.

If you choose their auto-receptionist service , you get local or toll-free numbers, unlimited long-distance service, voicemail management features, advanced call routing, call forwarding, online faxing, along with conference calls, and many more features.

With the live virtual receptionist service, you get a small team of dedicated receptionists who are trained to handle your business needs.

With their business plan , you get live call answering, call forwarding and screening, personalized call scripts and routing, free local or toll-free number, auto receptionists, and much more.

If you choose their premium plan , you get all the features in the business plan along with appointment scheduling, lead generation, order processing, administrative tasks, and bilingual receptionists. You can also get help with your outbound calling under this plan.

They also have a great reputation for having a responsive customer support team, so you do not have to be worried if you get stuck anywhere.

Davinci Virtual Pricing Plan

They have f our different plans broadly categorized under Business plans and Premium plans. If you are looking for premium features like order processing, lead generation, appointment scheduling, the Premium 50 plan is ideal which offers 50 live answer minutes .

For small businesses looking for a simple live receptionist service to handle their incoming calls, greet customers with professional messages and route them to the appropriate department, the Business 50 plan is the right choice.

There are separate plans for businesses looking just for the auto-receptionist feature.

Best low-cost business answering service for small businesses.

PCMSI is the Best low cost business answering service for small businesses

Even though PCMSI has the lowest pricing options in the industry and offers very low per-minute charges for calls, its offerings include all the important business answering features that one might look for in the best business answering service.

Their agents are available round the clock throughout the year and are trained to attend to calls the way a particular business wants. So you can set the custom greeting that you want your callers to be greeted with when they call you.

You can decide how you want your calls to be handled , specify which calls need to be forwarded immediately, and even receive calls after business hours. It lets you set the number you want your calls to be forwarded to.

Once you set call handling rules, you can also give special instructions for holidays or promotions , and update the way your calls are handled at any time. They all screen all your incoming calls so that all spam calls are filtered.

PCMSI agents can also schedule appointments on your behalf and then notify the entire team about it through email or text. There is also an order-taking feature where they can take orders from customers on your behalf and update your systems accordingly.

Through their lead capturing feature, you can also get the contact information of prospective leads and get in touch with your callers later.

While there is no pricing information available on their website, they do offer a Best Rate Guarantee according to which they evaluate your usage and compare it with your current plan. They then offer you the best rate according to your usage.

This way their pricing is affordable for small businesses that are getting started with business answering services for the first time.

How to Choose the Best Answering Service?

With so many business answering services in the market, it might get confusing when you try to choose just one from the list. However, you can evaluate each of the available options on several criteria and determine if it is the best fit for your business.

1. 24/7, 365 days availability

The idea behind having an answering service is that your business is accessible to customers round the clock even after business hours . If you want your in-house receptionist to be available after business hours, it will cost you a fortune to pay them over time.

But the best business answering services operate round the clock all around the year. This is possible because these services hire professionals who are located across time zones and work remotely or from the office. So they are able to provide their services 24/7.

Choose a service that lets you get your calls forwarded even when you are not in the office, out on leave, or have a public holiday . This way, every single call is attended and you do not miss a single call again.

2. Well trained professional receptionists

Before you choose an answering service or a live receptionist, make sure you check the reviews to find out about their professionalism . Most customers will let you know through their reviews if the receptionists from a company are up to the mark.

Since your receptionist will be the first touchpoint of a caller for your business, it is important to make sure that you have professionals answering your calls. The best business answering services will have warm yet professional-sounding agents who know proper call etiquette.

3. Excellent customer support

Almost every user needs to get in touch with their service provider at least once due to some issues they may face. Make sure you choose the answering service that has the best reputation for good customer support like PATLive .

You must also choose a service that assigns a dedicated account manager to every business so that all your interaction happens with them before you need to contact the customer service team.

4. Personalized caller experience

While it is great to have an answering service that lets you customize the script to greet customers when they call, it is ideal to have a service that knows how to personalize messages according to the needs of the caller.

When your customers call, they should not feel like they are talking to a machine. Instead, you must choose a service that is experienced enough to add a personal touch to all your interactions while still being professional.

5. Best call answering features

What good is a business answering system that has good customer support and experienced agents, but does not offer the basic features that an answering service should have? Before you choose your service provider, make sure you evaluate all the available features.

The best business answering service will have advanced features like call patching and transferring, voicemail management, appointment scheduling, lead capturing, order processing, and others.

Davinci Virtual is one such service that offers all basic as well as advanced call answering features.

6. Mobile phone application and online interface

Virtual receptionists and auto receptionists will update all the information about calls received, messages taken, orders received, and others into a system. You can then log into the system and check your messages and other information related to your calls.

However, the best answering service for businesses will have a mobile app and an online interface where employees can update their status of availability, so messages are taken accordingly. This also makes it possible to check messages and call back even on the go.

7. Third-party integrations

Choose a service provider that supports third-party integrations so that your systems can be updated accordingly. For example, the best answering service will make appointments and update your calendar, or take orders and update the inventory, and so on.

8. Security compliances

Make sure that the service provider you choose is HIPAA compliant and also PCI compliant as sensitive customer information will be handled by them during calls.

An answering system for your business is meant to reduce the costs of hiring a traditional receptionist who works from the office. Therefore, choose a service that fits your budget and charges much less than an in-house receptionist would’ve charged.

Types of Answering Services

In some places, you might have noticed that we have spoken about live answering services or virtual receptionists, and in some places, we spoke about automated receptionists. We even briefly spoke about web chat services.

You must be confused if these are just used interchangeably or are actually different. Let us clear it out for you.

1. Live answering services

Live answering services are also referred to as virtual receptionists . These are actual humans attending your calls from a remote location which could be their headquarters or even their homes.

Even though they may be located outside your office , when a caller calls, it seems like someone within your office is answering the calls . These receptionists answer calls the way you want and greet customers with a custom greeting.

