Bankruptcy attorneys have to deal with foreclosure letters and harassing calls from creditors, which can be overwhelming. In addition, a bankruptcy attorney must stay updated with the current changes in the federal bankruptcy laws, making their job even more demanding. Helping clients declare bankruptcy under Chapters 7, 11, and 13 is not an easy task. A bankruptcy attorney must ensure that clients understand everything about bankruptcy and what they are getting themselves into. Every day, a bankruptcy attorney receives numerous calls from clients seeking legal advice on dealing with their overwhelming debts. This explains why it is essential for a bankruptcy attorney to have a reliable call answering service for their bankruptcy law practice.
Why An Answering Service Is Important
When a client calls a bankruptcy law firm, and the phone goes to voicemail, the client will probably hang up and call another law firm. Reliable call answering services for bankruptcy law firms help build a law firm’s reputation and improve customer service. Before visiting your bankruptcy law firm, most people will first contact you over the phone. When you work with a professional call answering company, you will never have to miss any opportunity because of an unanswered call.
After receiving harassing calls from creditors, being served with foreclosure letters, or noticing that their bills are continually piling up, the first thing that most people think of is contacting a bankruptcy attorney. The role of a bankruptcy attorney is to guide clients and walk them through the hard financial times. When a client is in distress, and they call your bankruptcy law firm, the last thing they expect is an automated response from an answering machine. Upon calling your law firm, clients expect to find you right away so that you can assist them as soon as possible.
What happens if you are in court representing other clients and a client calls?
If the call is urgent and the caller cannot reach you, they are likely to call another bankruptcy law firm. However, if a polite call answering agent receives the calls, handles the clients' queries, and assures them that you will get back to them, you will win that client. In addition, a bankruptcy call answering service reassures the callers enabling you to attend to other duties without the risk of losing potential clients. With so many bankruptcy law firms in San Diego, it is essential to ensure that your law firm stands out by making your clients feel valued and appreciated.
Below are some of the benefits that your bankruptcy law firm will derive from a reliable call answering service:
Quick Handling Of Your Bankruptcy Law Firm’s Incoming Calls
When it comes to timing, legal matters are extremely sensitive. Clients appreciate a bankruptcy law firm that is responsive to their legal issues, ensuring that every client who calls your law firm receives a focused and personalized reception goes a long way in enhancing client satisfaction and attracting referrals. When you hire a call answering service, you will enjoy 24/7 live answering. Most clients will not call a bankruptcy attorney while at work or when with friends and family. They will wait until they are alone or are in a private place to call their attorney. Therefore, many clients are likely to call your bankruptcy law firm at odd hours, especially at night or on weekends when in-house employees are unavailable. You need to ensure that there is someone to answer the phone even at these odd times.
When a person decides that they should declare bankruptcy, they will want to call a bankruptcy attorney to inquire about the ideal bankruptcy chapter. Most clients will search online for a bankruptcy attorney near them, and if they come across your company, they will contact you. A client's call may come at any time of the day or night, explaining the importance of a 24/7 live answering service.
It would be disappointing for a client to contact your law firm to initiate a bankruptcy process only for the call to go to voicemail. The client will not leave a voicemail message or wait until you are available to call them back. By the time you or your employees call back the client, the client will have gone to the competition.
People expect a bankruptcy attorney to be available around the clock. Your clients will feel that you understand their needs if your business is available full-time. If you always answer incoming calls on time, you will have a high chance of converting the callers into clients. A call answering agent will answer all the calls professionally. Your clients will not even realize that they are dealing with a call answering agent. They will assume that they are dealing with your in-house staff.
Appointment Scheduling For Your Bankruptcy Law Firm
After the initial conversation on the phone, a client may like to meet the bankruptcy attorney in person to discuss the bankruptcy case in detail. At this point, your law firm will benefit from appointment scheduling services provided by call answering companies. The operations of legal firms revolve around the calendar. If you do not have a well-planned schedule, you might end up disappointing your clients.
With professional appointment scheduling, your day will be well planned, and the clients you are meeting on a particular day will receive a reminder of the meeting. This ensures that both the attorney and the client will show up on time, enabling a bankruptcy attorney to maximize their time. A virtual receptionist will help your clients schedule appointments via different online platforms. The live call agents can receive calls and schedule appointments even when clients call outside the standard operating hours.
Perhaps your bankruptcy practice already has in place an appointment scheduling software. In this case, all you need to do is share this software with the professional call answering agents to help you fill the available slots. If you do not have appointment scheduling software, the call answering company will recommend an app to enable you to schedule appointments efficiently. With an appointment scheduling service, your work calendar will sync in real-time. As a result, you and your employees will view the scheduled meetings and get timely updates.
