Virtual Receptionist Takes the Summer Vacation Burden off Businesses

About 30% of Americans travel for Memorial Day — the start of the summer vacation season — and virtual reception services let SMB staff take advantage of the warm months.

Approximately 45% of individuals in the United States take a vacation during the summer, according to Statistic Brain, with a total of 657 million miles logged from Memorial Day to Labor Day each year. The average vacationer travels about 284 miles away from home,and small and mid-size business staff can experience enjoyable trips thanks to virtual reception capabilities.

Virtual reception services from EasyBee let companies forward the phones to professional, highly trained teams during business hours, reducing reliance on a full-time receptionist. That means receptionists or other staff are able to take time off — and small businesses can even save thousands each year by using outsourced answering service professionals as reception. Either way, the summer months are less stressful when business owners don't have to find someone willing to cover phone lines when several employees want to take time off.

Individuals who own service-oriented businesses, such as small law firms, real estate offices or HVAC companies, can rely on virtual receptionists for a break during their own vacations, too. The most popular places to visit during summer vacations include beaches, national parks, lakes and resorts. During vacations, common activities include swimming, visiting historical sites, shopping, enjoying theme parks and going on guided tours. Many of these activities aren't conducive to answering phone calls or logging into virtual working sessions on a laptop, and experts note that working during vacation can be a bad habit anyway.

Virtual reception services ensure phone lines are still being answered during regular business hours, even when no one is actually at the office. High-quality outsourced receptionists can provide clients with basic information and schedule appointments for when staff returns, ensuring SMB owners on vacation don't give up all their leads. Virtual receptionists can also screen calls following rule sets provided by the business, which ensures certain critical calls are forwarded to mobile phone lines, even during vacation.

A secondary benefit of virtual reception services during the summer months is that SMBs know that phone calls are answered, even if staff is taking some time to celebrate. Managers can treat staff to an afternoon event of lunch out prior to Memorial Day, Independence Day or Labor Day.