TELEPHONE SKILLS

The telephone is the lifeline of your business. Its the preferred choice of most customers for contacting your company. Imagine trying to do business without your telephone. Its your most powerful business tool. Most business receive more phone calls than any other form of contact. If thats the case, lets see if we can a positive impression every time your phone rings. Remember, there is a real live human being at the other end of the phone who has a problem, need or a question who your help. Thats why they called! ets ma!e certain that we handle of callers with special care.

WHATS THE NORM?

Thin! about when you call businesses as a customer. "hat do you normally hear when they answer# Most companies rapidly answer$ %&'( (ompany.) If you answer your phone that way it does nothing to help your company li!e in &merica there is a race to see what company can be the most mediocre. *owever, when your phone rings, you have an opportunity to create a Moment of Magic or a Moment of Misery+ its totally within your power to either one.

How quickly should you answer the phone?

The rule of thumb is to answer no later than the third ring. The first ring will allow you to mentally prepare to answer. ,mile+ then pic! up the phone and answer. If it rings beyond the three rings, the first thing out of your mouth should be %,orry for the delay-) then go into your standard greeting.

How do you answer your our phone?

*eres a greeting to consider$ %Than!s for choosing the .leasant (ompany this is /ennifer+ how may I assist you#) &nother variation is, %Than!s for choosing the .leasant (ompany, this is /ennifer+ what can I do to ma!e your life easier#) 0r, if you really want to impact the customer try this greeting, %Than! you for choosing the .leasant (ompany, this is /ennifer+ you have my undivided attention.) These greetings send a powerful message to your call1ers! 2irst, you are saying to the caller that they could have chosen another company but they have chosen you. ,o you are really than!ing the caller for having discriminating taste. Thats good! 3e4t, you are ta!ing ownership of the call by identifying who answered. This ma!es the caller understand that /ennifer is the current representative of the .leasant (ompany 3e4t, the question, %"hat can I do to ma!e your life easier#) that you are there to assist the caller, and that will set a very positive e4pectation for the call. &ll the ingredients are now in place to set the for a favorable telephone e4change. 5ou need to reali6e that the way you answer the telephone is a direct reflection of the .leasant (ompany 5ou are either helping build a good positive for your company or a negative one. The ma7ority of companies called present negative or neutral first impressions8they have no real energy or sincerity when the phone is answered. This positive first contact will help you stand out.

O! NE"ER #ET A SE$ON% $HAN$E TO MA&E A #OO% '(RST (M)RESS(ON

&s someone said, you cant unscramble an egg. This is your moment to shine and perform for your customers. 'e very clear about the way you pronounce the name of your company 9nunciate. "or! hard on this critical point. I cant tell you the number of times that Ive called a company and could not

understand the name of the company. I fully reali6e that you say your company over over during the day but your caller may be hearing it for the very first time.

#et and use the callers na*e

If appropriate, you the caller as!, %May I as! whos calling#) There is no sweeter music to our than our own names. 9verybody wants to special, important, and unique. "henever you the callers name, it cause him or her to and focus bac! on your conversation. ,o use the callers name generously sprin!led throughout the conversation. If you feel the callers attention is wandering, use his or her name and it will bring him or her bac!. 9very customer loves their own name and the special attention it carries.

S*ile
0ne way that you a Moment of Magic for your company is with a smile. 5ou can actually hear it through the phone. There is something contagious about a smile. It resonates with callers. They love it and will love you for smiling through the phone. The only way you can do this is to smile before you answer the phone.

&eep a *irror on your desk

2or people whose 7obs entail consistent phone wor!, its a good idea to a small mirror on the des! in front of you. &fter several minutes of dealing with demanding customers on the phone, its easy to forget to smile when answering the phone or interacting with callers. 5ou may not notice when it happens, but your callers will! .ut a mirror on your to remind you to maintain your winning smile.

ATT(T!%E
This is the ma7or component when answering the phone and interacting with your customers. *ow in the world are you ever going to a Moment of Magic with a negative attitude# 5our attitude should be friendly helpful, and enthusiastic. 5ou should have a sincere desire to help. Its ama6ing how most people will mirror your attitude, but you to be the initiator. Remember, your value is in direct proportion to your attitude. "ould you believe more people are fired as a result of a poor attitude as opposed to performance deficiency# .eople love to deal with positive, up1beat people who are enthusiastic to help. 0ne of my favorite people always says, %9very day is a holiday every meal is a banquet, and every paychec! is a fortune.) 5ou love an attitude li!e that!

