The PATLive Blog

Is an Answering Service a Good Fit for Your Law Firm
Legal Answering Service

Is an Answering Service a Good Fit for Your Law Firm

Small and medium-sized law firms often face various challenges stemming from limited resources and a heavy workload. The intense nature of their duties can result in considerable stress and burnout among attorneys and support staff. This issue is intensified by the necessity of handling daily tasks while delivering quality service to clients. Fortunately, cost-effective solutions…

Mastering Call Handling Skills
Business Knowledge

Mastering Call Handling Skills: A Guide for Small Businesses

Mastering call-handling abilities is a game-changer for a small business. It directly impacts customer experience, building a lasting relationship with your customers and maintaining a professional image. A positive first impression over the phone can be the deciding factor between gaining or losing a client. Studies show that 54% of customers prefer to resolve their…

Inbound Call Handling: A Guide for Small Businesses to Improve Customer Communication
Answering Service

Inbound Call Handling: A Guide for Small Businesses to Improve Customer Communication

Handling inbound calls effectively is very crucial for the success of small businesses, as it directly impacts customer satisfaction and overall business growth. Managing incoming calls efficiently ensures that every phone call is a positive experience, contributing to stronger customer relationships, addressing customer needs, and improving customer experience.

Illustration of a diverse PATLive team of remote customer service workers celebrating Customer Service Week 2024. The team is working from home, engaged in virtual meetings on computers, with festive elements like confetti, banners, and balloons in the background, symbolizing a positive and inclusive celebration.
Business Motivation | Just For Fun

Celebrate Customer Service Week 2024: Empowering Your Team, Boosting Morale

Customer Service Week 2024 (CSW) is the perfect time to acknowledge the individuals who keep your business running smoothly—your customer service team. For small businesses, especially those with remote employees, taking the time to celebrate CSW can make a lasting impact on morale, performance, and retention. In this guide, we’ll walk through creative ways to…

PATLive receptionist managing call screening and transfers, ensuring important calls are filtered and directed to the appropriate team member in real-time.
Answering Service | Our Services

How Call Screening and Transfers Can Boost Your Business

Managing incoming calls can be overwhelming, especially when juggling customer inquiries, robocalls, and non-essential distractions. PATLive’s call screening and call transfer services help you focus on what matters most, ensuring that important calls reach the right person or department, while filtering out irrelevant ones. With real-time availability updates via PATLive’s app, you remain in control…

Calendar image representing appointment scheduling for Home Services, highlighting the importance of efficient scheduling tools for business success.
HVAC Answering Service | Small Business Must Reads

Top 7 Appointment Scheduling Tools to Streamline Your Home Service Business

Why Appointment Scheduling for Home Services is Essential In the fast-paced world of Home Service Businesses, time is everything. From HVAC repair teams to lawn care professionals, efficient appointment scheduling can be the difference between a smooth operation and a chaotic day. With technicians in the field, unexpected changes in job lengths, and customers needing…

The Different Types of Business Communication and Their Benefits
Answering Service

The Different Types of Business Communication and Their Benefits

Business communication is the lifeblood of any business.  Whether yours is focused around sharing info with team members, engaging with stakeholders, or making big decisions, how you communicate can make or break your success.  From downward communication that streams through employees to management or nonverbal cues in face-to-face meetings, understanding and mastering different types of…

Virtual Receptionist
Answering Service

Debunking Myths About Virtual Receptionists: Separating Fact from Fiction

When it comes to running a business, providing excellent customer service is crucial. Many companies are turning to virtual receptionists for their efficiency and cost-effectiveness, but several misconceptions still persist. In this blog, we’re setting the record straight on some of the most common myths about virtual receptionists and showing how they can benefit your…

Maximizing PATLive Services: Your Onboarding Journey
Our Services

Maximizing PATLive Services: Your Onboarding Journey

At PATLive, we aim to ensure you maximize our services from day one. Our specialized Onboarding Team is dedicated to working with new clients during the first 30 days, offering personalized support and tailored solutions to meet your business needs. Why Onboard? The onboarding process is essential for integrating PATLive’s services seamlessly with your business…

seamless interactions by virtual receptionists
Answering Service

Seamless Customer Interactions with Virtual Receptionists

For small and medium sized businesses exceptional customer service is crucial. Customers expect quick responses, personalized service, and seamless interactions. 75 percent of callers will not leave a voicemail, and about 85 percent of callers, who don’t reach you on the first call, will not call back. Instead, they will call your competitors. This is where…

