Untangle the Tangle

Selling an Idea or a Product

Basic Telephone Etiquette

 What is Etiquette?

Etiquette is the proper way of conduct in

a given setting.
Telephone Etiquette is important to
create valuable customer experience.
 What Customers go Away?

Company Phone Practices

Long automated phone menu’s 42%
No answer by the third or fourth ring 25%
Toll-free numbers that are constantly busy 21%
Playing music or ads while on hold 7%
Other (No voice mail service after hours, 5%
untimely returned calls)
 What Customers go Away?

Employee Phone Habits

Using the hold button with asking 34%
Being un informed 30%
Poor English speaking skills 15%
Not saying the name correctly 11%
Maligning the company name 6%
Customer Delight

Core
 Learning Objective
At the end of this session you will know how to
• Differentiate in talking on the telephone & in
person
• Improve voice quality
• Listen Actively
• Paraphrase
• Hold & Mute
• Transfer Calls
• Take Messages
• Exhibit Telephone Courtesy
 Who is the FIRST PERSON the
customer interacts with …..

You are the first point of

contact
The image the
customer has of
YOU, is the
image the
customer has of
The
Organization
 Remember ……
You are NOT talking to an Instrument,
You are NOT an an Answering Machine
either ……..
You are ASSISTING someone behind the
Instrument !!!!
Exercise
 Who is your Customer?
Customer might have tried …. Potential for
several times before he finally increasing your revenue
got to you

…. Urgent message
for someone in the
organization

The next call just might be ……

…. Transferred to various
dept. before finally
reaching you

Might be someone who Might want information

wants to join your about the organization
organization
Your customers ……

Internal

&

External
Its not just what you say …. But
how you say it!!!!
Face-to-Face
Words
7% Tone of
Voice
38%
Body
Language
55% Over the Phone

Words
14%

Tone of
Voice
86%
 Voice Quality
• Rate: Speed of talking. A normal rate is 125
words a minute.
• Pitch: Highness or lowness of your voice.
This can be a monotone, a low or a high pitch.
• Volume: How loud or soft you talk
• Clarity: How your words are understood.
• Tone: Expressiveness in your voice.
Game
Components of a Call

Opening a Call

Body of the Call

Closing the Call

Welcome – The Grand Opening
 Why ??????
• Be Kind. Everybody has had a tough
day. Make yourself SMILE

• A friendly welcome sets the stage for a

positive exchange of information

• When callers receive a friendly greeting,

they are inclined to talk more quickly.
 What It Does For Your
Customers

• This is emphatically reassuring and puts

the customer at ease
• Tells him / her that you care
• It shows that you are friendly
• It demonstrates to the customer that
you are focusing on them
 How To Answer The Phone

• The way a company picks up the phone

tells the entire story about the kind of
service you can expect to receive.

• How you answer the call sets the pace

and tone of the entire call.
 Opening The Call

Good <time of the day>

Thank you for calling Reliance Infocomm,
This is XYZ. How may I assist you?
(repeat twice in case of no response,
Before giving up)
 The Three Rings
Three rings is the generally accepted
standard for picking up the phone.

If you hear a phone ringing in your

Department and no one picks it up,
Make it your business to do so.
Even if you can’t help the person on
The line, you can at least take the
Message.
 Greet the Caller
A greeting should always be the entry
point of the phone conversation. It
indicates
• Your friendliness and openness
• Your willingness to provide quality service

Don’t make your greeting

Too long or over the top
 Give Your Name
This basic act of courtesy lets the caller
know that he / she has reached the
correct department or company.

Answering your own phone or direct

line
Answering the company phone
Answering the department phone
Answering Your Own Phone
or Direct Line

Usually the caller knows the company

he has reached and you only need to
identify yourself by giving your name.

“Good Morning, this is Ajit, how

may I help you?”
Answering the Company Phone

Usually receptionists and switchboard

operators would answer the phone and
give the name of the company rather
than their own

“Good Morning, how may I help

you?”
Answering The Department
Phone
Usually saying only the name of the
department is sufficient, followed by your
name. however, if the call is coming directly
from outside say the company name before
you identify the department and yourself.

“Good Morning, Customer Care, this is

Ajit, how may I assist you?”
 Ask the Customer If You
Can Help
Saying “How may I help you?” completes
the telephone answering etiquette by
demonstrating that you and your company
are ready and are available to assist the
customer with his or her needs.

It pay to write down the customer’s name

and use it regularly in your conversation.
 To Summarize

• The Three Rings

• Greet the Caller

• Give your name

• Ask the customer if you can help

The Body of the Call
 Active Listening

• Give the caller your undivided

attention
• Actively listen to the caller for
both the content as well as the
intent.
• Avoid “Emotional Leakages”
• Avoid distractions
• Do one thing at a time
 Barriers to Concentration

• External
• Internal
- The mind can process information
faster than most people can talk
- The mind has a habit of wandering
- Pre – Occupation
 Practices to Avoid

• Avoid interrupting the customer. When

you interrupt, it shows you do not care

• Avoid speaking too fast or too slow.

