How to Hire a Receptionist

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Indeed’s Employer Resource Library helps businesses grow and manage their workforce. With over 15,000 articles in 6 languages, we offer tactical advice, how-tos and best practices to help businesses hire and retain great employees.

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Does your growing business need a receptionist? 

Understanding the steps behind hiring a receptionist, including data about candidates looking for receptionist jobs, salaries, and key terms to include in your job description, can help you stand out from the competition to reach, attract and hire quality candidates.

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Our mission

Indeed’s Employer Resource Library helps businesses grow and manage their workforce. With over 15,000 articles in 6 languages, we offer tactical advice, how-tos and best practices to help businesses hire and retain great employees.

Read our editorial guidelines

Receptionist: What is the cost of hiring?

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Why hire a receptionist?

A dedicated receptionist works at the front desk of an organisation, answering the phone, handling queries, and greeting customers. They also perform administrative tasks and provide general information to customers and clients.

Contributions of a great receptionist:

  • Receive visitors at the front desk and handle their queries
  • Answer, screen, and forward incoming phone calls
  • Sort daily emails

Deciding between a full-time vs freelance receptionist

Depending upon your business’s needs, you can choose between hiring a full-time or a freelance receptionist.

A full-time receptionist is a salaried employee who will work for your company on a regular basis. They are valuable for businesses that need constant receptionist services, like hotels, law firms, and clinics, as the front desk is always staffed, and the employer has more control over a full-time receptionist’s responsibilities.

However, if you have a business that requires receptionist services for a limited number of hours, then hiring a freelance receptionist can be a more flexible option. You will save money as you only have to pay the freelance receptionist for their work hours, and you do not have to provide temporary employees with benefits like insurance or paid leaves.

What are the different types of receptionists?

While most front desk roles have similar tasks, receptionists can have different job designations depending on their responsibilities.

  • Receptionist: Receptionists work at the front desk for businesses like clinics, schools, and law firms, being responsible for answering phone calls, arranging meetings with visitors, and handling administrative paperwork.
  • Hotel front desk associate: They are responsible for greeting incoming guests, assigning rooms, responding to guest queries, and checking guests out seamlessly.
  • Office coordinator: Office coordinators manage office communications, order office supplies, perform bookkeeping tasks, and prepare payroll information.
  • Administrative assistant: They have a variety of responsibilities like scheduling appointments, making travel arrangements for their employer, and handling clerical tasks to support other staff members.

Where to find a receptionist?

To find the right receptionist for your business, try different recruiting strategies like:

  • Post flyers: You can post flyers near your office premises to inform people about the job opening and attract potential candidates you can interview for the receptionist role.
  • Communicate with your staff regarding the opening: You can inform your employees about the job opening as they understand your workplace’s values and needs. They might have someone in mind who can prove suitable as a receptionist for your organisation.
  • Use a staffing agency: A staffing agency can help match you with qualified receptionist candidates that cater to your organisation’s needs.
  • Promote or hire from within: You can hire one of your existing employees as a receptionist. They can perform the role effectively as they are already familiar with the workplace dynamics and the organisation’s needs.

Post your job online: Try posting your receptionist job on Indeed to find and attract quality receptionist candidates.

Skills to look for in a great receptionist

A great receptionist candidate will have the following skills, attributes, and work experience that reflects:

  • Written and verbal communication skills
  • Multitasking capabilities
  • Professional etiquette
  • Problem-solving skills
  • Experience working with office suite software

Writing a receptionist job description

A thoughtful job description is critical to finding qualified receptionist candidates. A receptionist job description includes a compelling summary of the role, a detailed list of duties and responsibilities, and the preferred skills for the position.

When writing your job description for a receptionist, consider including some or all of the following keywords to strengthen the visibility of your job posting. According to Indeed data, these are the most popular search terms leading to clicks on receptionist jobs:

  • Receptionist
  • Office assistant
  • Female receptionist
  • Fresher
  • Female
  • Front desk receptionist
  • Front office executive
  • Freshers job vacancy
  • Hospital
  • Only female

Interviewing receptionist candidates

Strong candidates for receptionist positions will be confident answering questions regarding:

  • Providing satisfactory customer service
  • Creating positive relationships with customers and clients
  • Ability to perform administrative tasks
  • Proficiency with the software commonly used by receptionists to manage appointments
  • Previous work experience as a receptionist

Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of receptionist interview questions for examples (with sample answers).

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FAQs about how to hire a receptionist

Indeed’s Employer Resource Library helps businesses grow and manage their workforce. With over 15,000 articles in 6 languages, we offer tactical advice, how-tos and best practices to help businesses hire and retain great employees.