Home Based Business

Answering Service as a Viable and Low
Investment Home Business

The ubiquitous and almighty telephone
has been a part and parcel of our
existence for almost a hundred years.
First there were strictly mechanical
telephones served by nosy and
inquisitive operators who would often
listen in on party lines and chime in
whenever they felt like it. Then came
the touch tone telephones with first
nationwide and then international direct
dialing service. We live in a cellular
age today in which a phone can
practically do everything for you except
book breakfast. A lot has changed since
then.

Setting up an Answering Service Business
at Home

There are hundreds of home based
business ideas that tend to stay afloat,
some with major investment and others
with little or no upfront investment. An
answering service falls in the latter
category. Until as recently as two
decades ago, establishing and operating
an answering service business involved
an investment to the tune of thousands
of dollars. This was primarily because
there was no caller ID service in those
days and if you wanted to provide a
personalized greeting to your customers,
you would have to work closely with Ma
Bell and arrange for additional
equipment and services. Moreover, there
was keen competition from companies that
provider beeper services?a service that
was aggressively promoted within the
medical profession. Today, you can set
up your own answering service home
business for less than a hundred
dollars.

Answering Service from Start to Finish

You don?t have to be a Rhodes scholar to
figure out how to set up your own
answering service home business. All you
need is a telephone with caller ID that
is integrated with a phone book. You
should invest in two such phones one of
which needs to be a cordless phone.
Your investment in both telephone
instruments won?t exceed %100 tops. A
little competition analysis, some
advertising that lands your first
customer, and you are in the business of
running a home based business.

Dual Service Model for Customers

Answering service companies usually
offer two service models. In the first
model, customers are billed on a monthly
basis for a predetermined number of
calls. In the other model, customers pay
as they go on a per call basis. You
should offer both models since some low
volume customers are sure to graduate to
high volume status which is when they
will begin subscribing to a monthly
service plan.

Customer-friendly Schedule that does
Justice to you

So that you do not have to entirely
surrender your independence, offer your
service initially as an ?after office
hours? service, between 5:00 PM to 11:00
PM. Greet every caller warmly, jot down
the message and communicate it to your
customer. You can give them the option
of either a phone call or a text message
in order to communicate the message. If
you have a personal computer,
transmitting the message via e-mail is a
third option.

Home Business Logistics

Your phone instruments should be located
in a separate room far from the din of
television and other audible
distractions. Carry your cordless phone
with you when you feel like rushing to
the refrigerator for a quick late night
snack. Telephones have a canny tendency
to ring at most inopportune moments.

The Drudgery of Paperwork

You will also need to organize your
accounting, billing and invoicing. Be
regular and ask for a small initial
deposit in order to protect yourself.
Like every type of business, home based
businesses too take time to blossom.
Remain both patient and persistent,
advertise regularly within your
community and hopefully, some day, you
will be able to transition to an
impressive official set up that will
make you and your family proud.

If you are planning to set up a home based business with
little or no investment, an answering service home business
just might be the right thing for you. This is one type of
home business in which patience and persistence is sure to
pay off.

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Originally posted 2009-06-04 18:19:55. Republished by Blog Post Promoter