Mishandling Leads Will Result in Lost Sales By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Over a decade ago, in my article “I Want To Buy Some Shoes,” I used my experience buying a pair of sneakers to talk about the TAS industry. Now, I’ll do it again. With my wife serving as my accomplice, she guided me […]
Category: Telephone Answering Service
Telephone answering service articles by Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD
Though serving clients is the goal, what we call ourselves does matter By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Asking if you’re an answering service or a call center isn’t a matter of semantics, it’s a matter of perception. And since perceptions drive behaviors, this is an important discussion to have. First, let’s cover some definitions to […]
Effective leaders take time to get input from their employees By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD One of my goals when I ran an answering service was to provide the best possible headsets for my staff. After all, they spend all day on the phone, so voice quality, ease-of-use, and comfort are critical. To pursue this, […]
Having Multiple Business Identities for Your TAS May Be Strategic or Happenstance By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Not that I expect many readers to notice, but did you see I made a small tweak to my byline? Instead of Peter L DeHaan, it has become Peter Lyle DeHaan. There’s a reason for this. Let me […]
If you plan for nothing, that’s likely what you’ll achieve. By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD I’m a big advocate of planning. I have a plan for each day and a plan for the week. I have a plan for the month and for each quarter. I also have a plan for the year. It’s not […]
Speed Can Be a Strength or a Weakness By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD How long does it take you to put a new client on service? How long should it take? I’m sure you can answer the first question quickly. And I imagine there might be a bit of angst in considering your response to […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD We will celebrate Thanksgiving Day next week in the United States. And our friends to the north celebrated it last month. Aside from having a day off from work—not that anyone in the answering service industry ever gets a day off, especially holidays—Thanksgiving is a time for us to think […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD As the telephone answering service industry continues to consolidate amid a sellers’ market, it leaves many wondering what the future looks like as they contemplate their long-term strategy. There are three general scenarios that apply to most situations: buy, sell, or stay. Buy Some large players, both from outside the […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD If you own a telephone answering service, you spend a lot of time thinking about the future. And if you’re not the owner, you should also consider what’s ahead. More on that later. Future considerations for owners may include growth, acquisition, or new technology. However, when you think about the […]
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Don’t Be in a Hurry
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Last week I couldn’t log in to one of my financial services accounts. I had three options: online help, email, or phone. I opted to call. That’s what you do when you’re in this industry. I reached their automated attendant and listened to the prompts. After a couple of button […]