In a service-based business, handling on-call management is imperative on a 24/7 basis. If you have a small HVAC or plumbing business, for example, it keeps you ready for any emergency situation. Customers calling for urgent needs must be connected to the right person immediately.
At the same time, it might not be feasible for a small business to employ staff for round-the-clock services. But, your call answering services partner can amazingly handle on-call scheduling for you. Here are some essential tips to avoid any glitches in this system:
Schedule Must Be Updated:
When running a small business that caters to clients during emergencies, you must be prepared with a proper on-call schedule. Depending on this dispatch system, your employees can plan their own schedules as well. It assures that customer calls will be diverted to the right person without any fault.
In the worst case scenarios, emergency calls will be handled by a wrong person who can’t provide the expected support to the caller. As a result, customers will be upset and it will badly affect your company’s reputation. To avoid this issue, you can set up alerts that keep you informed about outdated or expiring on-call schedules.
Update the Contact Information:
For successful on-call dispatch, you need to keep your staff contacts updated at all times. For example, if an employee leaves the company, you must inform your answering service partner and update the new contact details immediately. It helps to avoid wrong patching or missed calls due to lack of accurate contact information.
The contact numbers or emails of your employees may change over time. You must keep your on-call schedules up-to-date with this information. In this regard, monthly checks with your answering service partners will keep things under control.
Keep An On-Call Protocol Ready For After-Hours:
Call answering services can be hired to handle the calls throughout the day or to manage them during after-hours only. Depending on your service type, you need to switch on the right protocols at night.
If your answering service is using text or emails to notify on-call staff during the daytime, it is advisable to use proper on-call protocol for nights. The service must call your employees instead of sending texts or emails that may be missed during these sleepy hours.
Make A Backup Plan:
Not always you can expect your employees to pick up the phone during the odd after-hours. In this case, having a backup protocol can save the grace. There must be at least one backup in place to manage your on-call schedules. It means that two employees must be available on calls at any moment.
Apart from these, your staff should always know about the functioning of answering services and on-call management in your office. It helps them to make the right decision when it’s urgently needed.
