Alert Communications is a virtual receptionist provider exclusively for the legal field. They have major capacity, offer bi-lingual (Spanish only) services at no extra cost, and have extensive customizability. With their services, a law firm can scale up and down as the case-load and marketing campaigns require. This could help smaller firms go after the larger, more attractive, cases without wondering if they can handle the communications influx. Or, it can simply allow a larger firm to outsource its call center to skilled receptionists, thereby decreasing it’s office footprint.
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Who Alert Communications is For
Any law office running ad or marketing campaigns that encourage potential clients to contact their office could benefit from Alert Communications. For the most part, if you’re letting potential client calls go to voicemail, you would likely get positive results from Alert Communications. However, personal injury and class action attorneys would likely see the most benefit, as there is a higher likelihood that potential clients will try to contact them during off-hours.
Alert Communications isn’t your typical virtual receptionist, though. They have a major call center in California that is heavily staffed. As such, they can handle massive swings in the amount of calls they field for clients. What’s more, they can make outgoing calls as simple follow-ups to outreach, or as a systematic campaign for mass tort litigation.
On the other hand, attorneys looking for a comprehensive intake solution may not find all they need in Alert. Although they offer pretty broad interaction with digital leads, they do not offer live web-chat, or chat-bots. Also, offices looking for an inexpensive or entry-level solution may find it a bit pricey.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Warm Transfer | Complex setup |
| High Volume | No App |
| Multi-lingual | No Chat Tool |
Features
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Website
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alertcommunications.com |
|---|---|
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Services Offered
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Starting Price
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$250 |
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Free Trial
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✗ |
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Software Integrations
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|
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Live Receptionist
|
✓ |
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Receptionist Hours
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24/7/365 |
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Appointment Scheduling
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✓ |
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Client Intake
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✓ |
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Outbound Calls
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✓ |
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Free Local or Toll-Free Phone Number
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✓ |
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Additional Languages
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|
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Live Chat
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✗ |
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Live Chat Hours
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— |
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Chat Tool
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✗ |
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Chatbot
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✗ |
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Call Routing
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✓ |
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Voicemail Transcription
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✓ |
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Call Recording
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✓ |
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Call Analytics
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✓ |
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Text Messaging
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✗ |
Alert Communications FAQs
Although packages can start as low as $250 per month, most services that Alert Communications provides are customized and should be scoped out individually. For the most part, however, services are charged by the minute. But, as they are able to handle a multitude of receptionist tasks, it is difficult to create broad, siloed packages.
Alert offers large-scale Virtual Receptionist services. They handle inbound phone calls, and digital leads, as well as outbound follow-up calls when necessary.
No, Alert handles your law firm phone calls by forwarding your phone number to their lines. This allows you to easily turn the service on and off, and to scale up or down quickly.
Yes, Alert’s receptionists will use your office’s CRM when handling your matters. So there is no need for specific integrations. However, if there are any communication issues that need to be ironed out, Alert has a bevy of programmers on staff.
Yes, like most law firm receptionist services, Alert Communications offers spanish-language answering services.
No, Alert does not have an app. Their ideal operation is more like a call center. As such, they take a more hands-on approach to process set-up and alteration.
Yes, Alert Communications only serves the legal community.
Alert Communications' services are available 24/7/365.
No, Alert Communications is strictly an online virtual receptionist provider. They do not offer email inbox cleanup or other assistant services.
Some solos who are looking to take on large-scale mass tort actions would find Alert Communications helpful, however, their services are likely more helpful to firms who have the infrastructure set-up to handle enhanced communication.
Additional Details about Alert Communications
How it Works
Virtual receptionist services through Alert Communications will work with any phone service provider you choose. There is no porting of numbers, and the company does not need to interact with your phone provider at all. Essentially, you forward your calls to an Alert Communications number set-up for you. Then, their receptionists begin to field your calls. To toggle service on and off, you simply have to turn call-forwarding on and off.
By working with your phone service provider, you can also set-up Alert Communications as an overflow phone number (much like ringing an alternate line in your office). With this feature, as your marketing efforts increase your need for intake services, you can confidently increase your capacity.
What Alert Communications can do
Inbound Calls
The easiest task you can hand-off to them is inbound phone calls to your office. Once this is set-up through call-forwarding, as above, these extensively trained virtual receptionists will handle your phone call as you have directed. They can take messages, forward calls as directed, handle intake tasks (like pre-screening callers), classify phone calls, and input information into your Client Relationship Manager (CRM) for future tasks.
Many of the receptionists (46% as of this writing) can handle calls in both English, or Spanish. And they have all been trained to answer phone calls for law offices specifically. Which means that they offer empathy and understanding to callers who, quite frequently, are not having a good day.
Digital Leads
In addition to inbound phone calls, these virtual receptionists can also field digital leads that come in from various digital sources. Whether the interaction is via email, an intake form on your website, or something like a Google form, these virtual receptionists can classify and field interactions as above, or return inquiries with out-bound phone calls as below.
Out-bound Calls
As the intake services above would seem to require, Alert Communications’ receptionists can also make out-bound phone calls as directed. They can follow-up digital leads that come in, return calls from an alternate line, or assist in tasks such as contacting potential class members in a mass tort case.
Initial Set-up
When getting started with Alert Communications, you’ll have an on-boarding conference with a dedicated account manager and a programmer. Here, you determine how you want contacts handled in the first 24 hours, create any integrations that are necessary, and plan any outgoing calling campaigns.
Reporting & CRM Integration
Alert Communications does not have a client portal for attorneys to log into. It’s not necessary. Much like your own receptionists, they engage with the existing applications in your office, and fold themselves directly into your workflow. This obviates the need for any direct integrations. However, there is likely still some cause for custom communication between your office and theirs. As such, they have many programmers on staff who can make all the necessary connections with your software.
With this union, all of the reporting and tracking that your office needs to do can be done directly in your CRM system. However, there are obviously some attorneys who do not use a traditional CRM. In this case, Alert Communications will send a tracking report directly to the attorney’s office.
