We live in a fast-paced, modern world, where communication speeds are increasing at what seems to be an exponential rate. Orders can be placed for any number of goods instantaneously online, and with the advent of digital communication technologies, consumers are often used to receiving instantaneous service. It’s this line of thinking that pushes some businesses to make their workers available to customers 24/7.

However, if you’re a small business owner, you might have some concerns about this new, emerging trend. Whatever happened to a work-life balance, you might ask?

Central Telephone Sales & Service, a provider of wiring solutions and business phone installation, discusses this new communication trend below—its pros, cons, and a communication solution that can take advantage of the first while eliminating the second.

24/7 Availability: The Perks and the Drawbacks

It may sound like an ideal way to do business; after all, you’d have such an edge on your competitors if your company could operate around the clock! But such a drastic change in communication styles can stress employees, compromise their faith in the company, and may result in too much workload to handle.

The Pros

As Entrepreneur puts it, “In today’s digital world, there’s no such thing as business hours because a business can never be truly “closed” anymore.” Clients expect to be able to contact your company no matter the time of day, and with some sort of communication method open to them, you can fulfill this expectation—and fulfilled expectations do make for a higher likelihood you’ll land a sale. You’ll also begin to gain a reputation for being a caring company that’s always there for your customers, and that reputation can spread throughout your client base and make you the business-of-choice in your field.

The Cons

Can you imagine an actual human being having to watch the office phone system for that long? Even with split shifts, somebody is going to need to be awake in the dead of night, and that’s no way to foster company morale.

The increased pressure that comes with taking additional calls when an employee isn’t mentally at their prime can also foster a great deal of stress—and stress in the workplace is no laughing matter. According to the American Institute of Stress, “Increased levels of job stress as assessed by the perception of having little control but lots of demands have been demonstrated to be associated with increased rates of heart attack, hypertension, and other disorders.”

What’s There to Be Done?

Certainly, the costs of 24/7 access outweigh the benefits of it, at least if you were to have humans staff the lines at all times. Who wants a company that’s falling apart from a health and morale standpoint?

That being said, you still want to cater to customer expectations—and you still can. You just need to get yourself set up with, alongside the suggestions we make in our blog, the right telephone system.

A Happy Medium: An Automated-Response Phone System

Much more than a simple “leave a message” service, these technologies can record customer information, give answers to a few questions, and even make orders for customers—all without a worker being on the other end of the line! This enables business to flow into your company, regardless of the time of day, while also enabling your employees to maintain a healthy work-life balance.

Of course, this small business phone system tech is useful for customers, as well.

They Respect Customers’ Time

As we all know, important decisions can take a while to make, especially if it’s a business decision with multiple levels of bureaucracy involved. Give your customers the freedom to make decisions and do business with your company as they please with an automated-response phone system.

Global Customers Appreciate it

Due to time zone differences, your company will find doing business with national or global clients much easier with an automated-response phone system.

Customers Will Always Be Served

Even during business hours, and even when all available lines are busy! This helps ensure successful sales, as clients will not need to wait through hold times.

Looking for the Best in Small Business Phone Systems? Contact Central Telephone Sales & Service Today

Our Plymouth team would be happy to help you through the whole installation process, from picking out a model to coming up with network wiring solutions. Give us a call today at 763-550-2000 to get started.