Virtual Training at PATLive
Our Services

Revolutionizing Training: The Secret Behind PATLive’s Virtual Success

Why Virtual Training Matters to You In today’s fast-paced, digital world, effective training is more than a necessity—it’s a game-changer. Whether you’re an employer looking to enhance your team’s skills or an employee seeking growth opportunities, the quality of training can significantly impact your success. At PATLive, we’ve mastered the art of virtual training, ensuring…

Transform your HVAC business with PATLive
Business Knowledge

Transform Your Home Services Business with Efficient and Personal Phone Answering

In the home services industry, turning potential customers into loyal patrons is the golden ticket to success. Did you know that 40% of customers who contact you online end up making a purchase? This statistic highlights the great potential hidden within those initial interactions. Whether it’s booking an appointment, confirming availability, or inquiring about prices,…

National Small Business Week Business Owner
Small Business Must Reads

5 Easy & Actionable Ways to Celebrate National Small Business Week 

Small businesses and their owners are the unsung heroes of our economy, deserving of every accolade and celebration. They inject creativity, passion, and resilience into our communities, embodying the spirit of innovation and hard work.   National Small Business Week (NSBW) is a time when these tireless entrepreneurs are spotlighted, reminding us of the importance of…

PATLive virtual receptionists
Small Business Must Reads

5 Worthwhile Ways a Virtual Receptionist Helps You Achieve More

Productivity is a struggle for small business owners. Distractions – like a ringing phone – make it difficult to stay focused and, ultimately, regain that focus. A study by Florida State University found that productivity and performance are at their peak during uninterrupted 90-minute intervals. I know. You’re reading this and thinking, “Where do you…

These Startups have awesome benefits
Business Roundtable

These Businesses are Humanizing Their Benefits Packages

Startup founders and younger CEO’s move people with their grand visions of creating products that better our lives. Uber has changed the way we think about transportation. Tinder has changed the way people date (or, er, meet others). Facebook has dynamically changed the way we communicate and connect with friends and family. Another thing these…

receptionist revolution - PATLive receptionist for phone and web chat answering services
Business Knowledge | Our Services

2024 Receptionist Revolution: Embracing the Future with a Human Touch 

The new year has arrived and with it will come new innovations that will blow last year’s out of the water. As we continue to witness the fiery rise of artificial intelligence or AI, we remain resolved that human connection still matters in business. We would argue it’s more important than ever before!  As you…

Small business owner doing business
Small Business Must Reads

Didn't Win the Powerball Jackpot? Here are 5 Cool Ways to Fund Your New Business

Funding Small Business So, you didn’t wake up a millionaire either? I had big plans for all that Powerball money; most of my new money plans included me drinking an unlimited supply of icy adult beverages on a private beach all alone, but I digress. Maybe you had grander, more useful plans for your winnings…

Real Estate Investor handling phone calls
Customer Service | Real Estate Answering Service

Essential Tools for Real Estate Investors: Maximize Efficiency and Success

Investment in real estate comes with a unique set of challenges that can overwhelm even the most experienced real estate investors. From juggling multiple rental properties to keeping track of potential leads, it’s easy for opportunities to slip through the cracks. The industry demands that investors stay on top of their property management game while…

Ted Talks: Ideas worth spreading
Business Knowledge

5 Ted Talks That Will Make You A Better Communicator

Understanding and speaking without double negatives is communication 101. If we want to be taken seriously by our peers, other professionals or just as human beings on this planet, it’s important to pay attention to the way we represent ourselves through our communication. Poor communication in the workplace has an extremely negative impact that runs…

Snagging the millennial real estate client.
Customer Service | Real Estate Answering Service

How to Snag a Millennial Real Estate Client

The Millennial Real Estate Client It’s time for our obligatory post about everyone’s favorite generation to rag on: the millennial real estate client. Many articles are overwrought with generalizations about the largest generation in history and these characteristics are rarely positive: they want more success without working for it; they are selfish; they are lazy;…

Legal Industry Customer Service Fundamentals
Customer Service

Customer Service Fundamentals To Make You A Better Lawyer

Let’s face the facts: lawyers don’t necessarily need to practice fundamentals of exceptional customer service. Much like the funeral business, people will always have a need for an attorney. Because of that necessity it seems as if law professionals could be successful without upholding any kind of customer service standards. If the people are always…

