{"id":1355,"date":"2021-07-15T05:21:30","date_gmt":"2021-07-15T05:21:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/posh.com\/?p=1355"},"modified":"2025-12-04T17:57:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T17:57:11","slug":"what-is-a-virtual-receptionist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/posh.com\/en-uk\/blog\/what-is-a-virtual-receptionist\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is a Virtual Receptionist? Here is everything you need to know"},"content":{"rendered":"

It often seems we are living in a virtual world, but you may be wondering, \u201cWhat is a virtual receptionist?\u201d Fortunately, POSH has the answers to what a virtual receptionist is, as well as how they differ from traditional receptionists.<\/p>\n

A virtual receptionist is a real person who answers the phone and handles calls on behalf of a business. They usually work for a third-party company known as a virtual receptionist service. What makes a virtual receptionist \u201cvirtual\u201d is that rather than sitting behind a desk at your office building, they sit in a different office at a remote location. Sometimes that office is in a busy corporate building with many receptionists, and other times it\u2019s a home office where the receptionist works alone.<\/p>\n

You may have also heard of a remote receptionist or virtual secretary. These are just interchangeable synonyms for virtual receptionists.<\/p>\n

Since virtual receptionists are a relatively new concept only gaining popularity in the last few years, we are frequently asked, \u201cWhat is a virtual receptionist?\u201d Aren\u2019t receptionists the people that sit at a nice desks behind fancy glass doors? The people that take calls and messages, right? Right. Sort of.<\/p>\n

Welcome to the future. Here, at POSH, we offer virtual receptionist services from our headquarters in London. Our team of live virtual receptionists is on hand 24\/7 to answer your business calls and help you reclaim the time consumed by everyday administrative tasks.<\/p>\n

What Does a Virtual Receptionist Do?<\/h2>\n

It all begins by quickly answering calls with a friendly, professional tone that elevates your business image. After that, a virtual receptionist can do pretty much whatever you or your callers need them to do. They can screen incoming calls, transfer callers to the right person, take messages, schedule (or reschedule) appointments, provide customer service, capture\/qualify leads, and even follow up with your contacts to gather additional information.<\/p>\n

Virtual secretaries are a whole lot like traditional receptionists. They just happen to be sitting at their own desk instead of one in your office. They perform many of the same job functions, except go on coffee runs. There are delivery apps for that now.<\/p>\n

How Do Virtual Receptionists Work?<\/h2>\n

Speaking of apps, any great virtual receptionist service comes with a handy app. After all, what good is a virtual secretary without a convenient way to connect with them? The virtual receptionist app<\/a> allows you to manage your remote receptionist and customise the service to your unique needs. With the simple tap of a button, you can let your virtual receptionist know that you are available to take calls or that you are busy.<\/p>\n

With the app, you are able to set your status in an instant or schedule it in advance. Headed into a client meeting? Pop open the POSH app, switch your status, and we will take it from there. Flying across the country next week? Schedule your status and we will take over while you take flight. Any situation, anytime, 24\/7\/365\u2014it is that easy.<\/p>\n

You will receive a notification whenever we take a message for you; complete with relevant call details, contact info, voicemail transcriptions, and more, all within reach through the app. Prefer messages to be emailed or texted? Your virtual secretary can send messages via text and email, no problem.<\/p>\n

To make things even easier, our team of live receptionists can integrate with your existing tools and systems. Our goals as remote receptionists are to a) make your life easier and b) help your business succeed. Seamless integration options<\/a> are how we accomplish both of those things.<\/p>\n

Why Do Businesses Use Virtual Receptionists?<\/h2>\n

Try as you might, you can\u2019t be in two places at once. Even if you did have that ability, could you really trust your other half? Businesses and professionals across the country are taking advantage of virtual secretary services to delegate call-handling responsibility so they can focus on the most important tasks at hand without ever missing an opportunity.<\/p>\n

Why? They understand that providing great service is impossible when left to automated greetings, bots, and a full voicemail inbox. The importance of speaking with an actual human being goes a long way in business. Remote secretary services like POSH connect your clients and coworkers to a real person for real-time results.<\/p>\n

When your workload gets to be a bit too much to handle\u2014when you\u2019ve got too many meetings to attend, a bunch of job sites to visit, or even if you just need an evening without the interruption of a business call, the live virtual receptionists at POSH are here for you.<\/p>\n

Which Industries Use Virtual Receptionist Services?<\/h2>\n

\u201cSurely this service isn\u2019t cut out for every type of business.\u201d We have heard that one before. But we have also heard this from people across dozens of different industries \u2013 \u201cPOSH is exactly what I needed!\u201d<\/p>\n

You may be surprised to learn that POSH live receptionist services are a good fit for many different kinds of small and medium-sized businesses. Many of our clients work in one of these industries \u2014 legal, skilled trades (HVAC<\/a>, plumbing, electrical, construction, etc.), financial, healthcare, real estate<\/a>, IT support, and marketing. However, it has been exciting to see just how useful our virtual receptionist service is for a vast array of different types of companies. That group now extends far beyond what we imagined when we first launched POSH.<\/p>\n

Our team of virtual receptionists can help boost your organization to the next level, too. We are just as invested in your business as you are, which is why we go to such great lengths to deliver top-shelf service.<\/p>\n

What Should You Expect From Your POSH Live Virtual Receptionist Service?<\/h2>\n

When you partner with POSH, you\u2019re getting more than simply someone who can take your calls. Yes, we do that too, but here is what you can expect from our remote receptionist service:<\/p>\n