The hiring of a secretary for a lot of small companies could be too expensive and for a home-based business it's probably completely uneconomical, but there is another alternative. With the increase of mobile technology and rapid expansion of the internet, many seek to farm out some of or all of their inbound calls and employ a telephone call answering service.

With today's highly competitive business world, companies have to take advantage of every source of business that present themselves, however many may be missing chances or prospective sales and never know it. It is thought that around 80% of callers hang up when they hear a voicemail greeting. In other words, if a business is unable to answer their calls and leaves it to the mercy of an answering machine, for every 10 potential clients, 8 could well be sourcing their custom somewhere else with a rival.

Lots of smaller sized companies and especially sole-traders benefit from the adaptability that using a telephone answering service gives them, for many in trades it means that they can be out of the office servicing their clients whilst all the time be safe in the knowledge that their calls are being answered professionally, politely and quickly. A good plumber may not always have the best phone manner, particularly if he has just removed his head from below a sink to pick up a call but by using a telephone answering service the plumber is able to get on with what he does best and service his clients.

Operators at virtual pa services normally work in compact teams of four or five so that they become more familiar with each customer. When answering a call they will be directed by on screen instructions on what details to obtain being anything from callers name, contact numbers, business names, reference codes- anything the client requires to manage his or her business effectively. The operators are able to then either transmit the message to the client or can act as a front desk secretary and transfer the call through.

For a fraction of the cost of a full time secretary, the operator deals with the caller in the same manner.