24/7 VIRTUAL RECEPTIONISTS

Answering service for entertainment companies

Let Smith.ai's answering service for entertainment companies help you run the show. We'll answer calls & chats, 24/7, screen leads, book appointments & more.

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Incoming calls are unpredictable

Calls come in, but you're not always available to answer them. We can answer calls, screen leads, book appointments, and send you instant notifications.

Focus on creative content while we handle the calls

Your team only has so much time. And you can't delegate your expertise. Hand off "the rest" to our receptionists. We can screen calls, book appointments, and take payments.

We provide 360-degree coverage to manage both your inbound and outbound customer engagement.

Powerful call intelligence gives your business the lead

Make better business decisions with real-time call data, visualized in every Smith.ai client dashboard. Every call summary is enriched with metadata including actions completed, caller disposition, priority, relevance, call recording and transcription, and more. See the big picture with historical tables and charts to predict business growth, costs, and ROI with superior accuracy.

Outreach calls and campaigns speed-up sales and support

Smith.ai receptionists make calls on your behalf, improving your speed-to-lead and unburdening staff who need to reach out to clients. We'll call-back online leads who complete web forms, contact donors for donation renewals, chase down payments on unpaid invoices, and more. We'll even send follow-up emails and texts after every call to ensure a connection is made. Learn more.

82%

of consumers expect an immediate response to a sales inquiry

50%

of lead generation budgets are wasted on leads who are never contacted

79%

of marketing leads never convert into sales

67%

of customers who receive excellent service spend up to 14% more

Screen leads faster with live chat & texts

New leads come to your website with questions. With Smith.ai 24/7 Live Chat, we respond in seconds to turn site visitors into talent, clients & sponsors. Plus, we answer texts, too.

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Outreach Campaigns

Where we reach, engage & qualify leads to build your book of business.

More about Outreach Campaigns

Web Chat

The best channel for sales, service & support by utilizing bots, humans, or both.

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Smith.ai is trusted by 3,000+ businesses

5.0 stars

4.9 stars

5.0 stars

4.7 stars

“I would not change a thing. Smith.ai always provides great service to our show.”

Yolanda Nollie

The Radio & TV Entertainment AM/FM Podcast Show

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TALK TO OUR TEAM of experts

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Improve customer experiences with 24/7 engagement. We offer features and pricing for organizations of all sizes.

North America-based agents
Best-in-class AI technology
Live-staffed website chat
Bilingual services
Sales development & outreach
Rich call intelligence

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END-TO-END INTEGRATIONS

We play well with your software

Calls, chats & appointments are automatically logged in your systems. Real-time syncing with over 7,000 integrations.

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end-to-end integrations

We play well with your legal software

All activities — from calls and chats to appointments and payments — logged in your firm's preferred software.

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Frequently asked questions

The best media and entertainment answering services do much more than pick up phone calls and take messages for entertainers. At Smith.ai, we provide virtual receptionists capable of a wide range of services from calling handling, to scheduling, to lead intake, to website chat, and more. Whether you need a virtual receptionist for full-time call handling, overflow support only, after-hours, or triage, here are the answers to the most common questions we receive from creative, entertainment, and media managers.

Entertainment and media managers are usually preoccupied working on one creative project after another and can’t be expected to answer every phone call that comes in, but offering quality customer assistance through a reliable media and entertainment answering service has been shown to improve businesses in a multitude of ways. Here are a couple of the benefits entertainment and media teams experience with us:

Expand availability

With an answering service that’s available every hour of the day, every day of the week, your clients will always have a real person to talk to, whether your office is busy, closed, or on vacation. Your clients’ questions always receive a thoughtful response.

Increase leads captured

Missed calls mean missed opportunities. Don’t miss out on leads just because you’re not always able to answer the phone. Answering services provide evening, weekend, and after-hours availability so your company will never miss another call.

