AI vs Human - What can help you better?
Our trained human receptionists are available 24/7 to answer the phones for all of our clients. With a focus on great customer service and establishing trust between your business and those calling into it. This human touch requires intention and care from our Jills. So while everyday we are looking into ways to improve our systems so that we can provide quality service efficiently, there are times where we may not get to the caller before they disconnect.
As we discussed in our article, “”Will You Always Answer My Calls?” An Honest Conversation About Queues and Why They’re Not the Enemy” During call surges, if a caller ever disconnects before reaching one of our Jills, our system is set up to have the next available receptionist call them back automatically. We also give the caller the option to receive a text back, where they can text with one of our chat receptionists. But what about the times when we call the client back, but they’ve already gone with a different company? It’s something we never want to happen, but it is the reality of having humans answering the phones for you.
So why don’t I use an AI receptionist service to answer my phones for me?
- No human connection: Having a real human on the other end of the phone, that is there to actively listen to your caller’s needs and make them feel heard. Establishing a foundation of trust with your business.
- It doesn’t have the “local” feel: At Jill’s Office, we have curated our services so that our Jills answer the phone as an extension of your company. So that when your clients call in, they feel that connection too.
- The wary outlook of AI: The societal outlook on AI is very much a mixed bag of contrasting emotions. Some readily embrace it and praise the conveniences that it comes with. Some look at it with outright disdain, a tool taking away work from people. A larger portion can be found in the middle of those opinions; They just find AI annoying to deal with.
A poorly programmed AI will drive would-be-clients away with the frustratingly broken communication. Then even the best programmed AI is still missing the genuine flexibility of talking to a live person. Clients that feel like their concerns are falling between the cracks of the programming, feeling unheard and unimportant.
The fix to the cons listed above is hiring real humans as your virtual receptionists. This brings that human emotion to calls that connect with your clients, both old and new.
As for the local feel, at Jill’s Office we build your account based on a Call Instruction form, completed by you, that allows our Jills to match your company information with their call flow. Through this we can come off naturally and like we’re a part of the team.
And having a live human answer the phone is a great relief for many people who are frustrated with speaking to AI every time they call a company. So just by having us answer the phones you’ve already got your foot in the door.
But that isn’t to say hiring humans is perfect!
- Humans make mistakes: Just like the age old saying, “We’re not robots” hiring real virtual receptionists, just like hiring a full time staff member, mistakes can and will happen. A good answering service is always looking for ways to minimize these mistakes and finding new ways to improve.
- Pick up rates: Just like how this article started, having live humans answer the phones means that pick up rates won’t be 100%. Call surges can and will happen, meaning there will be times callers are waiting longer than others.
If you’re deciding between AI and humans to answer the phones for you, both options can work depending on what you’re looking for. Neither option is perfect though, and whichever route you go, it’s good to keep the cons listed above in mind.
At Jill’s Office the fight for improvement is never over. With daily reviews of our processes and programming to find ways to increase pick up times without sacrificing quality on our calls.
If you’d like to learn more about how live human receptionists can help you answer your phones, book a discovery call here
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