Call Answering Services 'are Cheaper Than Secretaries'

Many companies would benefit from having a full-time receptionist on hand to engage in call answering. However, employing such members of staff is not always possible since it can be costly.

An alternative to this is to use professional phone answering services, which are significantly cheaper.

And, as an article in the Plainview Daily Herald pointed out, consumers cannot tell the difference between such call answering services and a regular receptionist.

The publication made its comments in relation to the story of a business that started out as just a mother and son operation but soon expanded.

In 1959, single mother Verlie Johnston set up Plainview Answering Service and she initially had three customers. However, thanks to demand for her phone answering service, which she ran along with her son Carroll Johnston, it rapidly expanded and more staff were taken on.

Commenting on his mother's efforts, Mr Johnston said: "As a 48-year-old widow, she needed to find a job to support her and her daughter. And Plainview really needed an answering service back then."

Announcing the establishment of the enterprise, the Herald described it at the time as "a private secretary for you that actually costs less than one-tenth of what a secretary would cost you."

It added: "It's the most convenient service you can have and, best of all, it's economical."

Meanwhile, the publication went on to state: "To the person calling you, the answering service is a secretary to take any message they might want to leave, yet this little secretary is actually not in your office. You can get the convenience of a secretary and the economy of extra business and contacts."

Mr Johnston explained that, much like its modern-day equivalents, the firm would answer the call with each customer's individual business logo. Meanwhile, it offered either a 12 or a 24-hour subscription service.

Today, there are many options when it comes to phone answering, providing users with plenty of flexibility.