Virtual Receptionists at work
Answering Service | Customer Service

Here’s Why Your Business Needs to Use a Live Receptionist

Live Receptionists: All of your hard work is paying off. You’ve taken your company from a small, one-woman show operating out of your basement and turned it into a flourishing, medium-sized business. With revenue, and sales, and…dare we say it? Customers. This is amazing, brilliant, everything you ever wanted – except for one problem. You…

live receptionist
Customer Service

3 Undeniable Reasons Your Business Needs a Live Receptionist Now

You’ve taken your company from a tiny, one-person show operating out of your basement and turned it into a business that’s expanding quicker than you can utter the phrase, “I need help!” Your revenue stream is steady, your product is selling like crazy and you have a strong customer base. This is amazing, fantastic, everything…

Getting Personal With Customers
Customer Service

Beyond Incentives: 3 Ways of Getting Personal With Your Customers

Getting Personal With Customers: The power of human connection is undeniably strong. From the moment we are thrown into this world, we are constantly seeking out connection from those around us – it is vastly important in how we perceive ourselves and our world. Matthew Lieberman, scientist and author of Social, explains to Scientific American…

Customer-Friendly Business Associate Shaking Hands
Customer Service

Customer Service Insights: 10 Things That Will Get You Called Easy

Growing up, getting called “easy” was an insult. The I’ll-see-you-at-the-flagpole-after-school type of an insult. But in the world of customer service, being called “easy”, or a customer-friendly business, is one of the greatest compliments a company can receive. It’s sad to say, but people expect difficulty when communicating with most companies. We have trained ourselves…

Spooky bad customer service: Pumpkins lit in the darkness
Customer Service

15 Spooky Bad Customer Service Stats To Make Your Knees Quake

Horror movies can be abhorrent, spine-chilling and downright gross. Statistics on bad customer service can conjure up similar feelings; unlike a movie, these statistics have very real implications for businesses of all sizes, and they don’t end after 2 hours of white-knuckling an armrest and spilling popcorn. Feel like you need to scream? Go ahead….

losing a customer: unhappy customer
Legal Answering Service

3 Unmistakeable Signs You Chose the Wrong Answering Service for Your Law Practice

Time is money for lawyers

In order to increase productivity, lawyers hire answering services to focus more of their energy on billable items. The problem: not all answering services are created equal.

What happens when you realize your answering service is more of a hindrance than a help?

If you still manage client intake or still answer calls from clients after hours, you need a new answering service. Read on to reveal three unmistakable signs you’ve chosen the wrong answering service for your practice.

Bilingual virtual receptionist
Answering Service | Our Services

How a Bilingual Virtual Receptionist Can Help your Business

While many American businesses will be working with predominantly English-speaking customers, that’s not always the case. As of 2023, 68 million people in the US speak another language at home, and in some areas, another language is almost as frequently used as English itself.  As a result, many businesses would benefit from having a bilingual…

Customer Service Agents and teamwork
Customer Service

Why Our Customer Service Agents Love Their Jobs (And How Yours Can, Too)

Our customer service agents love their jobs. We can say that and know it’s the truth without feeling braggadocious. The PATLive culture is one that creates a fun, family feeling while also praising hard work, creative thinking and sticktoitiveness. We believe it’s our culture that allows us to create the high-touch, quality customer experience we…

live receptionist
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Business Motivation

How Live Virtual Receptionist Services Can Grow Your Business

Many businesses will want to scale at some point. While scaling can lead to growing pains, it can also lead to more profit and overall stability for the company itself, both of which are incredible incentives to do so. In this pursuit of growth, virtual receptionist services emerge as a powerful ally to support your…

Millennials are changing the workplace: A group of Millennials
Business Knowledge | Small Business Must Reads

How Millennials Are Changing the Workplace

Millennials Are Changing The Workplace Over the past decade, there have been countless lists and articles published about all the things that Millennials are killing. But seeing as how Millennials and Gen Z now make up almost 45% of the workforce (in 2023, according to John Hopkins University compiled research data, Millennials became the largest…

Holiday customer service
Answering Service | Our Services

Should My Nonprofit Use an Answering Service?

Answering Service for Nonprofits Every nonprofit is unique. From the local animal rescue to a nationwide organization helping foster children….to everything in between…the range of services and operations is broad and niche. Despite the different topics and fields of interest, however, there are lots of similarities in how nonprofits operate that serve as common ground…

What Is a Remote Receptionist and How Does It Work?
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Our Services

What Is a Remote Receptionist and How Does It Work?

Most businesses that grow to a certain point all reach the same realization: They’re getting too many calls, and they need a remote receptionist. This is an exciting time, because it means that your business is thriving and that you’re at the next level of scaling.  It can also be nerve-wracking, especially if the business…

Modern Answering Services: More Than Message Taking
Answering Service

Modern Answering Services: More Than Message Taking

Times are changing fast.