They are also able to add a personal touch to every call and use their own judgment for each caller.

2. Automated answering services

These are different from live answering services and are often referred to as interactive voice response menus (IVRs) where a software receives incoming calls and handles them as per the call handling rules.

Unlike live answering, the software receives the call and plays a custom greeting that you can set. You can even choose the voice and tone you want to play the message in .

Depending on the call handling rules, a set of options are played and callers can select the appropriate extensions to get connected to the department or employee they desire.

3. Webchat services

Businesses that have a website also commonly have a webchat option where customers can ask questions instead of calling the customer care center. Instead of having software answer customer questions, through web chat services, real humans can answer customer queries.

Just like virtual receptionists, these are actual agents that answer customer queries that come from the website and mobile application through the same portal.

4. Call center services

Call center services are answering services required by businesses that receive a large volume of calls regularly and a major part of their business relies on customer support. With the best call center software , businesses can easily handle large volumes of calls with a click.

Answering Services FAQ

Live answering services are also known as live virtual receptionists and these are real people who answer calls on behalf of businesses . They work with business answering service providers that take complete charge of incoming calls for businesses.  The virtual receptionists are located remotely in the headquarters or different parts of the world and attend calls from their respective locations. However, when someone calls a business, it feels like an in-house receptionist is answering the call.

An answering service is a company that handles calls for a business for a fee. Depending on the type of answering service a business chooses, the service providers either have automated receptionists or live receptionists to handle the calls.  Every business that signs up for an answering service gets a phone number where all the incoming calls can be forwarded or customers can call directly.  The receptionists then greet the caller with a customized greeting , forward the call, take messages, send to voicemail, schedule appointments, and others depending on the call handling rules.  In the case of automated receptionists , callers are greeted with a customized greeting in the voice that the business wants. An IVR is then played for the caller where they can listen to the menu and choose the correct extension to get connected with the desired department.

The cost of answering services vary depending upon the features including in the package and also depending on the service provider. In general, an answering service can cost anywhere between $49 and $1098.  Depending on the plan you choose, you get a set number of receptionist minutes or call minutes after which you will be charged on a per additional minute basis.

Businesses need an answering service for several reasons but the primary reasons are that it helps them save the cost of having an in-house receptionist .  By deploying an answering service a business can be available to customers by phone even after business hours .  It helps businesses ensure a personalized yet professional touch is experienced by every caller and not a single call gets missed even if you may not be in the office.

A virtual receptionist is a real person that performs the same duties that an in-house receptionist does, except that they are located in a different location and connected to the business by a software that makes it possible to handle calls remotely. Virtual receptionists may simply receive and forward calls or perform administrative tasks, capture leads, schedule appointments, take event registrations, and others.

A phone answering service may be handled by a real person or an automated receptionist that just answers calls on behalf of a business, forwards and transfers them, manages voicemail, schedules appointments, and captures leads.  Virtual receptionists on the other hand are receptionists located in a different location that may handle many more tasks apart from handling calls for the business like scheduling meetings, processing orders, taking event registrations, and more.

Which Answering Service Should I Pick?

The step to deciding which answering service is best for your business is first deciding whether you want a real human being answering your calls or whether you want your callers to be greeted by an automated machine.

Once you have decided that, then comes the features that you would like the answering service for your business to have.

If you are looking for a solution that is loaded with advanced features like order processing, appointment scheduling, and others, Davinci Virtual may be a good choice. Similarly, if you want a service that has lots of features, MAPCommunications is a feature-rich solution.

However, if you are looking for a straightforward service , Abby Connect can be of help.

Businesses looking for a cost-effective solution might find that PCMSI has all the necessary features and has many cost-effective plans too. For businesses that want to have real people attend their calls , Ruby’s live receptionists are the best.

You can also choose RingCentral if your business has offices in multiple locations .

Depending on the service provider you choose, make sure you read some customer reviews and find out the experience that others have had with them. More often than not, you will come to know what the service is best for and also its weaknesses from them.

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Anastasia has been a professional blogger and researcher since 2014. She loves to perform in-depth software reviews to help software buyers make informed decisions when choosing project management software, CRM tools, website builders, and everything around growing a startup business.

Anastasia worked in management consulting and tech startups, so she has lots of experience in helping professionals choosing the right business software.

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Also, the price point is way less than having someone working in my office. It’s been fantastic with them. I get a lot more work done now. Christopher P Owner, Luxury Automotive Services
Abby Connect is fantastic. I would refer them to everybody. It has allowed us to work more efficiently in the office. Stephanie E Paralegal
Unlike other answering services, I never get questions, comments or complaints from clients about who’s answering the phones for us. Annie A Co-Owner, A/V Installation Company
After my free trial, I wouldn’t go with anybody else. They always have a great attitude no matter what time of day and having them helps me stay organized. Carlos E Roofing Company Owner
We tested half a dozen different services before we found Abby Connect. There’s a night and day difference between them and everyone else. Travis S CEO, IT Consulting Agency
I’m a solo person in here and they’re very vital for my business when I’m not here doing other things for the business. Josh C Owner, Legal Document Services
I love the service. It helped free up a lot of my time. Whenever any of my clients call, they get a friendly person or a friendly voice. Clyde V Intellectual Property Law Firm Owner
They’re very accommodating and easy to work with. Abby makes it easy for customers to reach us and it presents a good face for our company when people call. Ben C CEO, Web Development Agency
Customer service nowadays is pretty hard to find. That’s what impresses me the most about Abby Connect – how focused they are on customer service. Steve B Manager, Real Estate Business
There’s been a huge reduction in stress for me and it has really helped me to focus on what’s important rather than what’s not important. Chris C CEO, Property Management
They have been the best asset I have added to my business in years. The value is immeasurable. I recommend their services 100%. James H Owner, CPA Firm
I had a different live answering company before and Abby is far better, it’s not even close. Ross S Managing Attorney and Law Firm Owner

A Team Business Owners Trust and Recommend

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Dedicated Receptionist Team

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Abby Intelligence

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Appointment Scheduling

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Bilingual Receptionists

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Custom Call Handling

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The Abby Proven Process

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Call & Text from App

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With Abby Connect you get a dedicated team of receptionists, working out of our Nevada offices, who get to know your business. Your team of customer service experts is aided by A.I. and cutting-edge technology to answer, transfer, take messages, and provide consistently excellent experiences to your callers.  