Boost work productivity

Through outsourcing call handling to an answering service, you’ll be able to spend time where you need it most and focus on more important work to build your media and entertainment business.

Enhance client satisfaction and business reputation

At Smith.ai, we know great customer service and how to deliver it for a range of business types and industries. Our virtual receptionists are professionals in customer service and hospitality, so let us put best practices to work for you and deliver an exceptional and professional response that represents your business well every time.

Save money and time

No need to allocate restricted time and money towards hiring an in-house receptionist when you can get all of the services your staff needs and then some with an answering service for over half the price. On average, businesses who use Smith.ai save upwards of $30,000/year.

Stay up-to-date with leads and clients

Answering services like Smith.ai can provide your media and entertainment business with detailed call summaries after each call and even provide your clients with chat and text messaging so you can stay in contact with your most valued clients.

A media and entertainment answering service can provide your business with much needed relief, whether your creative team is on a budget, overwhelmed by overflow calls, or simply looking to enrich your company’s customer service. With Smith.ai’s answering service, your media and entertainment company can receive even more benefits to encourage your company accomplish its goals, whatever they may be.

Smith.ai’s answering service can offer entertainment and media businesses…

24/7 availability

After-hours & overflow answering

Bilingual answering

Outbound call-backs

Spam blocking

Appointment scheduling

Sales development

Payment collection

CRM Integration

Lead development

And much more…‍

With seemingly limitless features, Smith.ai’s answering service is guaranteed to grow your company’s productivity, revenue, and outreach. Smith.ai has provided quality service to media and entertainment businesses for years and our clients trust Smith.ai to offer their team with high-quality, reliable support. Read our 5-star reviews to learn why business owners prefer Smith.ai.

The price of a receptionist is one of the most consequential factors to consider when deciding on whether to employ an answering service or a traditional, in-house receptionist. Let’s look at the average price for an in-house receptionist.

The average salary nation-wide for an in-house receptionist is about $37,000 and they often come with surprisingly hefty, added fees, such as:

Medical, dental, and vision insurance, costing about $11,000/year
Life and disability insurance, costing about $2,000/year
401K’s, retirement and pension plans, costing about $2,000/year
Paid sick leave, holidays, and vacations, costing about $5,500/year
Commuting reimbursement, costing about $5,000/year
Child care subsidy and parental leave, costing about $3,000/year
Health and wellness programs, costing about $1,000/year
Bonus pay, costing about $2,000/year
Company retreats, team bonding events, and employee outings, costing about $4,000/year
Free lunch, snacks, and drinks, costing about $3,500/year

Total Cost, Including Salary: $77,000/year

If your business is located in a highly populated area, that price may be even higher. In-house receptionists can add to that cost when they inevitably come in late, call in sick, request time off, take personal leaves of absence, go on vacation, and so on. Contrarily, Smith.ai’s virtual receptionists can accomplish the same tasks as an in-house receptionist and then some, barring coffee runs and supply restocks, of course, and are much less expensive, as your company doesn’t have to pay for any time off, benefits, or salaries.

Smith.ai’s answering service costs as little as $292.50/month, with no hidden fees. Ever. By hiring an answering service instead of an in-house receptionist, your business could save over $33,000/year on salary alone, and possibly up to $40,000/year in benefits beyond salary payments. Not only will your business save money, but your business will also be able to optimize productivity and revenue like never before. In direct contrast to in-house receptionists, virtual receptionists can answer phone calls outside of regular business hours, which is far more significant than you might recognize, as 27% of leads call after hours. Smith.ai’s agents can reply to live chats and texts. SMS answering can be overlooked, but over 46% of customers prefer communicating with businesses through text.

Virtual receptionists can even provide sales assistance by making outbound calls to convert more leads, which has been proven to be helpful. It’s incredibly important for businesses to respond promptly, as over 67% of clients base their decision to hire a business on the initial responsiveness to their call or email. Long waiting periods encourage leads to take their business elsewhere and you may not have the chance to explain why you’re the right media and entertainment business to hire. With Smith.ai’s media and entertainment answering service, your company can receive all the benefits of an in-house worker without the unnecessary cost. Read our article to learn more about the differences between an in-house vs. a virtual receptionist.