Businesses have to adapt at the speed of their customers in order to stay viable. Answering services are no different. As times (and the needs of customers) change, it’s essential an answering service change too. That means that answering service you partnered with in 1999 is doing way more than taking messages.

Read on to learn more about the types of calls modern day answering services can manage for business.

Customer-Friendly Business Associate Shaking Hands
Customer Service | Legal Answering Service

Customer Service Basics To Boost Your Law Firm

Let’s face the facts: running a law firm keeps you incredibly busy. In reality, the greatest issue for most law firms is lack of time – there simply isn’t enough time to focus on service that dazzles.

You do it all – client intake, client support, marketing, even administrative duties. Keeping the firm running smoothly, it seems like there’s little time to focus on anything else. Yet, it’s important to treat clients like they’re valuable to your firm or you run the risk of losing them to your competition.

5 Surprising Things an Answering Service Can Do For Your Business
Answering Service | Our Services

5 Surprising Things an Answering Service Can Do For Your Business

Answering services have been
around for many, many years.
Perhaps you’ve even used one
in the past for message taking or
call forwarding.

It’s essential that answering
services keep up with the
rapid pace of the business
world, evolving as it does.
The tasks agents manage
now might shock you.

Here’s a list of five surprising
things answering services
can do for businesses today.

Customer Service Basics That Will Boost Your Plumbing or HVAC Business
Customer Service

Customer Service Basics That Will Boost Your Plumbing or HVAC Business

Let’s face the facts: plumbers and HVAC contractors are in high demand. Because of that necessity, it seems as if they could be successful without upholding any kind of customer service standards. In reality, the greatest issue for these providers is lack of time – there isn’t enough time for these contractors to always focus on service that dazzles.

Going Multi-Channel
Real Estate Answering Service

The Best Ways for Real Estate Professionals to Answer Phone Calls

Answer with a Polite Greeting First of all, you want to start with a polite greeting. Sounds obvious, but if you are in the real estate industry and you are likely in between various showings, dealing with back-and-forth negotiations, or are submitting paperwork for a quick-to-sell property and you may feel stressed. For every prospective…

Case Study: High-Volume Answering Service for Real Estate Investors
Our Customers

Case Study: High-Volume Answering Service for Real Estate Investors

Diamond Equity Investments is a real estate investment organization that purchases, renovates, and resells single-family homes, multi-family buildings, commercial properties, and land. Founded by Dan Breslin in 2006, Diamond Equity Investments offers fast and convenient sales for sellers in Atlanta, Chicago, and Philadelphia and their outlying areas.  Too Many Phone Calls Diamond Equity Investments began as…

Call handling instructions with PATLive
Customer Service

Call Handling 101

Congratulations! The day is here when you’re getting so many calls that it’s interrupting your day-to-day life or you simply can’t handle them all. While this doesn’t feel like an exciting thing, it means that your business has grown, and you need help managing incoming calls. At this point, growing businesses like yours turn to…

Customer support vs Customer Service
Customer Service

A Guide to Hiring a Small Business Answering Service

If you’re reading this, there’s a solid chance that you’re considering hiring an answering service for your small business. Congratulations – this is an exciting step, and it means that your business is growing and you’re being proactive about providing excellent customer service. Choosing a small business answering service or knowing how to get the…

PATLive Serves as an Extension of Your Team with New Web and Mobile Apps
Our Services

PATLive Serves as an Extension of Your Team with New Web and Mobile Apps

PATLive’s team of U.S. virtual receptionists answer calls 24/7/365 for thousands of businesses nationwide, offering a wide range of services on calls such as call transfers, message taking, lead collection, appointment scheduling, order processing, event registrations, and more. And with PATLive’s flexible approach to call handling instructions (and new web and mobile apps), businesses can customize exactly how their calls are answered.   With the number of people working remotely at never-before-seen highs, there…

Getting Personal With Customers
Customer Service

4 Creative Ways to Provide Personalized Service for Customers

Customers have higher expectations than ever before. Customers know it, and businesses know it, and it’s true all over the world. It’s not enough to simply answer a call fast, or even to just be friendly while rattling off your strict company policies. Customers want more than that. Personalized customer service is the new standard of…

Holiday customer service
Business Roundtable

Seasonal Call Answering Service: Boost Your Holiday Business

If you’re like many businesses, you can expect to have a significant uptick in sales and inquiries during the holiday season. More people need help with placing orders, selecting products, or tracking packages. Everything is high stakes, and everything is happening at a higher volume.  This year especially, plenty of our customers are already seeing…