Utilizing Abby Human Intelligence and Abby Artificial Intelligence (A.A.I), we proactively optimize your account , ensure consistent message quality, and provide key analytics and call insights.  

You focus on the work at hand, we’ve got your admin covered. Your team of A.I.-assisted receptionists can schedule appointments on your behalf—integrating with Outlook and Google!   

You can also review on call answering service for small business and have better customer service.

We’ll provide the same great service to your English and Spanish-speaking callers—helping you build trust with your customers, capture their business, and grow.  

Your Abby service is tailored to your, your business, and your customers’ needs. Set custom answering hours (or 24/7!), greetings, client intake, FAQs, transfer tunes, and call handling instruct ions. Your receptionist team will sound so good, your callers will think they’re in your office.  

At Abby Connect we believe in creating excellent experiences, for you and for your callers! That’s why we have the Abby Proven Process. Every single Abby client gets a dedicated Calibration Specialist, access to a Solutions Engineer, and a 30-day calibration period. Your dedicated CSM utilizes Abby Intelligence to continuously improve your experience.  

The AbbyGO Mobile App allows you to make and manage your calls from anywhere! With the tap of a button, you can review your calls and receptionist messages in real-time, set your availability and call handling, make free outgoing calls from your business phone line, and send and receive texts. Managing your business remotely or on-the-go has never been easier.

Have the flexibility to schedule multiple one-time or recurring live call handling rules on your account.

business plan for answering service

Saving Business Owners Time & Money

Pairing A.I. technology and customer service experts, we provide your business with a definitive list of premium receptionist features. We’ll help you capture business, so you can focus on the work you do best.   

Our dedicated team will answer, transfer, take messages, schedule appointments, do intake, provide FAQs, and more, saving you time and money while capturing business and impressing your customers.  

Services Tailored to Your Business

Every small business—from HVAC service to local real estate—needs phone management tailored to their specific business needs. At Abby Connect we bring together cutting-edge A.I. technology and customer expertise to provide a truly custom experience for you and your callers. Every Abby client gets:  

  • A dedicated team who knows their business  
  • Customizable answer hours  
  • Custom greetings, FAQs, and client intake  
  • Ongoing optimization with Abby Human Intelligence  

business plan for answering service

The Abby Proven Process  

We’re not your average small business answering service. With the Abby Proven Process, we set your business up for long-term success. Every Abby client gets a dedicated Calibration Specialist, access to a Solutions Engineer to help them set up integrations, and a 30-day calibration period, during which we really get to know your business!  

Then, on an ongoing basis, you get a dedicated CSM, a consistent receptionist team, and access to Abby Intelligence for proactive account optimization. Our service, and your call answering, gets better every day.   

A Better Experience with Abby Intelligence  

Abby Intelligence brings together human (Abby Human Intelligence) and A.I. (Abby Artificial Intelligence) to proactively optimize your account, improve call handling, and provide a consistent high-quality experience. Your dedicated CSM and receptionist team will utilize cutting-edge technology and our customer service expertise to continuously improve call handling for you and your callers!   

business plan for answering service

Abby Connect has been  a true gift  to me since last tax season. The  professionalism and courtesy  they extend is well reported by my clients. They have also given me so much  more time to complete my work  without being interrupted by phone calls. I truly think they have been  the best asset I have added to my business in years . The value is immeasurable. I recommend their services 100%. James H , Owner, CPA Firm Murieta, CA

Simple Pricing Built for the Small Business

Per month / $3.29 per minute

  • Up to 100 minutes
  • Small Receptionist Teams
  • Spanish Answering Services Available
  • Weekend Answering Included
  • 24/7 Technical Support
  • HIPAA Compliance Available
  • Self-Managed Integrations

Per month / $2.99 per minute

  • Up to 200 minutes
  • 15 Contacts
  • *Simple Scheduling

Per month / $2.76 per minute

  • Up to 500 minutes
  • Additional Integration Support
  • Unlimited Contacts
  • **Complex Scheduling

Per month / $12.90 per additional chat

Per month / $9.96 per additional chat

Per month / $9.38 per additional chat

Your Receptionist Plan + 10 Live Chats for $99

Save $30 per month

Your Receptionist Plan + 30 Live Chats for $249

Save $50 per month

Your Receptionist Plan + 50 Live Chats for $399

Save $70 per month

Start When You Are Ready.

Everything you need to know about business answering services.

With pleasure! During your chosen service hours, one of our wonderful virtual receptionists will answer each and every call in a sparkling, lively and inviting tone.

No one likes to reach a call center. This is why we only have a small, dedicated team of receptionists answering your calls. You and your callers will become very familiar with the receptionists answering your calls, as they will with you. They soon will truly become an extension of yourself and your business. Each team consists of 5-7 receptionists. The number of teams you are assigned will depend on how long you need us to be available:

  • Standard Business Hours – 1 Team
  • Extended Hours – 2 Teams
  • 24/7 – 3 Teams

If you should decide not to have 24/7 answering, then you can have your phone carrier set to unforward your calls after hours, or set up a custom voicemail system. This voicemail system is included in your services and your options with it are limitless. You can have a single general voicemail box, or many boxes or even a phone tree.

Abby Connect virtual receptionists greet each of your callers with a greeting that is tailored to your wishes for your company. We keep it personal and welcoming. A common greeting may sound like: “Good Morning/Afternoon, thank you for calling ________. How may I assist you?” Another greeting may sound like, “It’s a great day at ____. How may I direct your call?” Regardless, the live call answering greeting is fully up to you and what suits your company best.