Taking And Delivering Messages For Your Bankruptcy Law Firm
In addition to handling phone calls and scheduling appointments, a call answering service also takes and delivers messages from your clients. Many callers aren't willing to leave a voicemail message. However, when they call your bankruptcy law firm and a live person answers the phone, the caller will have an alternative to leaving a voicemail message. When receiving clients’ calls, there might be some questions that the call answering agent cannot handle. In this case, the call answering agent will pick messages and assure your clients that they will call them back. Your callers will feel that your law firm values them, making them trust you even more.
When you partner with a reliable call answering service to handle the message taking and delivery functions, you will free more time attending to other tasks you have probably been postponing. A message-taking and delivering service will enable you to choose the messages that should be delivered to you and those delivered to your employees. A call answering agent will ensure that you receive all messages promptly and securely via text messaging, regular emails, secure encrypted emails, pager, via phone, or fax.
A Call Answering Agent Answers Routine Legal Questions
The chances are that your bankruptcy law firm receives numerous similar questions regarding your bankruptcy practice via the phone. Typical questions include where your law firm is located and your charges, among other basic things. A professional call answering agent will handle all these questions on your behalf. The answers to most of these questions are right there on your law firm's website, but many callers rarely have time to check them up. A well-trained virtual receptionist will answer all these questions professionally. You may have a customized database containing frequently asked questions and their answers to guide the call answering agent.
When you hire a call answering service, you and your in-house staff will be free from menial tasks. You will have ample time to handle your work, including going to court and holding appointments with other clients. You will not have to interrupt your one-on-one meeting with a client to answer another client's query on the phone.
Dispatching Calls The Bankruptcy Attorney Or In-house Employees
All types of clients will call your bankruptcy law firm. Some callers will be new clients seeking to learn more about your bankruptcy law firm and your services. Other callers will be existing customers inquiring about their bankruptcy cases. Finally, some clients will call with complex needs that require legal expertise while answering. Callers, especially the ones that need immediate assistant, require prompt call patching. With professional call patching services, you will not miss essential calls, which could translate to lost clients.
All you have to do is discuss with the call answering agents how you would love to have different calls handled. Professional answering agents ensure that they receive incoming calls within the first three rings. They will record all the necessary information and send it to you via fax, email, or text. The calls will be transferred directly to you or one of your employees when a client has an emergency. The call answering agents will let you decide how they should differentiate between urgent calls and those that are not.
Call patching involves putting the caller on the other end on hold, then reaching you via a different line. When the agent confirms that you are available to pick the call, they will forward it to you to speak directly to the client.
Ample Time To Build Your Bankruptcy Practice
When you have a call answering service, you won’t have to invest time in hiring an in-house receptionist and purchasing call answering and transfer equipment. A professional call answering will handle all your calls at a fraction of the cost of hiring and training a conventional receptionist. A call answering service will cut your expenses and improve your customer service, allowing you to focus on growing your bankruptcy law firm.
Keeping Bankruptcy Issues Confidential
When trusting bankruptcy attorneys with their issues, the leading concern most clients have is confidentiality. Filing for bankruptcy is a sensitive issue that clients like to keep confidential. Clients give bankruptcy attorneys information that they would never give another person. A professional call answering company understands and values your clients’ confidential matters. They ensure that confidential information remains so. If a client strictly wants to talk to you and no one else, the call answering agent will dispatch the call to you.
Choosing The Right Answering Service For Your Bankruptcy Practice
Hiring a professional call answering service is an excellent idea for your bankruptcy practice. However, you should be careful in choosing a call answering company. An unreliable call answering service could taint your law firm’s reputation. If a call answering agent is rude or unresponsive to clients, you might end up losing your existing and prospective clients. Therefore, it is crucial to consider the following elements when choosing an answering service for your bankruptcy practice:
- Professionalism
- Security
- Pricing
The call answering service you chose will go a long way in determining your law firm’s image. Your call answering service is a reflection of your bankruptcy practice. If the answering service is unprofessional, clients will assume that your law firm is inexperienced. How the call agents handle clients on the phone will determine whether clients will continue doing business with your firm.
As a bankruptcy attorney, you deal with sensitive client information. It is crucial to ensure that the call answering service you choose has excellent security and encryption. You wouldn’t want your clients’ information to get into the wrong hands. You should go for a call answering service that uses data encryption.
Another critical factor to consider when choosing a call answering service is pricing. Different call answering companies have different pricing policies. Go for an answering service that has a precise payment structure to avoid unexpected costs.
Conclusion
Excellent customer service is a sure way of keeping your existing clients and attracting new ones. Hiring professional call answering services is a great way to improve your bankruptcy law firm’s professionalism and customer service. However, you should be cautious when choosing a call answering service to ensure that you get the best from the company.
