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Client relationships are the lifeblood of any law firm. Given the sensitive and often urgent nature of legal inquiries, being unavailable when a client needs you can damage trust and weaken those relationships.
One effective way to maintain communication and trust is by ensuring that your firm is reachable by phone when clients call, as many prefer this method due to the personal nature of their concerns.
But when it comes to handling these calls, should you rely on an in-house receptionist or consider outsourcing to a professional telephone answering service ?
Having a dedicated employee, whether full-time or part-time, to handle calls may seem appealing, especially if you value having direct control over this aspect of your firm. However, the cost of employing someone can add up quickly. Beyond just their salary, which can approach $50,000 annually, there are additional expenses to consider - such as sick pay, holiday pay, taxes, insurance, training, and equipment.
For smaller law firms, these costs can represent a significant portion of your budget.
On the other hand, outsourcing your call answering to a professional service offers a more cost-effective alternative. Instead of a fixed salary, you pay a monthly subscription fee that is typically based on the volume of calls or time spent handling them. This approach can lead to substantial savings compared to hiring a full-time receptionist.
An in-house receptionist can effectively handle calls - but only one at a time. When they’re on the line with one client, any other incoming calls go unanswered until they’re free.
This can become problematic during busy periods or when you have a sudden surge in client inquiries. Even though you're paying for a receptionist, the service may fall short, leading to long wait times or missed calls, which can frustrate clients.
With an outsourced telephone answering service, you typically get a team of receptionists who can cover for each other, ensuring that no call goes unanswered. During peak times, you can easily scale the service to match the increased demand, providing more consistent and reliable coverage.
Law firm clients often can’t reach out during regular business hours, as they're also working during those times. If you rely solely on an in-house receptionist, you’re limited by their availability, meaning after-hours calls go unanswered.
A telephone answering service solves this issue. By outsourcing your call management, you can extend coverage beyond the standard 9-5, with many services offering support from 8 am to 8 pm, including weekends. This ensures that more inquiries are handled promptly, without leaving clients to hope they’ll get through the next day.
It might seem like an in-house receptionist would have the advantage in handling sensitive client inquiries. Being in the office full-time, they can develop a strong understanding of the need for discretion and gain familiarity with the types of calls that come in.
There's certainly merit to that.
However, a well-chosen outsourced telephone answering service can provide similar expertise. Many of these services hire s remote receptionists with specific legal experience to cater to law firms. This way, you benefit from the expertise without the costs of a full-time employee, like fixed salaries or tax obligations.
Some law firms may choose not to use a receptionist or a telephone answering service, instead relying on whoever is nearby to pick up the phone. While this approach might seem efficient, it carries significant risks.
The most obvious issue is that every time an employee answers the phone, they're distracted from their primary responsibilities. Additionally, without proper training in call management, they may handle calls unprofessionally, leading to poor first impressions, mishandled transfers, or inadequate message taking.
By using a virtual receptionist company like YourReceptionist, you let your team concentrate fully on their work, ensuring that calls are managed professionally and that no opportunities are missed.
Choosing between an in-house receptionist and an outsourced call answering service for your law firm isn’t an easy choice.
But if you want the same personal touch to your call management but with more reliable call answering at a cheaper cost, then an outsourced telephone answering service might be the best way forward.
Get in touch with us to get a custom quote or sign up for a free trial of our Telephone Answering and Virtual Receptionist Services...
