F.A.Q.

Q: What does the acronym TAS stand for?

A: Telephone Answering Service

 

Q: How much does it cost to get started, per month, per customer?

A: For all pricing information please have a look at our Instant Quote Engine

 

Q: Once I get setup, market my services and start acquiring customers, who do those customers belong to, Virtual TAS or me?

A: Your customers belong completely to you and your company. Your customers never need to know who we are.

 

Q: If I ever decide I want to purchase my own answering service equipment and do this the old fashioned way, can I take my customers with me and cancel my account?

A: If you ever decide to purchase and install your own answering service equipment, phone lines etc, you are welcome to take your customer’s with you. After all, they are your customers, not ours. As for canceling your account, you may do so with a 30 day written notice. We do not require any long term contracts, we keep our customers by treating them right and providing the best services at the best possible price, not with a long term contract commitment.

 

Q: What types of features/options can I provide to my customers?

A: We provide you with the ability to do basic message taking, with delivery of messages by PUSH, sms, email or fax. Any device which has an email address can also be used as a delivery device. For example, most mobile phones have email addresses attached to them these days. Additionally we offer after hours general voicemail boxes for those services that do not want to offer 24/7 services to their customers.


Q:
 What other services can I resell through Virtual TAS?

A: Virtual TAS is one of many products provided by Firestream Cloud Solutions. Virtual TAS customers can purchase for consumption or for resale any of Firestream’s products and services. Some of Firestream’s are hosted and on premise office phone systems, virtual fax numbers, website and email hosting, custom web programming, custom business software and more. For up to date information on Firestream’s services and products, please visit our website at www.FireStreamCloud.com


Q:
Can I set my own prices for my services or do I have to follow a pricing schedule set by Virtual TAS?

A: All pricing to your customers is determined by you the independent TAS.

 

Q: Are there any specific speed recommendations or requirements for high speed internet connections where my operators will be located?

A: Most high speed Internet connections have an acceptable download speed but many of the low end discount plans come with very low upload limits of 128k. Although a upload limit of 128k will still work fine in most cases, it’s recommended that operator locations have at least a 368k upload speed. Of course the number of operators working on a single internet connection can greatly affect the speeds needed to sustain good call quality on the operator telephone. Satellite Internet or other wireless internet connections such as cell phone company Wi-Fi hotspots or air cards will not work well with our services because they do not sustain the type of connection needed for Voice Over IP phone calls. If you would like to signup for our service but you or one of your operators only have a wireless type internet connection, we offer alternative ways to make this work. Please contact us for further details.

 

Q: Is there a set of specific requirements for the type of computer required for each operator?

A: Most modern computers purchased in the last 5 years or so should do just fine. ChromeBooks work great as well and they are very cost effective, in most cases under $200 from retailers such as Amazon and Walmart.

 

Q: Where do I purchase the telephones for my operators and how much do they cost?

A: All telephone handsets are provided by Virtual TAS. Cost for the handsets are including in the pricing for each operator you setup on our system. For pricing information, please see our Instant Quote page.

 

Q: Do I need to order phone lines from the local phone company at each of the operator locations?

A: All phone services are provided by Virtual TAS, this is one of the biggest benefits of using our services. Calls are routed over the Internet to/from special Internet enabled Voice Over IP Telephones which we provide.

 

Q: Do you offer outbound calling for operators?

A: Yes, each operator handset will have outbound calling capability.

 

Q: Is your system HIPAA compliant?

A: At this time we would not consider our system 100% HIPAA compliant. The biggest reason is because we are simply not sure if it is at this point. HIPAA, as with all government regulation are not exactly the easiest to understand or comply with. As we learn more about HIPAA regulation we are changing our systems in ways that will eventually make them HIPAA compliant. We do believe that most of our features and functions allow our answering service customers to offer HIPAA compliant services if used correctly with a few exceptions. The short answer to this question is No, our system is NOT HIPAA compliant and therefore should NOT be used to store or transmit sensitive patient information. At some point in the future we hope to be able to offer a 100% HIPAA compliant solution for our services. If your organization is trained on HIPAA compliance and feels comfortable using our system for medical purposes we will not restrict you from doing so but we will not sign a BA agreement which states that we are offering a HIPAA compliant solution. Feel free to ask any questions regarding HIPAA compliance within our system with your sales rep before signing up for our services.