Holiday Phone Coverage
It’s that time a year again; the holidays are right about the corner. They come one right after the other, and without proper planning they can cause problems with your customer service process.
• Thanksgiving: Thursday November 23rd
• Black Friday: Friday November 24th
• Hanukkah: Begins Tuesday December 12 and ends Wednesday December 20th
• Christmas Eve & Christmas Day: Sunday December 24 & Monday December 25
• Kwanzaa: Begins on Tuesday December 26 and ends on Monday January 1
• New Year’s Eve & New Year’s Day: Sunday December 31 & Monday January 1
Here is some important information to remember when planning your telephone holiday coverage.
Office Hours: What days will your office be closed? Does your office plan on closing earlier than normal on any days? Keeping your answering service updated on your holiday schedule and hours is very important.
Changes in Handling Call Relays: Absence of staff members means that call instructions may need to be changed temporarily. Will you need additional on-call staff to cover for the holiday season for emergencies?
Additional Calls: Depending on your business you may get heavier than normal call volume. The holiday season are some of the most heavily traveled days of the year. Clients forget medication at home and need to reach their doctors office. A customer has a traffic accident and need to contact their insurance agent. Customers forget since they are off of work that others are as well, this causing a rise in call volume as well.
Post-Holiday Rush: With offices being closed for the holidays the first day back is usually busy. Don’t get caught unprepared for a potential increase in calls after each seasonal event.
Everyone deserves a break every now and then and what better times to take a break then over the holidays. Let Kelley’s answer the call so you can spend time with your friends and family. It is often surprising to many businesses just how effective an answering service can be. Not only do calls get handled professionally and in a timely manner, but it also takes the stress and pressure off you and your staff.