How Much Does an Answering Service Cost?

Whether you are a new startup company or a business that has been open for years, a live receptionist service could help save your business from eating into your profits. While an on-site receptionist and employee could cost you upward of $1,226 per month with a minimum wage salary, our virtual receptionists have monthly fees as little as $19.95. How much does an answering service cost? In this article, we break down our ecommerce call center rates and packages to give you a clear understanding of the costs associated with outsourcing your business telephone calls. 

How much does an answering service cost?

Our Call Answering Service Rates

Business owners are always blindsided with hidden fees and this causes them to be cautious about researching answering services available. We here at A Courteous Communications have nothing to hide and stand by our competitive rates and services provided since 1986. 

One-Time Setup Fee

Every business answering service will have a standard one-time setup fee and/or activation fee to get your business information into their system. Our one-time fee is one of the best in our business and for most of our clients, we only charge $15 to get them set up in our state-of-the-art system. 

With this one-time setup fee, we are able to save all of your business details, contact information and call handling instructions so that our live receptionist service receptionists can properly answer your business lines. 

Standard Monthly Fee

Depending on the package that best fits your business telecommunication needs, you will be quoted a standard monthly fee. This fee can be as little as $19.95 a month and ranges to more complicated and customized account rates for medical offices and specialized business fields. So when asking, how much does an answering service cost, one must consider the volume of calls your business receives on average and the types of calls we will be handling for you.  Take a look at our standard monthly packages and rates by clicking here and start shopping for the plan and services that you need.

Remember, with our ecommerce call center, you only pay for the calls we take on your behalf. So if you are quoted the $19.95 monthly rate package featuring 50 free calls, and you only receive 30 calls in a given month, you pay $19.95 for your virtual receptionist services. It’s that simple.  

Call Forwarding Business Telephone Numbers

You have choices when it comes to selecting a phone number to forward your business calls to when you would like us to handle those incoming calls. Being a live receptionist service for 30 years, we have accumulated and harvested phone numbers all over the nation that are available to you for just $10. 

If you want a more professional and branded number, we can provide you with a 1(800) number that can be utilized in your marketing campaigns. We also have tens of thousands of local phone numbers all over the United States that you can use for the same price. 

Phone Message Delivery

Now that you understand how much our virtual receptionists cost to answer your lines and take a message, let’s discuss message retrieval and delivery options. We provide message delivery services that cost just $5 per month and you can receive your messages in the most convenient platform for you. We can email, text, fax or even call you personally with the messages our professional team have taken on your behalf. 

You’re the boss. Just tell us what you need and we will train our virtual receptionist team to follow your specific instructions. Making a change to your account is as easy as calling our 24 client service help desk and giving them a quick status update. 

STATUS CHANGE PHONE CALL SAMPLE

“Hey Sara, I am going to be on vacation this weekend with the family and John is going to be handling all emergency after-hour calls until Monday at 10:00 am.”

“Sounds good, Hank. Let me confirm: John will be the on-call contact this weekend starting now and ending on Monday at 10:00 am. I have John’s current number as (407)123-7777. Is that number still correct?” 

“That’s right, Sara. Thanks so much, you’re the best.” 

“No problem at all, Hank. You just enjoy your weekend and we will hold down the fort over here.”

How We Bill You

Month to Month Answering Service Contract

We are the best telephone answering service with countless awards showing our professionalism and expertise in our industry. Don’t take our word for it; try us out with no annual contracts or long-term commitments on your part. We understand the trust being in placed in our hands with handling your current and future customers and no one should be forced to live out a contract with services that don’t provide 100% satisfaction. Sign up for a month and give us a try out. 

It’s hard for us not to brag and sing the praises of our amazing staff. We must share that some of our client businesses have entrusted A Courteous Communications with their business answering needs for 25+ years. Our ecommerce call center is an extension of your office and we hope to build a long-lasting relationship with your business and on-site staff.

Monthly Billing Cycles

Our business answering service bills you in 28-day intervals and since we are a green answering service, we will email you your invoice for your review. Along with your invoice, we can also email you an entire call schedule detailing the dates and times of all of your incoming calls. A lot of our clients find that this detailed report helps them with the internal organization of their company and they can begin to fully understand their call volumes and busiest times of day and year. 

Cost Per Minute verses Cost Per Call

Our rates vary based on the customizations of your small business to large business telephone needs. Our basic package that can fit into any businesses’ budget is simple call answering and telephone messaging services that offer per call rates of only $0.45 for each call. Depending on the package you select, you also get 50-100 FREE calls each month!    

Specialized services for specific companies and industries can enjoy cost per minute billing options. If you are in need of custom call answering and require more administrative interaction with your customers, we can provide you with a low rate of $0.78 per minute. With our basic specialized service package, you will get 60 FREE minutes for your company each month!

If you are shopping around for a medical telephone answering service, we have a specific team inside of our ecommerce call center that is our medical virtual receptionist unit. For a virtual receptionist to be in this unit, they have to be with our company for a certain amount of time; undergo and pass specific medical training and testing; and, be fully shadowed by our highly skilled supervisors before being accepted on this team. Our medical unit answers millions of calls each year for doctors, physician offices, hospitals and hospice hotlines and our medical answering services can cost as little as $0.55 per minute. We haven’t forgotten about the medical field when offering a bonus, our medical clients receive 100 FREE minutes each month!

Still have questions on “How much does an answering service cost”?

We hope we have answered the lingering question in your busy business owner mind, “How Much Does an Answering Service Cost?” Give us a call today at 1 (800) 785-6161 or start shopping on our on-line store to hand over your calls to a professional and courteous answering service with thirty years of experience you can trust.