Being in charge of a media and entertainment business can be hectic, from managing projects and tasks to overseeing company development and growth. Businesses like these constantly face issues that impact their ability to succeed. The most common scenarios that media and entertainments businesses use virtual receptionist services for are:

I can’t afford to hire staff, but still need “front desk” support

“Front desk” support is an invaluable way for media and entertainment businesses to enjoy regular administrative assistance that can help operations run a lot more smoothly. When media businesses have a limited budget, however, they may not be able to afford pricey in-house receptionists, especially when they already have to pay for media supplies, entertainers, marketing, and advertising.

I need time to focus without constant interruptions from calls

Phone calls come in whether your media and entertainment business is available to answer them or not. When entertainment teams have to answer phone calls in addition to their regular duties, they may struggle to stay focused and accomplish important tasks. It takes on average about 23 minutes to get back to a task after being interrupted by a phone call.

My business is growing and my team can’t handle it all

A growing business can be both a blessing and a curse, since it can be difficult to keep up once your company reaches a certain size. With calls that need to be answered, appointments that need to be scheduled, and invoices that need to be sent, it’s easy for entertainment teams to crumble under the pressure.

I can’t offer around-the-clock availability to answer calls

When the work day ends, entertainers and media managers want to go home and enjoy their free time away from clients, but calls don’t stop coming in and leads can often be missed, as over 27% of leads call outside of normal business hours. Media and entertainment businesses may not be able to provide after-hours availability, but may still want to offer accessible customer service.

If your media and entertainment business is experiencing one or any of these scenarios, an answering service can help by allowing you to outsource these tasks directly to a professional agent. An answering service will take on some of the more labor-intensive responsibilities, tackling the tedious issues your staff faces. Smith.ai’s virtual receptionists can accomplish the same, whether your media company needs assistance handling phone calls, blocking spam, or qualifying leads. By eliminating the need to allocate time to screening calls and answering clients’ questions, your business can get back to focusing on more important work without neglecting your client relationships.

Media and entertainment businesses, like any business, often find themselves in compromising situations that require outsourced assistance to resolve. Some of the most common problems are:

I can’t keep up with incoming calls and messages from clients

With a limited staff and an endless list of assignments, media and entertainment businesses frequently struggle to answer phones and respond to messages from clients in addition to their regular duties. Running a business and providing quality customer service at the same time can prove to be difficult and lead to poor performance in both.

I’m spending my entire day on administrative tasks and can’t get productive, real work done

With the price of in-house receptionists being as expensive as it is, businesses are often left to delegate daily tasks themselves. Despite spending a large portion of their day performing administrative tasks, media team members often have trouble balancing their important projects with their regular office duties.

I’m missing calls from new business leads and it's costing me money

Answering each call can feel unfeasible for media and entertainment businesses when they have higher priority assignments to address. Businesses can easily fall behind on responding to new inquiries so potential leads can be frequently missed. Leads don't wait for call-backs. They call the next business in the search results. If businesses fail to pick up, they not only lose a lead, they lose ROI, money on marketing campaigns and ad spend, as well as conversion rates from ads.

I can’t respond fast enough to leads to beat my competition to new clients

With the crowded marketplace for media and entertainment businesses being what it is, it can be a major obstacle for businesses to distinguish themselves and stand out amongst other similar businesses. Providing quality customer service through quick and thoughtful responses can place businesses above their competitors, but many businesses often lack the time to do so.

I’m struggling to find and keep new clients

One of the most crucial, yet challenging, aspects of growing a successful business is obtaining and keeping new clients. With so much time and effort being spent towards existing clients, media and entertainment businesses may not have the chance to search for and convert new clients. Entertainers who spread their workload too thin may not be able to offer quality customer service. Slow response times may frustrate customers and hurt client loyalty and retention, as well.

