Trades and Home Services
Answering your calls whilst your on a call out
Its bound to happen. You’re up a ladder, under a sink, showing a customer their new boiler system and the phone goes. Let us take care of your calls, enquiries and appointments whilst you take care your customers.
A call answering service tailor made for trade & home services
“We can focus on our business — the difference in our productivity is amazing!”
Verbatim's call answering services mean that traders can now focus on making sales and installations without worrying about missing client calls back at the office. With most people searching for products or home services outside of their working day, Verbatim allows your office to be open 24hrs.
Your customers will be pleased to find their call being answered which will inevitably result in new leads ready and waiting on your return to the office.
We can focus on our business — the difference in our productivity is amazing!
Our calls are answered professionally and the messages relayed to us immediately in line with the instructions we set up. By not having to answer our own calls, we can really focus on our business — and of course return client calls at a time that’s convenient for us. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Verbatim — and have done!
Judith D’Ambrosio,
Scottish Shutter Company - Dundee
Verbatim’s service proved invaluable when we couldn’t get to work due to bad weather
When few of our staff could get to work due to bad weather, Verbatim’s service proved invaluable — first in taking calls and then in passing them on to our team working from home. Each morning, Verbatim organised our remote office operation, and our staff were then able to return incoming calls efficiently, allowing us to maintain a good service level for our clients.
Kester Harvey,
The Rooflight Company - Chipping Norton
Telephone
answering
Personalised call answering options providing coverage for as little as one phone call a day, through to manning your busy phones 24/7.
Virtual
receptionist
Your own team, full office hours with diary management and order taking options included.
24/7 call
answering
Our 24/7 emergency call answering service means you’re there for your customers when it matters most, without you even needing to be involved.
Web chat
answering
Convert more website visitors with our managed web chat service – try our 30-day free trial.
Other services we offer
Business continuity and disaster recovery call answering service with immediate switchover.
Geographic numbers, 0800 numbers and 0844 local rate numbers rapid set up to meet your business needs.
We’ll take that tricky first conversation in our stride so you don’t have to.
What makes Verbatim different?
Pricing
Our pricing is transparent with no hidden extras. We include text messages, order logging, logging opportunities in your CRM, and an out-of-hours voice messages to email service in your monthly fee.
South England based
We're based in Newbury, Berkshire in the heart of the South of England countryside. We pride ourselves in being an integral part of the local community, supporting local charities and even our local football team Hungerford Town.
No script
We're a small dedicated team of customer service professionals dedicated to answering your calls as if we were a member of your staff. We don't rely on scripts and take every telephone call is as if we are present in your office.
Industry experts
We've work with clients across a wide variety of industries and we will very likely know how to talk your industry talk. From window suppliers to estate agents, technology companies to Foodbanks.
Tailored to your business
Much more than telephone answering. We can do everything from taking orders, managing your diary, qualifying leads to creating a virtual call centre to handle a sudden ramping up of your customer services requirements.
30 day trial
We’re so confident you will prefer our warm and friendly answering service to an anonymous call centre alternative, we offer a 100% money back guarantee if you’re not entirely satisfied.
99% of people who try us, stay with us
We promise we will never share your information with third parties – see privacy policy.
Why a virtual receptionist is perfect for Trade & Home Services
A professional response every time
We know that it can be hard to keep a calm and confident manner every time the phone rings, especially if you’re on site carrying out an installation or showing products to clients.
A virtual receptionist will work from your script to deal with calls in a professional tone every time, leaving your customers happy and you free to get on with your job.
Personalised call answering for Trade & Home Services
We will create a bespoke call answering package for your business. From taking just a couple of calls a day, to manning the telephone 24/7, we can step in however you need us to.
Handle higher call volumes
Peak periods of business caused by seasonal changes may often require more hands-on-deck to take calls. Our professional call handlers will happily handle the overflow.
We can support you whenever call volumes increase, so you don’t need to worry about changing your plan to cope with any extra or unexpected demand.
No more unwanted calls
A Verbatim virtual receptionist can act as your telephone gatekeeper and filter out the important calls from those you don’t want or need to take.
Unwanted enquiries or unsolicited sales calls can be a nuisance. As well as taking them on your behalf, our call handlers can also help to get you removed from the contact lists, to stop them from bothering you in the future.
Receptionists based in the UK
Verbatim’s UK-based receptionists are all trained and highly skilled at taking calls. This means that they always communicate clearly and effectively when speaking to your customers.