How to Build Reviews for Your Small Business
Business Roundtable

How to Build Reviews for Your Small Business

When you’re looking for new ways to promote your business and build trust with potential customers, there are plenty of different marketing paths you can take. There’s social media, paid ads, influencer marketing, sponsored promotions, lead generation strategies, and more. Few marketing methods, however, are as effective as garnering public reviews. Actually getting reviews, however,…

Going Multi-Channel
Business Roundtable | Customer Service

6 Simple Ways to Automate Customer Communication

There’s a major trend that’s taken the business world by storm in recent years, and it’s transparency. Customers like businesses who are transparent and proactive in their communication, as opposed to those who make it difficult for customers to get information that they want or need. While this is a great standard, it can undeniably…

Customer Service Week: Celebrating While Working Remotely
Customer Service | Just For Fun

Customer Service Week: Celebrating While Working Remotely

Customer Service Week is the first full week of October, and it’s all about celebrating your frontline. This year, of course, things look a little different, that’s why it’s more important than ever to show your appreciation to the customer service team that represents your business every day. Anyone who has ever worked in a…

How a Virtual Receptionist Improves Customer Relations
Customer Service

How a Virtual Receptionist Improves Customer Relations

Customer service can be the make-it-or-break-it factor for businesses in 2020. It’s well established by now that customers will actively seek out businesses with outstanding service, and that they’ll stick around longer if they find it. This is the differentiator that will help you land and keep clients, allowing your business to thrive. While implementing…

Top Customer Experience Tips for Small Businesses
Customer Service

Top Customer Experience Tips for Small Businesses

Creating a fantastic customer experience (CX) is a non-negotiable for small businesses to succeed in today’s competitive world.  Small businesses can build loyalty and growth by understanding customers, improving customer interactions at every touchpoint, and building long-term relationships.  86% of buyers will pay more for a great customer experience. For small businesses, that means better…

Our Favorite Business Podcasts – Impact Theory
Business Knowledge | Business Podcasts

Our Favorite Business Podcasts – Impact Theory

If you’re a small business owner, and you aren’t already listening to the Impact Theory podcast, hosted by Tom Bilyeu, you’re missing out. More Than Just a Business Podcast Impact Theory is not just a business podcast; it’s a valuable resource for mindset training, as well as health and lifestyle tips to help you succeed (and recognize/appreciate…

Can Your Small Business Afford A Call Answering Service?
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Our Services

Can Your Small Business Afford A Call Answering Service?

We know better than anyone that small businesses often come with tight budgets, even as you’re starting to grow. You may be swamped with expenses that you never considered before starting up your own venture like invoicing software, liability insurance, and even pest control for your office if you have one.  A small budget quickly…

Hiring Outsourced Labor: A worker doing their job in their virtual office.
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Our Services

How Remote Workers Stay Connected with a Virtual Receptionist

We’re months into the COVID-19 pandemic, and plenty of businesses still have as many of their employees working from home as possible. Even outside of the pandemic, a large number of businesses have been increasing remote work opportunities for their staff. While there are plenty of great advantages that come with remote working, some businesses…

Snagging the millennial real estate client.
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Real Estate Answering Service

5 Resources That Will Make Every Real Estate Investor’s Job Easier

To say real estate investors are busy is a gross understatement. Agents are constantly rushing to appointments with partners or to show one of their available properties or putting out any number of property management fires; it is not a career choice for the timid. When you have so many things coming at you at…

5 Seamless Ways to Get Your Calls to a Virtual Receptionist
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Our Services

5 Seamless Ways to Get Your Calls to a Virtual Receptionist

Virtual receptionists can make your life much, much easier. They can answer all of your calls or any call overflow that you have (it’s up to you!), and high-quality services are able to take messages, capture leads, register customers, and even process payments. Your customers call you, and when you want us to, we’ll be…

hyper-personalization in customer service
Customer Service

How to Personalize Customer Service as a Small Business

While large corporations are everywhere, Americans tend to prefer working with smaller businesses whenever possible. Small businesses are seen as more accessible. They aren’t bound by rigid policies that don’t make sense like corporations, and they’re often perceived as being heavily involved in the local communities. Customers often trust them more and feel more invested…