Enthusias*
This is where you have a chance to shine. 3othing turns off a caller faster than a slow, monotone voice. "e all see! positive energy. 5ou owe it to your callers to answer the phone with positive energy. 5ou will be ama6ed how people will respond much more favorably to you. 9nthusiasm truly is a magic ingredient. If you need more energy stand up! ,pea! up! Increase your of spea!ing and vary your tone. 5oure creating an of your firm and it to be a pleasant, positive image. 9nthusiasm is contagious, so be the director of the positive of your firm. Its a way to your company from others that are average. Remember, average is not acceptable in todays mar!etplace.

Whos +istenin,
isten as if your 7ob depends on it, because it does. *eres some simple advice+ actively listen to another person for four minutes every day and it will totally change your life. Its tragic, but few people do it. Theres no higher tribute you can pay to other people than to give them your totally focused attention. Remember, youll never get in trouble by being a listener. The listener is gaining more !nowledge, while the tal!er learns nothing. "hen your customer calls, ma!e a conscious effort to focus on your listening s!ills. 5our customers will thin! youre the smartest person on the planet. :ood listeners have an advantage in every of their life.

A"O(% THESE M(STA&ES ON THE )HONE

;o not spea! too fast. It gives the impression that you dont care. ;ont rush the caller. The average business phone is answered much too hurriedly with words seemingly all running together. This the impression of impatience and the callers they are an interruption. If youve ever listened to someone who is really good on the phone, they are smiling, warm, and friendly8and you never rushed. & big violation of etiquette on the phone is food or gum in your mouth when you answer. The caller can hear that. The impression it is that you are unprofessional and careless. 3ever answer the phone when you are tal!ing with another person. 2inish the first conversation and then answer the phone, hopefully before the of the third ring. .eople before paperwor!! Receptionists are usually given multiple tas!s to do to ma!e certain they are productive for the company *owever, the emphasis is often placed on paperwor! ahead of the customer. It is a common business error. 3othing, absolutely nothing, is more important than the customer. If paperwor! in the way of the caller, you have misplaced your priorities. .ersonal calls. <sually emergency calls are acceptable, but other calls should never come before a customer. 'osses across &merica are thin!ing that wor! is interrupting the personal lives of their employees. If you have any questions about personal calls, as! about your companys policy. ,pea!erphones. <se this function of your phone as little as possible. It may be convenient for you; however, most callers consider this to be very impersonal. Its li!e trying to have an intimate conversation over a .& system.

(nco*in, calls while waitin, on a custo*er

"hen you are with a customer and the telephone rings, your first obligation is with your face1to1face customer. The customer in front of you has made considerable effort to get there. Theyve ta!en the time to get out of bed, shower, get dressed, and drive to your establishment. 3ow some guy in his bathrobe at home calls in and 7umps to the front of the line# "heres the 7ustice in that# The appropriate action is answer the call in your normal manner and state you are currently with a customer, and would they li!e to hold or prefer a call bac! from you. :ive them the choice. Then, finish with your face1to1face customer. Then help the caller. Remember to have pen and paper handy to write the callers contact information. Repeat the information bac! to the caller to sure you have accurate information.

$A++ERS )A THE -(++S

ets e4plore how important your customers really are. 5our caller=customer pays employee salaries, pays the company overhead and profits, and your company healthy. *ealthy companies provide 7obs and support families. 5our customer is the reason you have a 7ob! Resolve, from this day forward, that you will deliver astounding customer service. *appy, satisfied customers are your 7ob security

+i.e people i*press callers

I cant tell you how critical this is to your companys image. If at all possible, always have a live person answer your phone. ;uring lunch hour, many companies go to voice mail. This will customer satisfaction. .eople prefer tal!ing to a live person. >oice mail is so impersonal. <se it only as a last resort.

"oice *ail *a/e

If you want to find out how frustrating a phone tree ?or phone *ell@ can be, try calling the 2ederal :overnment or a health insurance company with a simple question. %.ress A for a wrong answer, B for added frustration, press C to hear another set of useless options.) "ho needs it# It doesnt up the process or answer any of your questions. &ll youve done is your customers blood pressure and heart rate, wasted their time, and given them another emotional horror story to tell their friends and colleagues. 5our customers are very much at ris! if you conduct your business this way, but its your choice. *ow do you when you spend CD minutes attempting to solve a CD second problem# ;ont get me started!

+ittle0known Secret
0ne way to preserve your voice over the course of a busy day on the phone is by drin!ing warm liquids. This helps rela4 and soothe your vocal chords and gives you better voice quality (old liquids, on the other hand, result in constricting your vocal chords and ta4ing your voice.

