Virtual Front Desk Receptionist

What Is the Role of a Reception Desk?

The role of the reception desk or front desk in your business is to be the friendly face of your company to your customers. Your front desk will often be the first place a new client personally interacts with your business, and making a good first impression can be the difference between getting a new customer and having them go somewhere else.

In this digital age, customers probably won’t be coming into your physical location and standing at a literal desk to ask questions or book an appointment. Most of them will call or even live chat with a virtual version of this traditional front desk idea. A virtual live receptionist for small business will be the professional who answers the phone. A virtual receptionist provider, like Berkshire Receptionists, makes filling this role quick and easy, so you can focus on other parts of  your business.

What Is the Difference Between a Receptionist and a Front Desk?

The two terms are closely related, and are often used interchangeably. In general, a receptionist has a smaller scope of responsibilities, mainly answering incoming calls and routing them to the correct staff member to help. A front desk worker often has a wider scope, potentially answering calls, taking payments, making reservations, or checking on account status. These terms are more common in industries that require multiple staff to deal with the volume of incoming calls and questions, like hospitality. 

For many virtual receptionist companies, including Berkshire Receptionists, a virtual receptionist is actually acting in the role of a front desk. Because they are able to help callers do things like make appointments and pay their outstanding balances, virtual receptionists are even more valuable to your company’s success.

How Does a Virtual Reception Work?

In many ways, a virtual front desk system works much like an in-house receptionist would. They answer incoming calls, provide polite and professional help to clients and prospects, and pass along any needed information to your company. The system generally works like this:

1. A customer calls your business and reaches a live agent who has training in both your industry and company.
2. The virtual receptionist answers the customer’s questions professionally and helps them do things like:
   • Schedule a meeting or appointment
   • Look up their account balance or payment history
   • Accept payments
   • Transfer calls to the correct member of your staff
   • Take a detailed message and escalate it appropriately

Using a skilled virtual receptionist for your small business saves you time, and it cuts back on the constant interruptions that come with answering the phone. Your customers don’t miss out on the human connection and quick response to their needs, but you and your in-house staff don’t have to be at the mercy of your phones.

What Industries Use Virtual Front Desk Staff?

Any small- to medium-sized business that values a human connection with their customers but lacks the in-house staff to run a front desk can benefit from this service. However, there are three specific industries that use virtual receptionist jobs most frequently: law offices, medical facilities, and real estate agencies. Let’s explore each one in more detail.

Legal Receptionist

In a law office, lawyers, paralegals, and legal assistants often work under a system of billable hours. If they are frequently interrupted or spend large parts of their day speaking with clients, they cannot charge these as billable hours. A virtual receptionist is able to field incoming calls and help customers understand the state of their case, take payments, or pass along messages about potential new cases. This means the staff logging billable hours are able to focus on these elements of their work and the cost of the receptionist is more than covered by this increase in productivity.

Medical Receptionist

Patients receiving medical care understandably often have questions, need to schedule or reschedule appointments, or pay a bill. Anyone who is sick or concerned about their health may find an automated answering machine a less than reassuring option when they call to speak to their healthcare provider. A virtual receptionist for a medical facility can be a friendly voice to greet patients and make sure they get connected with the right staff to meet their needs.

Real Estate Receptionist

Buying or selling a house can be an incredibly stressful time. If you are a real estate agent, you can’t always answer the phone, but your clients often expect immediate responses to their pressing questions. A virtual receptionist can make it possible to do all the parts of your job that require your undivided attention. When a client calls they can speak with a knowledgeable professional who can answer their questions promptly without interrupting your work.

What Are the Qualities of a Front Desk Officer or Receptionist?

A front desk officer is another role very similar to the front desk or a receptionist. A virtual receptionist could do many of the same tasks as a front desk job, meaning they are sometimes referred to as front desk or front desk officer. In some instances, especially on-premises enterprise companies or hotels, a front desk officer would be a person who greets guests as they come in, issues them badges, provides refreshments, and facilitates their visit. This exact role doesn’t align with the roles performed by a virtual receptionist, but many of the responsibilities are similar.

The best virtual receptionist for a small business is one who is:

• Friendly and approachable
• Professional
• Knowledgeable about your industry in general and your business in particular
• Able to navigate technology quickly and easily
• Comfortable making decisions and recommendations quickly to get callers the information they need in a timely manner

What Does 24HR Front Desk Mean?

A 24 hour front desk means there is always someone for your customers to connect with when they need it. If you work with clients around the world across a wide range of time zones, this truly might mean a virtual receptionist that is available 24 hours a day during the work week. Or, if you offer a virtual front desk for your medical practice, your clients may have urgent needs at any time of any day and 24/7 availability really would serve them best.

For many types of businesses, however, a front desk receptionist only needs to be available during typical business hours. So your virtual receptionist can meet customer needs and answer calls during their workweek by operating 12 hours a day, five days a week, for example. 

With a virtual receptionist service like Berkshire Receptionist, you can customize the availability of your virtual front desk to the times that make sense for your business. 

What Is Front Desk Software?

The virtual receptionist software needed to serve your business well will depend on your exact needs and the company providing the service. In order to provide the best front desk from anywhere with customer support that’s second to none, you’ll likely need a few different types of software. At Berkshire Receptionists, we offer integrations and software including:

• Call transferring
• Spam blocking
• Appointment scheduling that integrates with your calendar system, like Google Calendar or Microsoft Booking
• Omnichannel monitoring with integrations for apps like Slack and Microsoft Teams
• Payment processing systems, like Stripe and Authorize.net
• CRM platform integrations for systems like Salesforce and Zendesk

How Much Does a Virtual Front Desk Cost?

A virtual receptionist or front desk staff member will vary in price depending on factors such as:

• Who is providing your service
• The expertise and training of the receptionist
• The type of work you expect them to do
• The amount of time they will spend answering calls

There are some very inexpensive or even free options offered for virtual receptionists, but these often prove the adage “you get what you pay for.” If you want service you can count on provided by an experienced receptionist that knows your business, you want a professional.

Fortunately, the overall cost of a receptionist is less expensive than you might expect, especially when you see how much time and interruption this service saves for your business. Each service provider will vary on exact rates, but let’s look at the pricing packages available from Berkshire Receptionists to give you a general idea.

As of May 2023, our plans all start with a base monthly rate that includes a set number of minutes of speaking with clients on your behalf. You are then able to add additional minutes as needed throughout the month for a set per minute rate. These plans include:

1. Starter – $40 per month, includes 0 minutes, each additional minute $1.89
2. Small Business – $180 per month, includes 100 minutes, each additional minute $1.79
3. Pro – $350 per month, includes 200 minutes, each additional minute $1.74
4. Enterprise – $850, includes 500 minutes, each additional minute $1.69

All of these plans include a full suite of features:

• 24/7 Live Receptionists
• Call Transfers
• Email Relays
• SMS Relays
• Secure Notifications
• Bilingual Receptionists
• Custom Hold Music
• Personalized Greetings
• Local Number
• Disaster Recovery
• Online Client Portal
• Usage Report
• Dedicated Account Manager

Up your productivity and give your customers the human touch they expect—get started today!