9 Stress Management Tips for Business Owners & Team Leaders
Business Knowledge | Business Motivation

9 Stress Management Tips for Business Owners & Team Leaders

Managing a team and a business is no easy task, and it can be stressful even under the best circumstances. Trying to tackle business ownership or leadership during a worldwide crisis like the one we’re currently experiencing with the coronavirus pandemic, however, is a challenge that many have never faced before.  There’s one thing that…

Business Communication Facts
Business Knowledge | Business Motivation

Why Communication is Key During This Pandemic

The coronavirus pandemic we’re currently experiencing is unprecedented, and it’s forced all of us into social distancing and near-isolation. While we’re all kept further away from each other, communication is more important than ever before — especially for businesses who are still trying to keep their metaphorical doors open. Communication is key because even while…

Small Business Tips: Guide to Working from Home
Business Knowledge | Business Motivation | Small Business Must Reads

Small Business Tips: Guide to Working from Home

Social distancing has required millions of people across the world to stay home. As businesses face immediate and unprecedented in-office shutdowns in an attempt to flatten the curve from the coronavirus, they’ve been left scrambling to shift their team to a work-from-home setup. While having your entire team shift to working from home is a…

startup customer service
Business Knowledge | Business Motivation

The Complete Guide to Starting a New Business

Starting a business is an exciting time but can also be stressful and very involved with paperwork galore. According to the Small Business Association, more than 627,000 new businesses open their doors each year. Unfortunately, the same report found that around 595,000 businesses close every year, too, meaning that getting off to the right start…

Customer journey mapping
Business Knowledge | Our Services

7 Surprising Ways to Save Your Small Business Money

Most small businesses operate on tight budgets. They’ve got razor-thin margins, and with fluctuating markets and the need to reinvest money back into the business so that it can scale, it’s not surprising that most are constantly on the lookout for ways to save money. Unfortunately, too many businesses end up cutting “mission-critical” expenses that…

How to Find the Best Legal Answering Service
Legal Answering Service

How to Find the Best Legal Answering Service

Swamped with work, many law practices eventually turn to a legal answering service to help them manage their constant stream of incoming calls from clients and potential clients.  High-quality answering services accept calls, answer questions, take messages, collect client information, and book appointments as if they were an in-office secretary who worked closely with the firm’s attorneys….

6 Simple Ways to Create a Lifetime Customer Base
Business Knowledge | Business Motivation | Business Roundtable

6 Simple Ways to Create a Lifetime Customer Base

All businesses understand the value of customer acquisition, placing enormous amounts of time, energy, and money into attracting and converting new customers. Adding new customers to your roster is essential for growth, so this is a justified priority. Too many brands, however, stop there; they land one customer, and they move onto the next. This…

How to Transform Negative Reviews Into Opportunities
Business Knowledge | Business Motivation | Small Business Must Reads

How to Transform Negative Reviews Into Opportunities

Every business with an online presence will experience it at some point. That dreaded, awful feeling that comes when you see a “less than glowing” review from a customer pop up online.  Maybe their order came late, or not at all, or arrived broken. Perhaps they felt they ended up with lackluster customer service. We’re…

6 Quick Ways to Spark Growth in Your Small Business
Business Knowledge | Business Motivation | Small Business Must Reads

6 Quick Ways to Spark Growth in Your Small Business

When you first launch your small business, it can feel like growth is happening slower than you ever thought possible. Every time you gain two new customers, you lose one, whether it’s because a contract ends or natural churn rates have taken hold. And while you know that once you gain traction with your business,…

The Benefits of Outsourcing Calls with an Answering Service
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Business Motivation | Our Services | Small Business Must Reads

The Benefits of Outsourcing Calls with an Answering Service

If you ask a list of small businesses if they’d like 100% of their phone calls answered, they’d say “Of course!”. If you ask the same small businesses if they need an answering service, the answers will most likely vary. Maybe it’s because of a limited budget, maybe it’s because they don’t realize how many…

7 Business Tools to Help you Work on the Go in 2020
Business Knowledge | Business Motivation | Business Roundtable | Our Services

7 Business Tools to Help you Work on the Go in 2020

We live in an on-the-go world, where nothing ever seems to slow down. It only makes sense that we’ve adapted and are increasingly searching for ways to work on the go, too. Business owners have historically been trapped at their desks from 9-5, Monday through Friday, and sometimes even later and on weekends, too. Now,…

6 Ways a Live Answering Service Will Improve Your Business & Life
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Business Motivation

6 Ways a Live Answering Service Will Improve Your Business & Life

When small businesses are determining how they should reinvest into their businesses, they typically look at what would help them most. Some opt to go all-in on marketing, while others upgrade equipment or move to a new office. Live answering services may not be the first thing you think of when deciding how to best…