I can’t seem to keep track of my clients’ data

Preserving detailed phone records and call summaries can be trouble for media and entertainment businesses who disperse data across various software platforms. Knowing how, when, and why clients call is significant for any business hoping to successfully navigate client relationships, but unfortunately, is not always easy to accomplish.

If your media and entertainment company is facing any of these challenges, a virtual receptionist service may be useful. One of the many great things about Smith.ai is that our services fit your business needs, not the other way around. Our virtual receptionists can allocate time where you need it most and alleviate the specific issues your business face, whether you need extra support in qualifying and intaking new clients or sending invoices and collecting payments. Sign up risk-free with our 14-day money-back guarantee and see how Smith.ai’s virtual receptionists can alleviate the issues your media and entertainment business faces.

Determining which services are important to your media and entertainment business is a good place to start. To figure out which services would be best for your business, ask yourself what problems or opportunities you face that a virtual receptionist service can address:

Does your media and entertainment business need a little extra help obtaining new clients?
Does your media and entertainment business struggle to answer website and text messages?
Does your media and entertainment business have trouble blocking spam calls?

Whatever it may be, Smith.ai’s virtual receptionists can adjust their service to better suit your business needs.

After that, think about what services would best fit your company’s activity level:

Does your business receive hundreds of calls a day or just a few?
Do you receive more online messages than calls?
Would your business benefit from 24/7 phone answering or would you prefer a particular time frame, such as 9-to-5, for answering calls?

Whether you get twenty calls a month or 2,000, Smith.ai can customize your virtual receptionist service to fit your business activity so you only pay for what you need.

All you have to do next is sign up. Getting started with Smith.ai’s virtual receptionist service is quick and easy. No annual contracts, no setup fees, and no need to supply scripts.

Follow three simple steps:

Customize your instructions – Just answer a few, quick questions about your firm and the preferences you have and we’ll get you started. We’ll use your answers to customize the way our virtual receptionists answer your calls and your clients’ questions.
Send your calls to us – We work with every phone system and can set up customized rules for when we answer your calls. Or we can answer every call, 24/7!
Try risk-free with our 14-day money-back guarantee – Fully experience our call answering, scheduling, payments, and other phone services completely risk free for 14 days. If we're not the right fit for you, get your money back up to $1000 within the first 14 days.

Whether your business is looking for a full-time virtual receptionist or an overflow or occasional phone answering service, Smith.ai can offer customized assistance to your team with quality customer service, lead screening, and sales development. When you sign up with Smith.ai, you won’t just be gaining a virtual receptionist service, you’ll be gaining a professional, reliable, and friendly team who are guaranteed to transform your business by capturing leads and delighting current clients.

‍Learn how to get started with Smith.ai’s virtual receptionist service.

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Get Smith.ai today.

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24/7 VIRTUAL RECEPTIONISTS

Answering service for entertainment companies

Incoming calls are unpredictable

Focus on creative content while we handle the calls

Powerful call intelligence gives your business the lead

Outreach calls and campaigns speed-up sales and support

Screen leads faster with live chat & texts

Get the most out of Smith.ai

Outreach Campaigns

Web Chat

Smith.ai is trusted by 3,000+ businesses

Yolanda Nollie

TALK TO OUR TEAM of experts

Book a consultation

END-TO-END INTEGRATIONS

We play well with your software

end-to-end integrations

We play well with your legal software

Frequently asked questions

What are the benefits of a media and entertainment answering service?

How much money will I save by hiring an answering service for my media and entertainment business compared to an in-house receptionist?

What common scenarios do media and entertainment businesses use virtual receptionist services for?

What are the common problems that indicate my media and entertainment company needs a virtual receptionist service?

What do I need to prepare to get started with a media and entertainment virtual receptionist service?

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