Yes, fluently! Many of our receptionists are fully bilingual in English and Spanish, and are able to flawlessly handle your calls in either language. Every team features at least 2 bilingual receptionists who help build trust and confidence with your Spanish-speaking callers from their very first call.

See More Frequently Asked Questions

Virtual Answering Service for Physician & Medical Practice

Get Started with Abby Connect

We believe in creating excellent experiences for you and your customers! Get started today with a dedicated Calibration Specialist and Solutions Engineer —ensuring you have the best experience from day one.   

Small Business Resources

10 Productivity Tips for Small Businesses

10 Productivity Tips for Small Businesses

Phone Call Handling Mastery Guide: Download our Workbook!

Phone Call Handling Mastery Guide: Download our Workbook!

4 Ways to Use Your Virtual Receptionist Service

4 Ways to Use Your Virtual Receptionist Service

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Guide to Choosing the Best Phone Answering Service for small business

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Posted December 28, 2023 & in Answering Services , Blog , Customer Service , Outsourcing .

The Essentials of an Answering Service for Small Business Owners

Live answering vs. automated answering service: which fits your business, why every small business owner should consider a virtual receptionist, maximizing efficiency with call answering services, navigating complex call flows with advanced answering services, enhancing customer service: the role of answering services, why answering services are the optimal choice for businesses, evaluating the best answering services for your business needs, the benefits of a virtual office answering service, custom call solutions: tailoring services to fit your business, integrating live answering and live chat for a unified communication strategy, the importance of being there: why answering the phone matters, the cost of poor customer service and how to avoid it, discovering the best answering services for your business needs, understanding how answering services charge for their services, custom designed answering services for small businesses, never miss a call: ensuring business availability, handling more complex call flows with professional answering services, call center solutions: taking your business to the next level, the impact of live chat on small business customer service, how to choose the best answering service for your small business, maximizing business potential with free trial answering services, the art of professional call handling: elevating customer service, streamlining communications with virtual receptionist services, inbound call management: the backbone of effective call center services, combining answering services with live chat for comprehensive customer support, bilingual answering services: bridging language barriers in customer service, call screening for efficiency: a must-have for small businesses, specialty answering services: tailored solutions for unique business needs, enhancing customer interactions with call recording, enhancing business connectivity with reliable call services, customizing your phone answering service for a personal touch, the role of business phone systems in enhancing answering services, leveraging technology: the future of small business answering services, blog categories.

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America’s best virtual reception services

Businesses of all sizes rely on our virtual receptionists to provide customers with a warm and personable caller experience. Leave the call answering to us so you have more time to grow your business, without the worry of missed opportunities.

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All ReceptionHQ call answering plans offer …

Us receptionists.

The majority of our receptionists are in the US, with bilingual answering options and overflow support available.

24/7 live call answering

We operate all day, every day, so we can answer your calls around the clock if you turn on after-hours live answering.

  • No lock-in contract

Month-to-month subscriptions and no cancellation fees mean flexibility to scale up (or down) as needs change.

Instant emails or texts

Immediately receive a message by email or SMS after each call, including caller details and the reason for their call.

  • Mobile app & portal

Our free smartphone app or online portal gives you full control to manage your service anywhere, any time.

Toll-free numbers

Forward your existing business number to the free local or toll-free number provided or port-in your own.

Our call answering services are designed for businesses of any size in any industry

Call answering services for businesses of any size.

Whether you need a simple message service or a virtual receptionist to take orders, input leads into your CRM or book appointments while providing a seamless caller experience, we have a solution to suit. Each service’s inclusions, in addition to the standard features above, are listed below for comparison.

Whether you need a simple message service or a virtual receptionist to take orders, input leads into your CRM or book appointments, we have a solution to suit. Compare our services below.

 

Call answering and message taking for one individual or team.



Messages, support and call transfers for multiple staff or departments.



Tailored scripting and virtual assistance for unlimited staff or departments.



Appointment scheduling and diary management using your preferred software.



Caller greeting Personalized Fully customized Fully customized Fully customized
List staff or departments One person or team Unlimited contacts Unlimited contacts Unlimited contacts
Collect information from callers 3 details 5 details Up to 11 details Up to 11 details
Warm call transfers  
Advise business hours/location  
Answer common questions  
Scripted questions & responses    
Quote fees & take payments    
CRM input or submit online forms    
Appointment scheduling      
Calendar management      
 

* Plus relevant sales tax. Refer to  Terms & Conditions.

MessageExpress

Call answering and message taking for one individual or team.

from $19* per month

  • Mostly US-based receptionists
  • Personalized greeting
  • Instant email or SMS messages
  • One person or team listed as message recipient
  • 24/7 service upgrade option
  • Toll-free number upgrade option

ReceptionistPlus

Messages, support and call transfers for multiple staff or departments.

from $33* per month

  • toll-free number upgrade option
  • Fully customized greeting
  • Warm call transfers
  • Multiple staff or departments listed as message or transfer contacts
  • Collect 5 pieces of info
  • Advise business hours/location

MyAssistant

Tailored scripting and virtual assistance for unlimited staff or departments.

from $49* per month

  • Collect 11 pieces of info
  • Custom scripting or FAQs
  • CRM input or online form submissions
  • Quote fees & take payments

Appointment booking and diary management using your preferred software.

  • CRM input or online forms
  • Appointment scheduling
  • Calendar management

Why should I get a live call answering service?

At ReceptionHQ we  make it easy to connect you with your customers by answering your calls when you aren’t available.

Many callers hang up when their call goes to voicemail, so you can miss out on vital conversations or leads.  Ensuring your calls are answered by a live person, increases customer satisfaction, builds loyalty and improves your opportunity to create a rapport and obtain caller details.

