The traditional telephone company switchboard is known as the model 557 or TAS-100. This board handles 100 incoming secretarial lines and 15 office trunk lines, with this board, you have the capabilities of receiving incoming calls and making outgoing calls at the same time. You also have a business answering line which can be used as your number for customers wanting to use your number as their business number and/or for special events such as a special number for survey replies or telephone orders such as advertised on television for one-time-only sales promotions.

Even though you have the capabilities of 100 incoming lines, you shouldn’t activate more than 5 or 10 more than your actual customer list. As you add to your customer list, it’s then a simple matter for the phone company to activate or “tie-in” according to your needs. Your rental lease payments to the phone company for equipment includes maintenance, so whenever you have a problem or something isn’t working properly to suit your needs, call and ask the phone company to send a repairmen.

Some of the extras you can get with your board includes a “secrecy” switch. This feature prevents an operator from listening in if a customer has already picked up his phone and answered the call, but it does not prevent the customer from picking up his phone after the operator has answered. The customer could by request the operator to hang up and conduct whatever conversation he wants with the caller.

Another feature is the “position-splitting” key. This involves plugging in a second headset and simply turning the key to enable two operators to work the same board during an especially busy period.

When your customers want to call to check with you for any messages, you can have them call their own number if they’re calling from a different number, or pre-designated trunk line. Most answering service owners equipment works both ways until they decide upon the system that works best for them. Whichever method is finally chosen should be decided upon with the efficiency of the operators in mind.

In addition to your switchboard, you should install a time clock and message racks. These are ideally located above or on top of your switchboard. The operator the takes the call, jots down the message, punches the time clock and quickly slips it into the customer’s message box. When the customer calls in for his messages the operator retrieves the messages from his message box, reads them to him, again punches the time clock with each message slip, and drops them into a “dead message” box.

You should keep these message slips for totalling at billing time, so it’s a good idea to have each operator file them in your customer folders as they finish their shifts on the board. retention of these message slips for at least 30 days is not required, but it is a good policy to practice. You may find a customer will want to check on a message received or double-check his billing against your records.

Basically your message rack can be either pigeon hole compartments in a wooden box designed and built to fit your space, or a lazy Susan clips similar to what restaurants use for fast food orders. At any rate, you shouldn’t have any problem in finding what you need on the open market.

It isn’t necessary that you have specially designed or printed message slips, but you should have a plentiful supply available and within easy access to your operators. Simple 4 x 5 inch pads should be all you’ll need, and if you’ll check with your local quick print shops, you’ll find most of them willing to make a thousand or so pads of 50 to 100 pages each, from scrap paper,
for almost next to nothing. Another essential to plan on–buy in wholesale lots and keep handy for your operators–is pens. It may be exasperating until the business is on a sound profitability basis, but in a busy month, one operator can easily go thru 100 or more pens. Don’t fight the how’s and why’s just charge it up as a business expense and order more pens.

Related post with How to Start a Telephone Answering Service

How to Start a Telephone Answering Service (part 1)
How to Start a Telephone Answering Service: Switchboard
How to Start a Telephone Answering Service: Setting up Facilities
How to Start a Telephone Answering Service: The traditional Telephone Company Switchboard
How to Start a Telephone Answering Service: Maintaining Basic Customer Information
How to Start a Telephone Answering Service: Qualifications to Look for in an Operator