A call handling centre or call centre is a centralised internal office used mainly for taking or transmitting a high number of calls by phone. It is usually located in an urban centre to take on the whole region's call load. An outbound call center is normally operated by an individual business to administer enquiry or outgoing product/service queries from clients or consumers. However, it is also possible for a call handling centre to cater to both inbound and outbound calls.

Call handling services often involve handling international calls with the help of toll-free numbers as well as voice mail. The handling of fax messages is also taken care of by dedicated fax machines and receptionists. The main purpose of this is to provide customers with a live assistance that could help them deal with pressing matters and other important calls. Some call handling companies offer virtual receptionists who can take calls even when the callers have no access to a fax machine or voice mail box.

Another aspect of call handling is the service provided by its operators. In most cases, it is the operator who transfers the customer calls to the appropriate departments, as required. An operator has a very basic duty; that of transferring the call from one extension to another. Usually, an operator can forward or redirect a call from a customer's phone number to a voicemail box or a voice mail box.

The basic function of the grasshopper system is to forward or redirect an incoming call to the appropriate extension. It is possible to limit the forwarding function to an inbound call or to a certain number of seconds after which it will be automatically redirected to voicemail or voice mail box. A grasshopper system is therefore of great value when an inbound call handling service handles large numbers of calls.

Another important aspect of call handling is the quality of the customer service provided by the operators. The importance of good customer service is well demonstrated by the volume of calls handled by call handling systems. One of the best indicators of how good a company is at handling customer calls is the ratio of calls handled by personnel to calls handled by the system. Call handling software programs are now routinely equipped with a ratio monitor that clearly shows the effectiveness of customer service.

Some advanced systems come with additional features such as advanced call distribution options. These options allow the operator to automatically divide up a high traffic call into separate groups. Callers in these groups are then directed to different extensions. Advanced simultaneous call handling systems also have the ability to identify busy signals automatically. They do this by redirecting the caller to a voicemail box or to a voice mail box, so that the callers do not have to wait for the operator to speak to them.

A third important feature of call handling is forwarding. This is particularly important when the callers do not have internet access and they have to reach someone in order to get their message. In such cases, the call handling system forwards the call to the relevant department to enable the caller to connect to the correct person. This helps save on customer loss and wasted effort. For example, if an important client decides to look for a particular fax number while trying to send out a business document, forwarding the call to the customer service department ensures that the fax reaches the right person.

All of the above mentioned aspects will be very helpful to businesses who want to ensure customer satisfaction and retention of clients. If you too are planning to implement an answering system, the next great question is what should you include in your package? There are several options available for your customizing your answering service. You can always select from among three basic features-boundary operator, call transferring, and interactive voice response.