)uttin, people on hold

'eing put on hold is the single biggest complaint that all callers have. "hy# 'ecause callers feel li!e you are wasting their time. <nfortunately are times when its absolutely necessary There are only two reasons you should put a caller on hold8you are either waiting on a person or you are waiting on information for the caller. This may seem li!e a small point, but always the caller if he or is able to hold. 0therwise, their name and number ?repeat it bac! to them@, and call them bac!. Tell them the reason you need to place them on hold. %Mr. /ohnson is on the phone+ I dont !now how long he will be. &re you able to hold or would you li!e me to ta!e a message#) &ccording to a recent study the average caller will only hold for than two minutes before they hang up. (ardinal rule$ when you put people on hold, you should chec! bac! to verify that they are still o!ay with holding every CD seconds to a minute. 3othing is worse than putting a caller on hold and not chec!ing bac! for an e4tended period of time. This will turn an otherwise neutral caller into an angry caller.

(rate $allers
'elieve it or not, this is a fabulous opportunity for your company. Most companies believe irate callers are a reason to put on your bulletproof vest and get defensive. *owever, if a caller is motivated enough to call your company they are as!ing for help and a solution to a bad situation. The truth is, they are actually loo!ing for a reason to continue to do business with your company. If the caller is upset, the strategy is to let the caller vent. The longer they tal!, the emotional they will become. .eople who are angry want to tell you the whole story, so dont disappoint them. ,how them you are listening. &n caller can be equated to a balloon filled with air+ the longer they tal!, the more air out of the balloon, until their emotion is spent. "hen the irate caller is tal!ed out, as! this question, %"hat do we to do to ma!e you happy#) et them tell you, and if it is reasonable, get it done. If you can turn an callers Moment of Misery into a Moment of Magic, youve actually created a more loyal customer than if nothing had happened in the first place. &ma6ing, isnt It#

Ne,ati.e lan,ua,e
"hen your customers call and they have a problem or a request, if it is in any way out of the of normal, the response is usually %3o.) Telling your customer %3o) is li!e throwing cold water in their face. 5oure never going to build a Moment of Magic by telling the customer %3o.) (oncentrate on what you can do for the customer and state it in positive terms, such as, %"e can get that to you by Tuesday fair enough#)

Trans1errin, callers
"hen transferring calls to another person or department, ma!e sure your caller !nows with whom they are currently spea!ing ?which should have happened when you first answered the phone@, and to whom and why you are transferring them. If at all possible, give the caller a direct dial number to the person you are transferring them to in they somehow get disconnected during the transfer process. This is perhaps one of the most frustrating telephone in the wor!place. &dditionally before you transfer the caller, first if there is something you can help them with.

Screenin, callers
Too many businesspeople hide behind a gate!eeper. If you really want to stand out as a company that can get things done for your customers, disarm your gate!eeper. ;oes this sound familiar# %*ello, 2riendly (ompany this is 3ancy. *ow can I help you#) %*i, 3ancy may I to Mr. /acobs#) %"hos calling please#) %'ob ,mith with E5F (ompany.) &fter a short pause, 3ancy comes bac! on the line and says, %Im sorry, Mr. /acobs is not in right now.) "hether he is or not, most people will assume 3ancy is covering for the boss. &nd remember, not being accessible is a surefire way to lose a customer.

%ont allow *isunderstandin,s to occur

3othing is more tragic than to lose a customer based on a simple misunderstanding. Try this easy technique. "hen you feel that a misunderstanding is developing, try repeating bac! what you thin! the caller is as!ing you or saying to you. %,ir, let me see if I have this correct. 5ou ordered .art & and we delivered .art ' and you want us to pay for return shipping# Is that what you are as!ing#) (larify all details to communicate more clearly with your callers. If anything during the conversation is unclear or fu66y ma!e sure you the initiative to clarify all the details. 5ou will find this to be a huge time1saver for both you and your customer.

Han, up last
*ow many times have you called a business establishment and concluded the conversation and 7ust as you were ready to put down the receiver, you thought of a very important question that you failed to as!# &nd all you heard on the other end was a dial tone. 3ow you have to call bac! or you 7ust decide to s!ip it because its 7ust too much trouble. ;ont let that happen to your valuable customers. &lways wait until you hear a dial tone from your caller, then hang up. 5oull be surprised at how many callers have one more question.

$heck oursel1
<nless we hear complaints, we assume that everything is &10G. That is a faulty assumption. "hen was the last time that you called your organi6ation to see how your phones are being answered# This can be a real eye1opener for a business owner or manager. If you offer technical support for your customers, try to get through the loop of your technical support and certain that it is e4tremely customer1friendly ;ont assume anything. (hec! up on your company to ma!e certain you are putting your best foot forward.

Telephone Skills Su**ary

'ased on the information we covered during this Telephone segment, thin! of the three most important items that resonated with you. "hat will help you most quic!ly to improve# "hen your telephone s!ills are improved, you are more valuable to your company and to yourself. It is a sure1fire way to get a in your paychec!. 5ou will be one of those irreplaceable people, and your company will be memorable because you are delivering 0utstanding (ustomer ,ervice to your callers.