Small business owner doing business
Business Knowledge | Business Motivation | Business Roundtable | Small Business Must Reads

7 Ways to Promote Your Business This Small Business Saturday

As a live answering service for thousands of businesses nationwide, small businesses have a special place in our hearts. Making up 99.9% of U.S. businesses and 47.5% of the workforce, small businesses play a critical role in the economy.  That’s why American Express created a holiday just for small businesses in 2010, and it’s paying…

How to Find the Right Answering Service that Fits Your Business
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Business Motivation

How to Find the Right Answering Service that Fits Your Business

Answering services can benefit businesses of all shapes and sizes. You’ll have a team of virtual receptionists take as many incoming calls off your plate as you choose, whether you only want to use the service for overflow or after hours, or as your first line of defense for every incoming call your office gets,…

How to Build Repeat Customers for Long-Term Business Success
Customer Service

How to Build Repeat Customers for Long-Term Business Success

Building a loyal customer base is crucial for small businesses’ long-term success. While acquiring new customers may seem exciting, it is significantly more costly than retaining repeat customers. In fact, studies show that it can cost five times more to attract a new customer than to retain an existing one. Repeat customers are the lifeblood…

5 Customer Service Skills that Drive Every Business
Customer Service

5 Customer Service Skills that Drive Every Business

Customer service departments don’t just exist to address issues after they’ve already happened; they’re meant to be proactive parts of your overall business strategy. The level of competition in almost every field is so high that customer service has become a key decision-making factor for most buyers today. 96% of consumers, for example, stated that…

The Benefits of Call Answering Services: An Infographic
Answering Service | Small Business Must Reads

The Benefits of Call Answering Services: An Infographic

As a busy business owner, you know the importance of the ringing phone but that doesn’t mean you have the time or resources to answer every call. Enter call answering services, the business solution that does so much more than message taking. With service packages now starting at just $39/month, you can rest easy knowing…

Why eCommerce Customer Service is the Difference Your Brand Needs
Customer Service

Why eCommerce Customer Service is the Difference Your Brand Needs

Quality customer service is crucial in every industry. However, compared to a brick and mortar retail store, eCommerce customer service is significantly different. The lack of physical interaction before a purchase can lead to more uncertainty before committing to the purchase. Combine this with unhappy customers taking to social media to vent their frustrations, and…

The Role of the Phone in the Customer Service Lifecycle
Customer Service

The Role of the Phone in the Customer Service Lifecycle

Delivering excellent customer service relies on your ability to understand your customers, their relationship with you and your brand, and what they need from you. You can’t do this without understanding how customer service fits into the customer’s lifecycle and buying process. A customer who has a few questions about your return policy prior to purchasing,…

Business Podcasts Every Entrepreneur Should Listen To
Business Motivation | Business Podcasts

Business Podcasts Every Entrepreneur Should Listen To

International Podcast Day is September 30th – and it’s no wonder this new medium has its own day, with over 50% of the US population having partaken. Podcasts have a unique draw, providing listeners with insights and entertainment that are tailored to their interests. As of June 2019, there were 750,000 podcast shows and counting,…

4 Ways to Get the Most Out of PATLive’s Answering Services
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Our Services

4 Ways to Get the Most Out of PATLive’s Answering Services

Though plenty of businesses see the appeal of having an answering service to keep their phones from ringing off the hooks, many express one single objection over and over again… and it’s finding room in the budget. The number one thing they’re worried about is that it will be obvious to the caller (often a…

How to Keep Your Small Business PCI Compliant in 2019
Business Roundtable

How to Keep Your Small Business PCI Compliant in 2019

Security is becoming an increasing concern for businesses and consumers all across the globe. Digital risks are becoming even more prevalent, leaving business owners in charge of protecting themselves, their employees, and the customers that keep their doors open. When it comes to security– and cyber security in particular– there’s a lot to keep up…

PATLive Listed as a Top Answering Service on Clutch B2B Review Site
Customer Service

PATLive Listed as a Top Answering Service on Clutch B2B Review Site

Customer service is the cornerstone of a positive relationship between a business and its clients. If a customer does not feel valued by a business or service provider it can damage the relationship to the point where they may cut ties entirely. But it can be difficult to maintain these quality client relationships, with potential…

live receptionist
Customer Service

3 Undeniable Reasons Your Business Needs a Live Receptionist Now

The phone is ringing. Again. It’s ringing when you’re trying to finish an expense report. It’s ringing when you’re trying to take ten minutes for lunch. It’s even ringing while you’re on the phone with another client. Whether it’s an employee trying to get in touch, a vendor who needs clarification, or a customer who…