Live call answering also allows you to screen calls, as you can advise your receptionist to transfer or take messages for only those call types you wish to receive.  Once answered, you can see each message as it’s taken and prioritize who you will call back first.

Live call answering increases revenue through better customer connections, reduces costs as you’re not paying for a full time receptionist and helps you to be more efficient with your time.

Utilizing ReceptionHQ’s answering services means you have an experienced and personable receptionist with exceptional customer service skills interacting with your callers, all while costing significantly less than a full-time receptionist.

Why types of answering services does ReceptionHQ offer?

At ReceptionHQ, we offer a variety of answering services to suit the needs of businesses of any size, from a small business to a large corporation.  Whether you require a virtual receptionist, assistant or corporate services, our friendly virtual receptionists are ready to assist.

Where is ReceptionHQ based?

ReceptionHQ is based in Phoenix, Arizona. ReceptionHQ is a subsidiary of OfficeHQ, a global virtual reception company headquartered in Australia.

Our Australian, UK and US operations provide “follow the sun” 24/7 virtual receptionist coverage. The majority of calls during standard office hours are answered locally by US-based receptionists, with our international teams answering after-hours calls and assisting during periods of peak demand.

Can your receptionists answer the calls I am missing when I am on another call?

Yes, our receptionist can answer calls you’d usually miss.  You may be on another call or simply unable to answer because you’re busy at the time. Our receptionists will take a detailed message and send to you instantly by email or SMS. Every call diverted to ReceptionHQ will be answered – no matter what your circumstances are at the time of the call.

Many clients who subscribe to our service are surprised when they learn how many calls they’d been missing prior to having their calls answered by ReceptionHQ.

This can provide an edge over your competitors, with great communication helping you to stand out.  ReceptionHQ combines the best receptionists in the USA with cutting-edge technology to make your customers feel valued, understood and important.  Our extensive professional answering service experience allows us to provide high-quality and innovative features which utilize the latest technology solutions.

Are you able to answer just some of our calls?

Yes. This is referred to as “call overflow”.

A lot of companies require their phone calls to be answered only when they are unable to take the call themselves. For example, if you step out of the office for an hour or your in-house receptionist goes to lunch, is on leave or is busy on another call and you have multiple calls coming in at the one time.

You can set your business phone number to divert (to the unique local phone number we allocate your business during the Free Trial setup process) only when the phone rings for more than a specified period (such as after 5 rings) or if your line is busy/engaged.

In such instances our receptionists will then answer the phone as if we were in your office. You’re always in control and can relax knowing you will never miss another important call again! 

Do you offer a 24/7 live call answering service?

Yes.  Our receptionists are always on call and you can opt-in for 24/7 live call answering on any ReceptionHQ subscription.

Having a 24-hour answering service means never missing an important call, opportunity or potential sales lead ever again.  No matter the time of day or night.  In addition to being able to answer your calls around the clock in English, we also provide the option of having bilingual receptionists answer calls in Spanish from 5am-8pm (MST) every day.

On average around-the-clock, our call answering service answers calls within 10 seconds, to leave a lasting first impression.

Do you offer live call answering services in Spanish?

Yes.  Spanish bilingual service is included with every account at no additional cost.  Whether Spanish-speaking callers are common or occasional to your business, we provide customizable options free of charge to ensure exceptional experiences for your Spanish and English-speaking callers.

Are calls answered within the United States?

Can i sign-up for short-term call answering, for example a day, week or month.

Yes, you are able to use our service for an hour, a day, a week, whenever you need our assistance. Many clients use our live call answering for short-term needs, for example, when their own in-house receptionist is at lunch, sick or on annual leave.  Some clients use the service during their busy periods only, as call overflow or for campaigns.  Our live call answering service is like having a casual receptionist who is always available.  It’s reliable and risk-free, as you only pay for what you use.

If you prefer to use our service seasonally, you can take advantage of our pause package.

What our customers say on Google

Excellent answering service. I am an attorney with several businesses and ReceptionHQ has helped manage my calls. Cesar Zuniga 3 months ago
I highly recommend ReceptionHQ to any business looking to enhance their customer service and streamline their operations. Radiant Day Spa 3 months ago
I have been using this service for about 12 years. They are always professional, and always answer the phone. I have never been disappointed by ReceptionHQ. Shaun 4 months ago
I’ve just started my fifth year with ReceptionHQ. Love the service. Even have some of my clients on it. Very professional. Very reliable. Simple to implement. Tom Sheehan 7 months ago
I am a small business owner and having a live person take calls, book consultations, and take messages has been a game changer for me. Angelina Torres 11 months ago
ReceptionHQ is outstanding! All incoming calls were answered with a friendly, professional greeting. I never missed a call or message from their professional staff. Van Shaw 1 year ago
After our one-week trial of ReceptionHQ, we knew we needed this for our business. We couldn’t believe we had missed 50 calls in a week’s time for our small business. Katie Vivian 9 months ago

Trusted by more than 25,000 businesses

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Have questions? Please fill in your details and we’ll be in touch.

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Put America’s leading virtual receptionist solution to the test! We’re ready to answer your phone FREE for 7 days.

What does the free trial include?

The trial is based on our ReceptionistPlus service, with our team of virtual receptionists able to take messages and transfer calls based on your availability settings.

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Live receptionists answering your calls

Make a great impression, every time.

Businesses are built on quality customer service. Get a dedicated team of live virtual receptionists to transfer calls, answer questions, book appointments, and more!

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Give your customers the experience they deserve

Your reputation is safe in the hands of Reception 24/7’s phone answering service. Our team of trained receptionists learn all the ins and outs of your business, so they’re always ready to handle your calls professionally and give your customers a quality experience every time they call.

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Never miss a call, never miss a sale

85% of people whose calls are not answered won’t call back.¹ How much are missed calls costing your business?

