Legit Remote Receptionist Positions You Can Do From Home

As remote work grows in popularity, the demand for remote receptionists also continues to grow! If you are curious about remote receptionist positions, this blog post will answer all your questions!

We’ll cover all the details, including day-to-day responsibilities, annual salary expectations, and needed equipment. We’ve even included some job listings that will allow you to find your next gig as a remote receptionist.

What Is a Remote Position?

A remote position is a job that allows you to work from home or away from a centralized location. More companies offer remote work because it helps reduce overhead costs, improves attrition rates, and eliminates geographical boundaries. At the same time, employees opt for work-from-home roles for better work-life balance, while saving time and money on commuting.

Even before the pandemic, remote work was a rapidly growing category, with more people choosing to work from home. This trend has gained momentum in the age of COVID-induced lockdowns and is expected to continue even after the pandemic subsides.

Remote receptionist positions are one of the more popular work-from-home roles because typical responsibilities of a receptionist can be easily accomplished remotely, without the need for in-person interactions or meetings.

Some companies take calls 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, so often you can find hours that work for you, whether you’re looking for a flexible or consistent schedule.

What Kind of Responsibilities Does a Remote Receptionist Have?

The responsibilities of remote receptionists vary from company to company. However, the primary duties entail answering incoming phone calls, understanding the caller’s needs, directing those callers to the appropriate person or department, and keeping records of each call with accuracy.

In addition to answering a high volume of calls from customers and clients, some companies may ask their remote receptionists to handle administrative tasks, organize employee onboarding, provide clerical support for their managers, schedule meetings, and proofread written materials.

Remote receptionists may hold many different positions within the organization. Some companies may prefer you to work as a customer service representative, while others might allow you to be a remote administrative assistant or project manager if that best fits your skills and interests. Many companies will transition remote receptionists from one department to another upon request, so there’s plenty of opportunity for career advancement.

For example, if working in accounting is what you want, being open about your career goals will help your supervisor know how they can best help you move toward success.

What Are the Qualifications for a Remote Receptionist?

Remote receptionists play an essential role in the success of a business. They are a virtual front door, often providing the first interaction and impression for potential clients.

The must-have qualifications for most remote receptionist positions include the following:

• High school diploma.
• Prior customer service experience.
• Self-discipline to work independently in a remote environment.
• Ability to multi-task; must demonstrate a disposition for handling multiple priorities.
• Pleasant, respectful, and energetic demeanor when dealing with clients.
• Ability to deal with demanding customers – must show a high degree of emotional intelligence while navigating difficult conversations.
• Excellent verbal communication skills – it is no surprise that communication skills are essential for remote receptionists. You must provide exceptional caller experiences and answer calls efficiently, friendly, and helpfully.
• Proficient typing skills and strong attention to detail – you’ll likely be expected to take accurate notes.
• Tech-savvy – you should be comfortable with popular office and email software, like Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook. Companies frequently utilize proprietary technology and voice systems for their call handling, data entry, and other tasks, so you’ll want to be a fast learner on new platforms.
• Team player – you’ll likely be delivering messages, attending meetings, and voicing concerns so it’s important that you work well with others.

Some companies may require additional qualifications or want you to take an e-skill assessment, so it’s essential to research any position you’re interested in.

Additional Skills and Experience

Besides the must-have criteria, here are some additional skills and experience that will make your resume stand out:

• Previous remote work experience or call center experience in a high-volume environment is beneficial.
• Industry-specific knowledge or experience is a big bonus as it can reduce the training period an employer must provide.
• Customer support experience using real time chat tools is a plus.

What Is the Average Salary for a Remote Receptionist?

Remote receptionist salaries vary greatly depending on where you live, the size of the company, and your experience level.

According to ZipRecruiter, remote receptionists earn an average of $46,694 per year. This number will be lower for entry-level workers, typically $14 per hour, or $28,120 per year.

Remote receptionist salaries also tend to increase with time, so if you stick it out at one company and gain experience and seniority, your salary will increase accordingly.

Many companies also provide additional earning opportunities like performance-based bonuses, payments for referring qualified hires, and sales-based incentives if part of the job is to qualify sales leads over the phone.

It’s essential to know that some industries pay more than others. For example, remote receptionist positions in the legal and medical fields typically earn a higher wage than others due to the specialized nature of the work you’ll be doing.

What Are the Benefits of Working as a Remote Receptionist?

Some favorable aspects of the virtual receptionist role include:

• Job flexibility, with the potential to work for many different companies.
• Ability to work independently.
• Ability to work part-time or full-time, especially with third-party contract providers.
• Fewer geographical restrictions when applying for jobs.
• More time to pursue fitness, health, and financial goals.
• Savings due to reduced commuting, eating out, and buying work attire.

What Are the Challenges Faced by Remote Receptionists?

Working remotely has its perks, but it also comes with some challenges. Since there is no direct supervision, it can often be difficult to showcase your successes or challenges to your managers. Remote receptionists must be self-motivated and highly engaged in communicating regularly with management and escalating any challenges quickly.