7 Ways An Answering Service Puts Money Back Into Your Pocket
Customer Service

7 Ways An Answering Service Puts Money Back Into Your Pocket

Answering services get dismissed by business owners due to the initial cost. Yet, partnering with one is an investment that will pay for itself repeatedly. One huge benefit of answering services: they provide all your customers with a live person on every call. But there’s more. Answering service agents help with tasks like event registration,…

Comparing The Costs of an In-House vs. Virtual Receptionist
Answering Service | Business Knowledge | Our Services

Comparing The Costs of an In-House vs. Virtual Receptionist

Every small business owner has spent hours thinking of ways to save their business money. Have you considered what you could save by switching from an in-house receptionist to a 24/7 live answering service? The low monthly fee you’ll pay to have your phone calls answered 24/7 by a team of experts pales in comparison…

Human Support
Customer Service

Sample Script for Answering Phone Calls: A Guide for Small Businesses

Answering the phone with a professional and consistent tone is crucial, as it can make or break a caller’s first impression. A well-structured phone call not only sets the tone for the entire interaction but also ensures that your customer experience is seamless from the start. Every call is an opportunity to build customer loyalty…

Customer-centric employee smiling while working with a client.
Customer Service

Customer Service Advice from 17 Small Business Consultants

That’s right! Here’s a treasure trove of customer service knowledge from 17 leading consultants, from accounting wizards to content-creating wordsmiths. We asked each of them to weigh-in on the topic of customer service and communication, and each of them delivered with a unique perspective. Topics range from clever branding to enhancing responsiveness across channels of…

5 Lessons I Learned While Following Shep Hyken on Twitter
Customer Service

5 Lessons I Learned While Following Shep Hyken on Twitter

Customer service and experience expert, Shep Hyken, is doling out tons of actionable (and free) advice right on Twitter. I’ll admit that when I accepted my position at PATLive, I knew very little about customer service. Beyond the niceties that are practically baked-into my southern upbringing, I had never really considered service as anything beyond…

losing a customer: unhappy customer
Customer Service

Read if You Dare: The Most Dreadful Customer Service Stats of All Time

There’s no stopping it: bad customer service is everywhere. Even worse is that customers have a very low bar for what equates good service; a scant one percent of customers feel that their expectations of good customer service are always met. And yet businesses still miss the mark.We all know that a great customer experience…

4 Crazy Simple Ways to Communicate Better With Your Customers
Customer Service

4 Crazy Simple Ways to Communicate Better With Your Customers

If you ever thought customer communication is over-rated, consider this simple fact: 70 percent of consumers are willing to spend more with companies that provide excellent customer service. Source: Neil Patel Blog The way you interact with your customers has a direct impact on your sales numbers. If they’re treated with respect and feel that…

Answering Service Tips: How To Keep Your Cool During Stressful Calls
Customer Service

Answering Service Tips: How To Keep Your Cool During Stressful Calls

It’s impossible to make everyone happy all the time, and owning a business practically places you in the hot seat. Those customer complaints are sure to come. It’s how you handle them that makes all the difference. Answering calls from angry customers is just one stressful task small business owners have to handle. And it’s…

6 Ways Answering Your Own Phone Harms Your Business (And How An Answering Service Helps)
Customer Service

6 Ways Answering Your Own Phone Harms Your Business (And How An Answering Service Helps)

You want to be as hands-on in your businesses as possible, but sometimes delegating certain tasks to other people is the best solution. Answering your own phones, for example, is one of those tasks that would be better handled by a receptionist or answering service. If you’re answering your own calls yourself instead of delegating…

The 26 Ultimate Inspirational Quotes from Successful Entrepreneurs
Customer Service

The 26 Ultimate Inspirational Quotes from Successful Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurs are a hard-working and brave lot. Think about it: they have the cojones to start businesses in the face of turbulent economic conditions, are constantly brainstorming to solve problems in new ways, and withstand tons of adversity. Yet, they still come out on the other end as thriving survivors. Their power resides in their…

The One Thing that Will Make Entrepreneurs More Productive
Business Knowledge | Business Motivation | Business Roundtable

The One Thing that Will Make Entrepreneurs More Productive

Have you ever been proud to tell someone about how little you sleep? Did you brag about how much you accomplished or how much money you made because you only sleep three hours a night? Your arrogance could be costing you. Jason Fried, co-founder of the task management tool Basecamp is fed up listening to…