With Reception 24/7’s call answering service, you’ll capture every lead, book every appointment, and solve every caller issue. We answer most calls in the first few rings so your customers know you care.

¹ Aircall - “Missed Calls: The Real Impact on Your Business”

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We’ll focus on your calls, so you can focus on your business

Answering spam calls wastes tens of millions of hours every year for small businesses.² How much is your employees’ time worth?

So your teams are not disrupted, our remote receptionists are trained to weed out the telemarketers, robocalls, and unqualified leads. Plans start from just $39 per month —a fraction of the cost of hiring in-house.

² Marchex - “Spam Phone Calls Cost U.S. Small Businesses Half-Billion Dollars in Lost Productivity”

A telephone answering service that ticks all the boxes

Custom greetings and call scripts.

We’ll work with you to define how you want your calls and queries answered. Your customers will think our virtual receptionists are in your office.

Message taking

Never miss a business opportunity again! Our call handling team will take messages and deliver them to you via email or SMS.

Call transfer

We’ll transfer calls through to you and your team, and we can even stay on the line to provide the caller’s details and the reason for their call.

Call screening

No more robocalls, telemarketers, or other distractions interrupting your workday! Simply tell us which calls you want us to allow through.

Appointment scheduling

Our live agents can book new appointments directly into your calendar, as well as reschedule and cancel existing bookings.

Lead collection

Tell us the information you need and our experienced receptionists will pre-qualify leads so you can focus on the best opportunities.

See what our customers have to say

We pride ourselves on provided an excellent professional answering service, and although we like to blow our own trumpet we understand you can't just take our word for it, so see what our clients have to say about our service.

Great Service As a busy accounting firm, we get lots of calls a day, which was a constant distraction for my team. Since having the service it has saved us so much time and the setup was so easy. I would 100% recommend Reception 24/7 to any small business, and I frequently refer our clients to the service. Reynolds Accounting
Not just for Businesses! Reception 24/7 has been nothing short of fantastic. It's a great comfort knowing that if I cannot (or don't want to) talk on the phone, that a friendly receptionist will answer my call, and forward the message to me. Even better, is the price. It's incredibly affordable. Overall, this is a superb service. Steve B
Highly Recommend Reception 24/7 Reception 24/7 is the best inbound/outbound call reception service we've ever used (and we've been in business for 22 years so we've used many). They are great to work with, do what they promise they will do, and the service is affordable. I can't recommend them enough. Sheila K
The Reception 24/7 Team did an amazing… The Reception 24/7 Team did an amazing job partnering with our company and helping us manage our inbound calls and tracking. Highly recommend this company. Matt H
I am happy to recommend them I am happy to recommend the Reception 24/7 team! I have used them for my automotive business to help greet my customers that call in. They save me time and money and send me messages for each call so I can respond promptly to customers. Mike's Auto
Excellent Service We have used Reception24/7 for quite some time now and I can say that they provide an Excellent service, this has really helped our business and the staff are lovely. Foley and Neville Estate Agents
Very happy Very happy, my business customers often remark on the polite and friendly staff, the service that reception 24/7 provides works great for my Plumbing business and saves me answering hours of calls. Jack Rounding Plumbing
Superior service quality Excellent service quality and reliability. I have experienced multiple vurtual answering services but this one has been superior. Their team truly cares about my business and customers Danny
Friendly and professional Friendliness goes such a long way in my industry and the team here helps handle our calls in professional and friendly way. They exceed my expectations and always there to help with any questions that I have. Diana

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Your Voice line works on mobile devices, laptops, and supported deskphones so you can stay connected at work, home, or on-the-go.

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Make it simple for your IT team to stay on top of their work with Voice, an integral part of the Google Workspace family.

Smart for business

Manage costs for your business with three license editions that help you streamline operations with Voice and Google Workspace.

Choose the right business phone plan for you.

1 View the list of countries where Voice is available.

USD

per user / month

USD

per user / month

USD

per user / month

USERS AND LOCATIONS

Number of users

up to 10

Unlimited

Unlimited

Regional Location

None

Unlimited

Unlimited

Domestic Location

up to 10

Unlimited

Unlimited

International Locations

None

None

Unlimited

PRODUCT FEATURES

Calls between Google Voice numbers included

check

check

check

Calls to the US from any Google Voice number included

check

check

check

Calls to Canada from a Canadian or US Google Voice number included

check

check

check

Calls to most European countries from within Europe included

check

check

check

SIP Link

check

check

Unlimited text messaging in US

check

check

check

Google Fi Compatible [US only]

check

check

check

Voicemail transcription

check

check

check

Google Calendar Integration

check

check

check

Google Meet Integration

check

check

check

Mobile apps: Android & IOS

check

check

check

Web Application

check

check

check

Support

24/7

24/7

24/7

Service Level Agreement (SLA)

check

check

check

Usage and activity reporting

check

check

check

Call forwarding

check

check

check

Multi level auto attendant

check

check

Ring Groups

check

check

Desk phone and ATA support

check

check

eDiscovery for calls, voice mails and text messaging records

check

check

Advanced reporting (BigQuery)

check

Ad-hoc user call recording

check

Automatic

Sign up for Google Workspace

Learn more about Google Workspace

per user / month

Up to 10 users

Up to 10 Domestic Locations

Calls between Google Voice numbers included

Calls to the US from any Google Voice number included 2

Calls to Canada from a Canadian or US Google Voice number included 2

Calls to most European countries from within Europe included 2

Google Fi Compatible [US only]

Voicemail transcription

Google Calendar Integration

Google Meet Integration

Mobile apps: Android & IOS

Web Application

24/7 Support

Service Level Agreement (SLA)

Usage and activity reporting

Call forwarding

Unlimited number of users

Unlimited Regional Locations

Unlimited Domestic Locations

Unlimited text messaging in US

Multi level auto attendant

Ring Groups

Desk phone and ATA support

eDiscovery for calls, voice mails and text messaging records

Ad-hoc user call recording

Unlimited International Locations 1

Advanced reporting (BigQuery)

Automatic Ad-hoc user call recording

Promotional pricing plans apply to EMEA only. Other regions may vary.

