Give Your Business A Professional Presence 24/7/365
If you’re looking for an exceptional phone answering service, AnswerFirst has got you covered.
Our live answering service and live chat answering service options have been proven to increase customer satisfaction rates compared to businesses that rely solely on voicemail or automated systems.
We can provide local or toll-free phone numbers (800 numbers) to give your business a professional image and make it easy for customers to contact you. We offer personalized service and can tailor our services to meet the specific needs of your business, all at an affordable price.
As one of the best answering service providers in the industry, AnswerFirst is committed to providing exceptional customer service and ensuring that all incoming calls are handled with care and professionalism.
Contact us today to learn more about how we can help your business thrive.
100,000,000+
CALLS HANDLED
25+ YEARS
IN BUSINESS
THOUSANDS
OF HAPPY CUSTOMERS
Why Should You Use AnswerFirst’s Answering Services For Your Business?
> 80% Of Callers Who Reach A Voice Mail Will Not Leave A Message
Can you afford to miss opportunities to add new business or support existing clients?
When you partner with AnswerFirst your calls are answered by professionally trained live customer service representatives, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
> 74% Of People Who Have A Bad Experience Will Choose Another Business
90% of companies say they compete on the basis of customer experience.
Things such as not answering calls and communications quickly, burying phone numbers, removing a human from interactions, or just delivering an overall frustrating experience highly reduces the chance of adding a new customer or keeping an existing one.
> Calls To Businesses Are Expected To Exceed 180 Billion Per Year By 2025
These calls are 10-15 times more likely to generate a successful sale or follow-up activity than a digital form submission, which means they are more efficient in generating revenue.
> 61% Of People Call A Business During The Buying Cycle
The majority of respondents will call instead of reaching out online because they are looking to get a quick answer (59%) or talk to a real person (57%).
The numbers only increase as the value of the purchase increases.
“I had been with another answering service for twenty years prior to signing up with you. They don’t even hold a candle to you. You are great.”
“We are very pleased with the service we have received. The entire team at Answer First has been delightful. We are a small business and do not have a full time weekend staff. This solution allows us to provide service to our clients and callers without the expense of having to staff the office on weekends.”
“AnswerFirst has been absolutely fantastic to work with! Professional, courteous, and very detail oriented. I’d highly recommend Aimee and her team!”
“We have been using AF for a few years now and we love working w/them. They customized our account to fit our special needs from day 1. They respond immediately to any issues and ALWAYS follow through to make sure we are happy w/our service. The staff is professional and we could not ask for better service.”
You’ll Love Our Features And Pricing
100% U.S. Based
No Overseas Call Centers
Our Customer Service Professionals are all U.S. based.
Volume Discounts
Your Rate Decreases As Usage Increases
You are always billed at the lowest rate possible – automatically.
True 24/7/365 Service
No Hidden Fees For 24/7 Coverage
No additional charges for after-hours, weekend and holiday service.
One Second Billing
True One Second Billing
No rounding up to the nearest minute – pay only for what you use.
Our 24/7 Phone Answering Services Include:
Our Commitment To Customer Service
At AnswerFirst, top-notch customer service is at the core of who we are. Our company culture is centered around customer service – we live it and breathe it.
When you partner with AnswerFirst you can expect to receive the same excellent 24/7 live customer service that we provide your clients. But, don’t just take our word for it. Check out our online reviews.
We Work With Businesses In Every Industry
Agriculture
Arts & Entertainment
Construction & Cleaning Services
Corporate Management
E-Commerce
Educations Services
Federal Government
Finance & Insurance
Healthcare & Social Care
HVAC & Air Conditioning
Information Technology
Manufacturing
Mining
Political
Professional & Scientific
Legal, Law Firms & Lawyers
Real Estate, Rental & Leasing
Services (Electrical, Plumbing, Etc.)
Small Business
State & Local Government
Technology
Transportation & Storage
Utilities
Waste Services
Serving Thousands Of Businesses Around The Globe
We Have Hundreds Of 5 Star Reviews
“From the first day we starting using Answer First everyone was friendly and helpful. They picked up all of our calls when we could not and treated our clients with the same care and respect the rest of our staff does. I would definitely recommend this company and Teri Leggett was superb in getting us all taken care of.
Thank you.”
“I have been a client since April 2021. My calls have been answered professionally and my callers have told me they like my “new receptionist”. Most don’t realize it’s an answering service! Also, I’ve only had a couple of support issues during these months and they were handled quickly, fully and with courtesy.”
“AnswerFirst has been very helpful for our property management company. Their reports in the morning are clear and concise and our tenants appreciate being able to speak with a person any time of day. Our business development specialist, Teri, made set up quick and easy. We highly recommend their service.”
“We’ve dealt with a number of vendors providing various services, and my experiences with getting set up with AnswerFirst was great. My rep with their company was Teri Leggett, and she was very responsive, as far as helping with my questions, and guiding me through the setup process. It has been an easy process, versus a couple of other similar type companies that I’ve worked with in the past (which is why I’m now with AnswerFirst).”
“Professional. Accessible. Almost immediate return of our calls. Client messages are streamlined and winnowed, which is exceedingly helpful. Prices up-front and over-runs are discussed in detail and ahead of time, with a chance to amend plans if requested. Very satisfied, and our office has gone through at least half a dozen answering services.”
“I’ve been using Answer First for my answering service for nearly 10 years and have never had a single complaint. Their staff is always professional and forward the proper information to my “on-call” tech in a very timely manner. I would very definitely recommend Answer First to anyone that is looking for their type of service.”
“I have been using AnswerFirst for years. They have been a an amazing help for incoming communications across multiple businesses. I have recommended them to others that have had 5 star experiences every time. It is rare to find a company that continues to improve year after year in their service and customer support. I whole heartedly recommend them.”
