Answer America

AnswerAmerica is a prepaid telephone answering service staffed by live agents based in the United States. Customers sign up online and can start taking calls within minutes, without speaking to a sales representative. It is aimed at small and medium-sized businesses that want calls covered without a long contract.

What AnswerAmerica offers

• Live call answering — agents answer as the customer instructs, at any hour, including after hours and as overflow.
• Self-service setup — customers control their greeting, the hours calls are answered and what information is captured.
• Message delivery — messages are sent straight to the customer, with full transcripts of each call.
• Number retention — businesses can keep their existing phone number.
• Single dashboard — call logs, messages and billing are managed in one place.

Who it works with

Small and medium-sized businesses. The site says it answers more than fifty million calls annually for them.

Key facts

• Availability: 24 hours a day, every day
• Agents: US-based, not outsourced
• Billing model: prepaid, with no contract
• Extras: a referral scheme that earns call credits