2 Refer to the Voice rate card for a complete list of calling rates for your Voice number.

Learn how VoIP phone emergency features differ from traditional emergency calling service .

Iron Mountain company logo

Our sales team now uses Google Voice to call and text customers from their smartphones, tablets, and the web. And because it is considerably more affordable to operate than our legacy VoIP systems, we continue to steadily expand our usage of Google Voice.

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Get started

Add Voice to your Google Workspace account

Voice integrates with your Google Workspace products. Get Voice for your organization. It's easy.

Work with a specialist

Ready for Voice, but have more questions? We've got you covered.

  • Live Call Answering
  • Live ChatSupport
  • Appointment Scheduling
  • After Hours Answering
  • Marketing & Media
  • Service Providers
  • AnswerConnect Portal
  • AnswerConnect App
  • Integrations
  • Pledge People, Not Bots
  • 1 Tree, 1 Planet
  • Learning, Sharing & Giving Back
  • The Power of the Phone
  • Grow your brand, not a marketplace
  • Plans & Pricing

Call us now to find out more

Work from home, your office, or Anywhere .

Be open for business 365 days a year.

Work from anywhere

By using our site you accept our Cookies policy.

How it works .

1 . tell us about your business..

We'll work with you to build responses for your customer enquiries.

Setting up your account is simple. We'll ask you about the common reasons why people call or chat with your business.

Whether it's new leads, current customers, or other contacts, you choose the words they hear. We work with you to determine their needs and build custom responses for each.

You are always in control of how we greet and interact with your callers and web visitors.

2 . Start forwarding your calls.

Our friendly receptionists engage and interact with your leads and customers, 24/7.

Once you're set up, you can start forwarding your calls and chats to us straight away.

Our receptionists can provide information about your business, schedule appointments, place orders, or leave messages for you.

You can update your preferences about how we greet and interact with your customers at any time. As we get to know you, we'll make suggestions to improve your call flow.

3 . Get instant notifications.

See details of your interactions via our app, SMS, or email.

Records of every customer call and chat are available at any time through the mobile or desktop app, email, or SMS. We can also integrate with your current systems.

You'll get instant notifications of your interactions and can view chat transcripts or listen back to calls yourself.

App features .

Every engagement in one place..

See every interaction.

See every interaction our team has with your leads and customers, 24/7.

Choose availability.

Set your status to control when you receive calls and keep your team in the loop at all times.

Make every call yours.

Maintain consistent caller ID.

Maintain consistency and keep the same number for customers and colleagues.

Personalize your service.

Edit your details.

Edit your account details, set your business hours, and view your billing information, 24/7.

Engagement

We help your customers 365 days a year, allowing your business to stay open 24/7.

Hear how we sound ..

You are listening to Emily!

To hear how we could answer your calls, enter your details and call us for free.

To hear how we could answer your calls, call us for free on the number below.

To hear how we could answer your calls, enter your company name and call us for free.

By submitting this form you agree to our privacy policy .

We may email, text or call you to follow up. You can opt-out any time.

Demo Call

Am I locked into a plan/contract?

Not at all! You're free to change at any time. We work with your schedule, not vice versa.

Do I need to get a new phone number?

Nope. Simply forward your lines whenever you need us, and we'll take it from there. If you'd like one, we're happy to provide you with a toll-free number to advertise however you wish.

How can I check my usage?

You can log into the online web portal to check your usage at any time! Check under the Reports tab to find out how many minutes you've used. You can also call or email us to check any details related to your plan.

Do you offer any additional options or add-ons to live answer plans?

Every live answer plan comes with a suite of business tools including: appointment setting, live webchat, CRM integration, and more.

Can you transfer my calls to my mobile or home phone?

We can patch calls wherever you like, be it the phone in your living room or your on-call's cell.

Can't find the answer to your question? Call us now: 800-700-8888

Learning, Sharing & Giving Back .

These are the core values of AnswerConnect. Here is a book we think you might like.

The Compound Effect book

The Compound Effect: Jumpstart Your Income, Your Life, Your Success

Little decisions we make every day can have a big impact on our lives and success. The Compound Effect shows how small actions can reap major rewards.

AnswerConnect customers have helped us plant

IMAGES

  1. Operational Plan for Business Plan

    business plan for answering service

  2. How To Improve Your Business Using An Automated Answering Service

    business plan for answering service

  3. See how low answering service cost will benefit your business. Source

    business plan for answering service

  4. A Business Plan Checklist: Key Questions to Answer Organization

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  5. 3 Fast & Simple Business Plan Templates for New Entrepreneurs

    business plan for answering service

  6. Answering Service Business Plan

    business plan for answering service

VIDEO

  1. Nexa Business Answering Service

  2. Business Plan Presentation Part About Discussion || Types Of Business Plan Presentation||

  3. Business Plan Presentation Part About Discussion || Types Of Business Plan Presentation||

  4. Business Plan Presentation Part About Discussion || Types Of Business Plan Presentation||

  5. Business Plan Presentation Part About Discussion || Types Of Business Plan Presentation||

  6. Start new Business

COMMENTS

  1. How to Start an Answering Service

    Sample Business Plan for An Answering Service. I. Executive Summary. Company Name: AnsweredRight. Mission Statement: AnsweredRight aims to offer reliable, efficient, and cost-effective answering services to businesses of all sizes, helping them stay connected to their customers 24/7, increase customer satisfaction and enhance their professional ...

  2. 6 Best Answering Services for Small Businesses of 2023

    RingCentral — Best automated answering service. AnswerConnect — Best for large call volumes. SAS — Best pay-as-you-go plan. Abby Connect — Best for hiring a dedicated receptionist team. The best answering services for small business of 2023, including VoiceNation (best for flexible pricing), Davinci (best for virtual assistant) and ...

