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Theresa Alacante has been making fine, hand-made ceramic tiles for
upscale clients for more than twelve years. After she graduated with her
Masters in Fine Arts from UC Davis, she taught art in the public school
system. During her free time, she designed and crafted fine hand-made
ceramic tiles.
Over time, her reputation grew. Many upscale designers began
specifying her work on major construction and design projects. Soon, Theresa realized that she had to make a choice. In order to meet
demand, she gave up teaching to launch her business full time.
As a new business owner, Theresa attempted to perform all of the
tasks her growing business demanded. She kept a cordless telephone on
her glazing table and juggled purchasing, inventory management, and
customer orders herself. A friend helped her launch a website, and later
helped her with
a printed catalog that was sent to designers around the state.
Soon, she found that she had as little time to concentrate on her art as
she did when she was teaching. Because she works from a home studio,
Theresa was reluctant to hire regular clerical employees, which would
have subjected her to rigorous health, labor, and safety regulations
that did not otherwise apply to her as a small, home-based business
owner.
In order to cope, Theresa hired a telephone
answering service. Within days, she had her 800 number forwarded to the
service, so that all of
her catalog and website orders could be taken, as well as with her routine
telephone calls. Thanks to the sophisticated
call scripting, callers are greeted by professionally trained operators who
could quickly and competently answer questions regarding product selection, shipping, and order
status.
When her work was featured in a national designers trade publication
Theresa's business was inundated with requests for her catalog. Within
six months of the publication of the feature, Theresa's 800 telephone
number was flooded with more than 7,000 calls (more than 50 per day)!
"There is just no way we could have ever coped with the
abundance of office work on our own,"
Theresa said. "Jake [Theresa's husband] and I were up to our ears in
orders. It was all we could do to keep our supplies coming in on time
and shipping the orders. If someone had told me a year ago how much
this would have grown, I'd have never believed it. But thanks to my
answering service, it's happened, and we just couldn't be happier!"
Learn more about telephone
answering services and discover how they might be able to help you.
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