"Our company has come to rely on Absent Answer for round-the-clock service to our clients. They are courteous and efficient, and are very helpful in reaching our goals of excellent customer service!"
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Absent Answer FAQ
FAQ
Can I give out or advertise the 800# Absent Answer provides with the service?
Yes. The number is yours and you can advertise it, call forward to it, or both.
How do your receptionists know what questions to ask my callers and how to direct them to the right people within my company?
Absent Answer custom designs your account to the specific needs of your business. This includes our programmers designing a screen layout that will enable our receptionists to ask the right questions and direct them to the right people.
Will Absent Answer take credit card information for order taking?
Yes. Our receptionists have the ability to take credit card details for this type of call.
Can Absent Answer process orders for my company?
Yes. We interface our technology with your website’s shopping cart to process online orders.
Is there a limit to how many different employees (recipients) can receive the same message?
Absent Answers delivery system can be programmed to deliver the same message to multiple recipients at the same time. The recipients can even be using different types of devices, meaning one may receive the message on a cell phone, another may receive theirs on a pager, and others may simply receive the message as a notification on their email. There are no additional charges for this type of multi-dispatch.
Can I forward my cell phone to your service?
Yes, in fact Absent Answer's Answering Service plans give you the ability to forward any number of business or personal line(s) to your exclusive DID (local) or toll free 800 number.
How many messages will my Absent Answer voicemail system store?
Each of Absent Answer's individual mailboxes can hold up to 100 voice messages.
Can I receive a local telephone number?
Yes, to keep your "local presence" in place, simply advertise your existing local number and forward that number to Absent Answer. Also, we can supply you with a nationwide toll free 800 number to which you can forward your phone.
How long does it take to have an account activated and start service?
Depending upon the complexity of the account, usually within 24 hours.
Is this a long-term contract?
No. Absent Answer operates on a 28 day cycle-to-cycle basis with a 28 day notice to cancel. There are no early termination fees.
Can I receive messages when traveling overseas?
If your phone or pager has international text capabilities, you will receive your text messages from Absent Answer no different than if you were local. If your carrier does not offer this option, your messages will always be available to you by email.
We have different "on-call" people that handle different types of calls. These people also rotate depending upon what day it is. How does Absent Answer get the message to the correct person? Simply supply Absent Answer with your upcoming roster schedule and we will input your schedule into our system. The system knows at any given moment exactly who is on call so our receptionists can route calls accordingly.
Can I change the "on-call" person at the last minute?
Of course. Just give Absent Answer a call and one of our agents will make the change for you.
Does Absent Answer offer its services nationwide?
Yes, Because of Absent Answer's advanced technologies it does not matter where your business is physically located.
What are the advantages of time based billing?
Absent Answer service is charged on a "time used" approach. In other words you simply pay for what you use and not for what you thought you would use.
With 28 day billing cycle aren't you billing an extra 13th month?
No, You are only charged for the time you use in the same 12 months. Absent Answer bills in 28-day cycles to coincide with our most valuable asset our agents.
Do you keep messages in an archive?
Yes. We keep a history of all your messages for 1 year. This also includes all voice-recorded conversations between operators and callers, a great tool in case of any issues or complaints.