  3. How to Start an Answering Service: 8 Steps (with Pictures)

    Place copies of all correspondence, including the messages you take for them, inside this file. 8. Set your work hours and work accordingly. Be concise in every message, and make sure to include any important details the caller wishes to convey to your client. Send the messages to the client via email or fax.

  4. Best Answering Service for Small Business

    Best overall service. AnswerConnect is a live answering and chat tool that offers bilingual support. Their support team can help you by taking messages, routing calls, and qualifying inbound leads. AnswerConnect can also help manage customer experience (CX) with personalization thanks to caller ID.

  5. How to Start an Answering Service Business

    Write a Business Plan For Your Telephone Answering Service. When writing a business plan for your company you should seek assistance from a lawyer and an accountant in the industry to guide decision-making for legal protection and tax strategy. A lawyer and accountant will be able to determine what business entity is best for you.

  6. 7 Best Answering Services of 2024

    AnswerConnect is the ideal small business phone answering service for those with high-volume call traffic because of its large volume plans. Its base plan comes with a generous 200 minutes, and you can upgrade to 550 and further up to a maximum of 100,000 minutes. This makes for an excellent solution for businesses scaling communication operations.

  7. Best Answering Services (2024)

    The Best Answering Services of 2024. AnswerConnect: Best overall. Specialty Answering Service: Best value for money. VoiceNation: Best bilingual call answering service. PATLive: Best virtual ...

  8. 8 Best Small Business Answering Services of 2024

    Davinci Virtual is one such service that offers all basic as well as advanced call answering features. 6. Mobile phone application and online interface. Virtual receptionists and auto receptionists will update all the information about calls received, messages taken, orders received, and others into a system.

  9. Start growing with a business answering service

    We work with you to create call. flows to give your clients the best experience. 2. Start forwarding your calls. Our friendly receptionists engage. and interact with your leads and customers, 24/7. 3. Stay up-to-date Anywhere. See details of every customer interaction via our app, SMS, or.

  10. Best Answering Service For Small Business

    ANSWERING SERVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESS ... Your Receptionist Plan + 30 Live Chats for $249. Save $50 per month. Get Started. Abby 50 Bundled Plan Your Receptionist Plan + 50 Live Chats for $399. Save $70 per month. Get Started. Start When You Are Ready. ANSWERING SERVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESS

  11. LiveVoice

    24/7 Live Business Phone Answering Service Get started with your customized call answering plan. Start My Free Trial. Or call us at 855-551-9991 to learn more. ... How it Works. A Dedicated answering service team while at a fraction of the cost. Your customers are in good hands. Our answering service gives you a team of professional, upbeat ...

  12. Guide to Choosing the Best Phone Answering Service for small business

    This comprehensive guide delves into the world of phone answering service for small business, exploring how they can revolutionize your customer service, enhance your brand's reputation, and contribute to business growth. From live answering to advanced call center features, this article is your go-to resource for understanding and choosing ...

  13. Choosing The Best Small Business Answering Service [With Checklist]

    Personalized customer interaction. The ability to offer personalized customer interaction is a premium benefit typically associated with the best answering services for small business. Personalization is key to building strong customer relationships. It shows your clients that they are valued and understood.

  14. 6 Best Answering Services for a Small Business

    Answering Service. Smith.ai. AnswerForce. ReceptionHQ. PATLive. 1. VoiceNation. VoiceNation has been offering a high-quality small business answering service for over 20 years across a variety of industries, including legal, medical, real estate, finance, and automotive.

  15. Small Business Answering Service

    The trial is based on our ReceptionistPlus service, with our team of virtual receptionists able to take messages and transfer calls based on your availability settings. Maintain focus while ReceptionHQ's friendly, professional virtual receptionists answer calls for your small business from just $19 a month. Try free for 7 days.

  16. Virtual Reception & Call Answering Services

    A flexible 24-hour answering service you can depend on, whatever your needs. ReceptionHQ provides a professional phone answering service for clients ranging from small businesses and medium enterprises to large corporations and government departments. We offer a range of plans with no lock-in contracts and custom solutions for high-volume or ...

  17. Small Businesses Live Answering Services

    A small business answering service is an affordable, 24/7 alternative to having in-house staff answering your phones. Our customer experience experts answer your customer calls from quiet, distraction-free home offices. They can take messages, schedule appointments, anything an in-house receptionist can do at a fraction of the cost.

  18. Virtual Receptionist Live Call Answering Services

    Compare ourlive callansweringservices. Call answering and message taking for one individual or team. from. $19*. per month. See pricing. Messages, support and call transfers for multiple staff or departments. from. $33*.

  19. Best Virtual Receptionist Services of 2024

    VoiceNation is the best overall virtual receptionist service due to its transparent pricing and multi-industry support. Monthly plans range from $65 to $1,595 for 20 to 1,000 minutes. Additional ...

  20. Reception 24/7 Answering Service & Live Virtual Receptionists

    With Reception 24/7's call answering service, you'll capture every lead, book every appointment, and solve every caller issue. We answer most calls in the first few rings so your customers know you care. Get started. ¹ Aircall - "Missed Calls: The Real Impact on Your Business".

  21. Google Voice: Business Phone System & Plans

    Easy for users. Built for Google Workspace, Voice has a familiar look and user-friendly feel that fits easily into their workflow. Easier for IT. Make it simple for your IT team to stay on top of their work with Voice, an integral part of the Google Workspace family. Smart for business. Manage costs for your business with three license editions ...

  22. How Our Answering Service Works

    How it works. 1. Tell us about your business. We'll work with you to build responses for your customer enquiries. Setting up your account is simple. We'll ask you about the common reasons why people call or chat with your business. Whether it's new leads, current customers, or other contacts, you choose the words they hear.