Virtual reception services for IT & communications

Yes. This is referred to as “call overflow”.

A lot of companies require their phone calls to be answered only when they are unable to take the call themselves. For example, if you step out of the office for an hour or your in-house receptionist goes to lunch, is on leave or is busy on another call and you have multiple calls coming in at the one time.

You can set your business phone number to divert (to the unique local phone number we allocate your business during the Free Trial setup process) only when the phone rings for more than a specified period (such as after 5 rings) or if your line is busy/engaged.

In such instances our receptionists will then answer the phone as if we were in your office. You’re always in control and can relax knowing you will never miss another important call again! 

Yes.  Our receptionists are always on call and you can opt-in for 24/7 live call answering on any ReceptionHQ subscription.

Having a 24-hour answering service means never missing an important call, opportunity or potential sales lead ever again.  No matter the time of day or night.  In addition to being able to answer your calls around the clock in English, we also provide the option of having bilingual receptionists answer calls in Spanish from 5am-8pm (MST) every day.

On average around-the-clock, our call answering service answers calls within 10 seconds, to leave a lasting first impression.

Yes.  Spanish bilingual service is included with every account at no additional cost.  Whether Spanish-speaking callers are common or occasional to your business, we provide customizable options free of charge to ensure exceptional experiences for your Spanish and English-speaking callers.

The MessageExpress service works best for those clients who just need messages taken for one person or team.  The receptionist will answer with a greeting such as “Good morning,  [your business name].  May I take your message please?” Messages can be instantly sent by email or SMS, however call transfers are not available on this service.  On the MessageExpress service, receptionists are focused primarily on message taking, so are unable to provide general business information to callers.

The ReceptionistPlus service offers more flexibility and customisation so we can give the impression we are part of your business.  It’s designed for those clients who would like to provide a more personal touch.  When subscribing to the ReceptionistPlus service, you’ll receive a fully customized greeting, the ability to take different messages or make transfer calls to different people or departments in your organization, plus receptionists can answer basic questions about your business, such as the location, your website URL, what your business does and when calls might be returned.

Many of our clients appreciate the personal touch that comes with having our live receptionist service team answer every call with their preferred professional greeting.  Custom greetings with your provided script helps provide a seamless callers experience.  It’s also possible to have tailored on-hold messages which take the customer experience to the next level.

If you’re not sure which service is best for you, please speak to our friendly consultants or sign up for a free trial of our ReceptionistPlus service so you can test it out.  Once you subscribe, you change between package types whenever it suits your business. No penalties apply.

Yes, we have a dedicated team of highly experienced receptionists who can book appointments for you. The MyDiary service is ideal for professionals who depend on appointments being made and managed while they are focused on their clients.  Our receptionists can schedule and reschedule appointments, manage cancellations and even take payments in your preferred software.  We support a large number of third-party appointment booking tools and CRMs.  Please contact us for more information.

Yes, we are able to transfer calls to any staff member on any phone (landline or cell).  With our innovative software, we can record availability preferences for each staff member and only transfer when requested.  Individual details can be updated at any time via our online client portal or mobile application.

We pride ourselves in offering ‘warm transfers’, that is, callers are always announced to you before the transfer takes place.  If you’re unavailable, or if you don’t answer the call, our receptionist will go back to your caller, let them know you’re unavailable, take a message then forward it to you.

We do not blind transfer calls (transfer unannounced) unless you request this.

Yes.  We can answer your calls and advise your callers you are in a meeting, travelling or with a client – you choose.  Our receptionists can then take a detailed message with the information you require and forward this message to you by email or SMS instantly so that you can return the call in your own time.

Yes.  Each staff member and/or department can set their own availability status and decide whether to have their calls transferred or a message taken.  All settings can be updated individually and instantly via the ReceptionHQ client portal or mobile application.

Yes.  We are able to answer basic questions such as your location, directions to premises, fax number, website, pricing and other general questions. Depending on your plan, you can provide us with detailed call scripts or answers to FAQs to assist your callers.  Just let us know your needs and we’ll set up your account according to your preferred process.

You can notify our live answering service online in real-time with our easy-to-use smartphone apps or web client portal to notify us of your greeting, call, transfer and message preferences.

Unavailable to take calls? Just quickly update your status and we’ll take messages for you, exactly as an in-house receptionist would do.

There are no set up fees for the ReceptionistPlus and MessageExpress services – you can start using these services immediately.

Forwarding your business phone calls to ReceptionHQ is easy. To have our team of virtual receptionists answer your calls, simply:

1. Decide whether you wish to forward calls immediately to ReceptionHQ (the best solution for most businesses) or have delayed call forwarding.
2. Identify the call forwarding codes for your telecommunications provider. Most providers publish these codes on their websites.
3. Use the codes to enable call forwarding to the local or toll-free number you choose to have allocated to you (aka your Assigned DID).

For more information, check out our article Forwarding Your Business Calls to ReceptionHQ’s Reception Team, which outlines:

• Immediate and delayed call forwarding options
• Specific instructions for forwarding from AT&T, CallRail, Dialpad, Google Fi, Google Voice, Grasshopper, JustCall.io, Nextiva, Ooma, Ring Central, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon, Vonage, Wix and ZOOM Phone

Yes.  We don’t have a minimum contract term and you may cancel your service at any time without penalty.  We simply ask for you to let us know three days prior to your billing renewal date.  If you want to keep your account available, but stop using it for a while, we also have a pause option.  Just speak to our friendly team for more information.

Yes, you have the flexibility to upgrade or downgrade at any time to a more suitable subscription that meets your requirements and budget.  For example, you can change the number of calls being answered by ReceptionHQ or you can change the type of package you have subscribed to.  There’s no cost to change plans.  We want you to feel comfortable you are on the right plan for your usage.

This means you can take advantage of our flexible and scalable virtual receptionist services to provide the level of support you need as your business evolves.  You can scale up your call answering plan as your business grows, or to cope with peak periods, as well as scale down during quieter times.  You have complete control.

Yes, you receive an exclusive phone number for your business as part of your call answering package. You can either forward your existing phone calls to this number or advertise this number directly.  You are also welcome to port your existing phone number to ReceptionHQ from another provider.  If forwarding calls from another number, you can either forward all calls, or choose to have calls come to us when you’re busy or when there’s no answer.

No.  If you have a toll-free number, you can request to port it across to ReceptionHQ to save costs.  If you already have a local number, simply forward calls from your existing phone number to the unique number we provide.  We can work with any existing scenario, just ask.