When working from home, it’s easy to get distracted. It’s crucial to have a quiet environment and dedicated workspace during office hours.

Even if you’re working in a remote office space, it’s difficult to form a bond with your company or team members as you may never meet anyone in person. Therefore, it’s quite a challenge to build a personal rapport with coworkers.

Another challenge is if you experience technical issues. Remote receptionists must be online and available during the business hours they support. Any technical issues while working remotely can negatively affect the client experience, especially if the problem takes a long time to resolve.

Remote receptionist positions are inherently client-facing, and sometimes you may have to deal with difficult callers. It’s vital to deal with any situation professionally and courteously to support your business goals. Another issue remote receptionists often run into is conflicting requests and busy calendars. These situations require excellent communication skills and a high level of attention to detail.

What Equipment Is Required for a Remote Receptionist Role?

Remote receptionist positions usually require equipment like:

• Computer
• Home phone system
• Headset
• Keyboard and mouse
• Fast and reliable internet – many companies ask that you use hardwired internet through an ethernet cable and may have minimum Mbps download and Mbps upload speed requirements.
• Software – Microsoft Office, chat tools, scheduling tools

What Equipment Do Employers Provide?

Some remote receptionists are given a telephone with unlimited local and long-distance calling, a headset, and training on work-specific procedures, scripts, and call-handling instructions. Additionally, some companies provide specific hardware and software for completing tasks, along with a subsidy for your home internet connection.

What Equipment Do Employees Need To Provide?

Remote receptionists who work from home are usually required to have their own stable high-speed internet access, with a fast and reliable computer. They must also have space for a quiet, distraction-free work environment.

Many employers will require you to test your internet bandwidth to ensure it can support remote systems and applications. Most satellite or wireless internet services will not be sufficient.

Who Hires Remote Receptionists?

Many companies hire remote receptionists, from start-ups to large corporations. Small businesses such as lawyers, healthcare offices, and entrepreneurs frequently hire remote receptionists.

A growing list of companies provides third-party receptionist services to clients, where businesses outsource their receptionists’ hiring, training, and day-to-day duties to another business. These companies are professional service providers, often with centralized offices for remote receptionists to work for various clients.

Finding the Best Remote Receptionist Jobs You Can Do from Home

If your true calling is working as a remote receptionist, check out these hiring companies:

1. Gabbyville – Gabbyville provides personal receptionist services to their clients across a variety of industries, including finance, construction, entertainment, healthcare, etc.
2. Vicky Virtual – Remote receptionists at Vicky Virtual answer a variety of inbound calls, make outbound calls, provide call screening and call transfer as necessary, schedule appointments, and manage a client’s call overflow.
3. Smith.ai – Smith.ai is looking for team players to work as virtual receptionists and answer phone calls and web chats for their clients. They hire both US-based and offshore receptionists and virtual assistants. Whether you’re looking for full-time or part-time work, Smith.ai can accommodate your needs and provide you with the flexibility you desire.
4. Back Office Betties – Back Office Betties hires virtual receptionists in Arizona, Texas, Nevada, and Florida to provide attorneys with phone and web chat services.
5. Ruby Receptionists – Ruby virtual receptionists provide phone and web chat services to their clients. Ruby also lists many corporate positions that they’re looking to fill internally.
6. Reception HQ – Reception HQ hires virtual receptionists and virtual assistants in the United States to provide personalized service, call transfer, and appointment setting services to their clients in a variety of industries.
7. AnswerFirst – AnswerFirst hires for various customer service, virtual receptionist, and technical support roles, among many others.

Other Places to Find Remote Receptionist Jobs

There are several career sites where you can find jobs for remote receptionists. While these sites don’t cater to remote receptionists exclusively, they have some great job opportunities.

1. Robert Half – Is a staffing agency where you can search for a home job. Just type in the position and click the remote job only button.
2. FlexJobs – Is a job board that caters specifically to matching employers and candidates open to flexible work options. They currently have several full-time and part-time remote receptionist positions listed.
3. LinkedIn – Is a social media platform dedicated to your career. LinkedIn allows you to search for remote receptionist opportunities worldwide, and you can set up job alerts to have new listings sent to your inbox.
4. Upwork – Is an online marketplace for freelancers. Here you can find a wide variety of customer service, cold calling, and administrative roles that you can do from home.

What Are the Benefits of Hiring a Remote Receptionist?

Remote receptionists can provide many benefits for companies. Hiring remote receptionists is often more cost-effective than hiring in-office employees. Besides the operational and office space-related cost savings, remote workers are more productive and engaged with their work which helps maintain a high level of service for clients.

There are two ways companies seek to hire remote receptionists. Companies may do their own hiring or outsource to a third-party agency. Third-party providers usually have their own office space, training, and benefits for the remote workers they contract out, saving the company additional overhead costs.

Final Thoughts

There you have it! If you’re the type of person who wants to work from home and you have excellent communication skills, there’s a good chance that you’ll be successful as a remote receptionist. When you’re ready, check out the job sites listed above and start your career as a remote receptionist.