They will also be fully briefed on your window company, to provide a seamless extension to your own customer service team. A virtual receptionist will work from your script to deal
News and resources
It’s a good idea to put some time aside to make sure that your business’s contingency planning is second to none. The following steps will not just prepare you for the unknown, they can also help to improve efficiency and cut overheads at the same time.
The quality of your customer service – and your ability to make your clients happy – can make or break your business, along with your bottom line. Here are five easy ways for you to delight your customers, simply by tweaking your current approach to customer service.
There are a number of steps you can take to choose a call-answering partner for your business. This will help you to find a reliable call handler or virtual receptionist who can offer you a high standard of service.
Frequently asked questions
What is a telephone answering service?
Statistics show that on average, businesses miss 15% of incoming calls. Of those callers, 80% won’t try again if they get an engaged tone and 70% won’t leave a voicemail.
Sound familiar?
If you’re doing everything you can on the marketing front to attract the right people’s attention, but then miss their call when they do get in touch, what’s the point?
Work with a call answering service and you’ll never miss a sales enquiry or an important client call again.
Why use a virtual receptionist instead of a member of our company?
Outsourcing your calls and web chats is far more flexible than recruiting in-house, as you can adapt the amount of work you need from us as often as you like. Not to mention the fact it cuts out the resource-heavy recruitment process and other unnecessary business costs entirely.
How would a phone-answering service fit into our trade or home services
We can fit into your business however you want us to. You’re free to choose which calls you’d like us to answer. You can leave all your calls to us, or only have us step in when you’re unavailable to take them yourself. You may be on another call, in a meeting, or just out for a spot of lunch. Just let us know which calls you’d like diverted to us and over what hours. We can get to work supporting you straight away.
How does a web chat answering service work?
Web chat can bring many benefits to your business. It’s important to be available to customers at a time that suits them, in a way that’s most convenient for them. Web chat is often the preferred method of communication for those with limited time. Our web chat answering service will make sure you’re covered.
Our web chat software is very simple to install and integrates with all leading website software including WordPress, Shopify, Wix and Drupal. Most of your website visitors won’t have so much as an inkling that anything’s changed, not least that you’ve outsourced your web chat.
Are Verbatim's receptionists based in the UK?
Yes. You’ll find our office headquarters in West Berkshire on the outskirts of Newbury. All of our call answering and web chat answering staff are based in the UK.
Feel free to drop by for a visit.
How quickly can you set up a telephone answering service?
For call answering, it’s a very simple process at your end and there is no extra technology. All you need to do is contact your telephone provider to arrange a call diversion facility on your account. Or, if you prefer, we can call them on your behalf. Set up is simple and we have most accounts up and running within 24 hours. In fact, very often, in less time than that.
Are we able to check the details of the calls and chats you've handled?
Yes, all your telephone calls and web chats are logged. We’ll email you the details as and when calls or chats happen. Leads (with full transcripts) are sent immediately, ready for you to convert.
You can also keep tabs on everything as often as you like by visiting your secure online portal.
How do you work out my monthly bill?
For call answering we’ll work with you to agree the best fixed-fee monthly call plan for you, anticipating how many monthly calls we’re likely to handle for you in that time.
For web chat, the amount you pay is calculated by the number of chats you have per month. You will be placed within one of our packages eg up to 50 chats per month. Your 30-day trial will give us an expected monthly chat allowance based on your monthly needs.
Who will be answering my calls and webchats?
Your calls and/or chats will be picked up by one of our experienced call handlers. Every one of our team is fully trained, friendly and professional by nature. They will be well briefed about your company and your regular callers before they start to handle your calls or web chats.
Our team is full of exceptional people. They are the life of the business and we treat them accordingly. As many of our clients have told us “you can hear the smiles”.
As a result, our staff turnover is tiny, which means our call handlers and virtual receptionists have all the experience you’re looking for when you’re not answering calls yourself.
Why should we choose Verbatim over another answering service?
Here are just some of the reasons why our existing clients have chosen Verbatim over any other company to handle their calls:
- You’ll be provided with a unique and personalised answering service thanks to our in-house technology, which allows us to customise services to your specific needs.
- Your clients will never feel like their calls or chats have been outsourced.
- Each staff member wears a noise cancelling headset.
- Our UK-based team are all proactive, friendly, professional and experience in customer care, with many carrying high-level NVQ qualifications.
- We offer you a dedicated account manager to help you get the best service from the very beginning.
- We strive to become part of your business by reflecting your values, your ethos and your brand image.