“They are consistently professional and I often get clients who remark on how well “my staff” handled their contact with our office. The extended features to review calls are very helpful, as well as knowing the phone number of where the call came from, rather than just the phone number the client left, providing another way to call the client back.”
“After having dealt with for prior answering service companies, it was a pleasure working with this team through our transition. AnswerFirst accommodated our needs precisely and worked with us to make sure that we got what we wanted. The onboarding process was also very organized and methodical. So far our daily experiences with the company are very good, and we have found the operators to be very professional and friendly sounding. So far very happy customer!”
We Provide Reliable & Flexible Customer Service
Our Customer Service Professionals act as your virtual receptionist and can live transfer calls to you just as if they are in your office at a reception desk.
Our team is based in the U.S.A. (we don’t use overseas staff). Our Customer Service Professionals are ready and waiting around the clock, ensuring you never miss a call. We deliver your messages via phone, email, text message, secure messaging (HIPAA & PCI Compliant), fax or pager. You can choose multiple options for message delivery or you can go online to our secure website and retrieve your messages there.
Simple & Affordable Pricing
Our simple 1 Rate Plan means that you pay-as-you-go only for what you use (no unused calls or minutes). We bill in one second increments (no 1 minute rounding) and we only bill you when one of our live Customer Service Professionals actually works on your account. This rate structure provides the highest level of motivation to answer your calls quickly and professionally. You’ll also have access to our free online portal, Client Web Access, to listen to your calls in real-time and review them for proficiency and accuracy. We believe offering this free online transparency enables you to feel confident we are handling your business YOUR WAY.
Trusted by Thousands Of Businesses
We Are More Than “Just An Answering Service”
An answering service is more than just someone answering your calls; to your customer, we are your business.
In this day and age, expectations are high, people have access to information at their fingertips, when a call comes in, you cannot miss that opportunity to interact. Immediate customer service response is paramount. If a person has a question or has concerns about your product or service, you need to be able to offer answers or solutions, or you may very well lose a potential client/customer.
When partnered with AnswerFirst your clients are provided with excellent 24/7/365 live customer service and so are you.
That’s right; YOU too are receiving that same level of service you expect us to provide to your clients. AnswerFirst management is onsite at all times to handle any issues that might arise with your account.
We are committed to providing top-notch service, all the time and every time.
Our phone answering service provides cost effective ways for businesses to handle after hour calls or calls that take place when your staff members are unavailable – live operator phone answering service, virtual office and voicemail service are key components of our call center solutions.
Considering hiring a phone answering service or contact center?
Here are some great reasons to utilize a professional contact center for handling your business communication needs:
Reduce Costs
Are you trying to run a call center in-house or attempting to handle all of your inbound business communications (emails, phone calls, web chats, etc.) by having your staff provide responses?
Outsourcing your business communications to an answering service offers you an incredible opportunity to save costs associated with the staffing, facilities, and infrastructure including software, servers, and telephony that are required to run a fully-redundant 24/7 call center. Even if you’re not trying to run an in-house call center, a true 24/7 answering service makes your business available to your clients around the clock at a fraction of the cost of having your staff handle inbound communications at all hours.
Decrease Call Abandonment & Increase Customer Satisfaction
Chances are that your employees have limited availability and might even lack true customer service training.
- How do you plan to handle unexpected increases in calls, especially during odd hours?
- If your staff is unable to handle the call volume then what experience are you providing for your callers?
- What happens when an employee who isn’t properly trained to handle high-stress situations doesn’t act professionally towards an upset customer?
- Will your clients be happy with your business?
A professional answering service is capable of handling unexpected increases in call volumes. Therefore, even if your business experiences a spike in inbound calls, customer satisfaction isn’t negatively affected, long wait times are avoided and call abandonment is kept to a minimum. Additionally, answering service operators are trained to handle uncomfortable calls and confrontations in a manner that deescalates upset callers and leaves the callers feeling satisfied with the service they’ve received.
24/7/365 Support
Unlike your office, answering services are available 24/7/365 to answer calls and provide your customers with support. Answering services offer your business the opportunity to provide round the clock service, with no need to employ a 24/7 workforce of in-house call center agents. The fact that you are able to answer calls even after business hours, during holidays, and on weekends not only provides your clients with superior customer service experiences, but also can keep customers from reaching out to your competition. If a potential or existing customer cannot reach your business then he or she is more likely to call a competitor to attain the service or product they need.
There are many other benefits to hiring an answering service, but we’ve listed the main points above. Making use of answering service is a very effective tactic to increase efficiency, improve customer service, and reduce risk.
What makes a superior answering service?
- Pay as you go billing with an affordable base rate.
- Pay only for what you use, as you use it.
- A secure online portal for account management.
- Access to call recordings and reports in real-time.
- Message archives.
- Inbound email processing.
- HIPAA & PCI Compliant
Are you searching for a telephone answering service near you?
As you probably know, an excellent answering service can be located anywhere in the world and still provide top-quality service to its clients 24 hours a day, every day of the week.
Our headquarters is located in Tampa, FL and all of our operators are in the United States. However, we successfully service thousands of clients around the globe. Some of our bigger clients have included: PBS, NPR, Coldwell Banker, Heinz, Keller Williams, Berkshire Hathaway and so many more.
Answering service vs. call center?
The term ‘answering service’ has historically referred to a company that answers the phone for other businesses. Typically, these services are trained in message taking, customer service and various levels of custom support, such as tech support or billing support.
Also, an answering service might be synonymous with the term ‘inbound call center’ or a ‘virtual receptionist’. However, never mistake an answering service with an ‘outbound call center’ which usually offers cold calling as a service. When comparing the two terms or services, it’s important to decipher between inbound or outbound call centers.