• Avoid using jargon

Let ‘Em Hear you are
Listening
 What is Verbal Feedback

• Verbal feedback is a variety of short

responses that lets the caller know that
you’ve been listening and paying
attention
• Verbal feedback responses include
expressions like “All right”, “I
Understand”, “I’m making a note of that
right now”
 Dead Air

Avoid dead air – it upsets the caller

 Every Call is
“Note – Worthy”
 Notes
• Making notes is recommended. The human
memory is not perfect
• Written notes give you a record of the
customer’s name and message
- including correct spellings
- case reviews
- and accurate contact information
• Jotting notes during phone conversations will
help you “Actively Listen”.
Effective and Easy Note - Taking

• Remember writing takes longer than saying it

• A good idea is to develop an abbreviations
system for quick use.
• Remember to prioritize information
• Always remember the objective of the call …..
This will help you sort what information you
would want to take note of
• Quality is preferred over quantity.
 Paraphrase
• Rephrase read them back to the
customer. Tell the customer what he /
she said in your own words
• If the customer changes anything
correct your notes and promptly read
them back.
• Tell the customer that you are listening
 Phraseology
Casual Words Professional words
• Ya Yes Sir, That’s right Sir
• OK Very well Sir, Certainly Sir
• Sure Very well Sir, Certainly Sir
• One Sec Kindly hold on Sir let me
check it for you Sir
• Who’s speaking If the call is for you
- Who am I speaking to please
- Who’s calling Please?
If the Call id for another person
- Who shall I say is calling?
- Who shall I say called?
• I’ve no idea! Let me check and find out
Exercise
 Hold and Mute Procedure

WHY IS THIS SO
IMPORTANT ?

If incorrectly used, it could

Lead to being rude, unprofessional
And also affect the quality
Of the call
Hold and Mute Procedures

HOLD – Caller is aware of being on

hold and will hear music

MUTE – Caller will not hear anything,

line will go blank and he / she may not
be aware of being on hold.
 Mute Procedures

• Should only be used if the hold time is

less or equal to 30 seconds
• For a short query when resource is
close at hand
• Clearing your throat, coughing or
sneezing
 Why We Put Customers
On HOLD?
You need to have the caller wait while
you:
• Look for a person (TL / colleague to
clarify)
• Look for information
 Why Customers Go Away?
Employee Phone Annoyed
Habits Customers
Using the hold button without 34%
asking
Being uninformed 30%
Poor Grammar 15%
Not announcing their own name 11%
Mangling the company name 6%
 Ask the Customer if you may
put them on Hold
Because it is an Does anybody know I’m
here
inconvenience to your Have I been forgotten
customers to be out on Why is this Does anybody
know I’m taking so long
hold, you should always Should I hang up
#*%*#
ask permission before
putting them on hold

* Remember you don’t

like to wait either.
 Wait For A Response
• “Can you hold – “ click is a situation so
common that customers might be
surprised to see you waiting for a
response
• The second part of putting someone on
hold is to wait for a positive response
from the customer’s side.
• As soon as the customer agrees to hold
say “Thank you” before clicking off
Tell the Customer “WHY”
Most customers are very patient if they
are politely informed as to why they
must hold. They find it easier and
comfortable to wait on hold if they have
a mental picture of what’s the service
associate is doing while away from the
phone. Be sure the information is
pertinent.
Cont’d
• Giving the customer a time frame helps
kill the I – have – been – forgotten
factor and has a calming effect
• How specific the time frame needs to e
dependant on the length of time you
think your customer might have to hold.
• Examples with suggested path of
action. When the time for holding is
up to 60 secs, 1 -3 mins, over 3 mins

Cont’d
 Give a Time Frame

• Short (up to 60 secs) – This will take a few

moments

• Long (1 – 3 minutes) – This could take me 2

or 3 minutes to sort out. Would you like to
hold or do you want me to call you back?

• Eternity (over 3 minutes) – Ask for a number

to call back
 Thank the Customer for
Holding

Saying “Thank you for holding” is very

basic, good and common courtesy. This
action nicely rounds off the on – hold
sequence and acknowledges the caller’s
understand and patience.
 To Summarize
• Ask the customers if you may put them
on hold
• Wait for a response
• Tell the customer “Why”
• Give a time frame
• Thank the customer for holding
 Transferring a Call

Sometimes you will not be able to solve

the problem on the spot. Often you will
need more information, or the call may
have to be handled by another person

Cont’d
 Ask if the Customer minds
being Transferred
• Customers get angry if transferred, when
they don’t want to be. Sometimes after being
transferred several times a customer may just
want to leave a message.
• If the person is calling on a cellular phone
this might be an expensive proposition.
• Always ask if a customer minds being
transferred.
 Explain Why the Call is being
Transferred
• The Customer’s basic questions are
“Where am I going? Who as I going to?”
• By informing you customers to whom they
are being transferred to and why, you are
answering one of the most basic questions.
• Also if a customer gets disconnected he /she
can call back and ask for the person by name.
Ensure someone is there to pick
up the call before hanging up

• This simple step saves the customer the

frustration to be transferred to someone
who is not there.
• By staying on the call till the recipient
picks up, you are being responsible for
connecting customers to a person who
can help them.
Tell the person the customer’s
name and purpose of the call
Once the person to whom you have
transferred the call picks up, briefly give him
the customer’s name and purpose of the call.
This spares the caller the hassle of explaining
the problem again.
When a person does not want to be
transferred offer to take a message
and see to it that the message gets
to its destination.
 To Summarize

• Explain why the call is being transferred

• Ask if the customer minds being
transferred
• Ensure someone is there to pick up the
call before hanging up
• Tell the person the customer’s name
and purpose of the call
 Taking Messages

During an average day, people

frequently aren’t available to take calls.
Instead of offering to take a message
offer to HELP
Explain co worker’s absence
positively
Customers rarely want to hear gruesome
details as to why the person they’re trying to
reach is unavailable.
Likewise your co-workers will not like their
private lives discussed with customers.
Use ……
Jai isn’t available at the moment
Raj just stepped out
Nikita is in a meeting
 Give an estimated time co
coworker’s return
• When possible give an approximate
return time for the person, the customer
is trying to reach
• Doing so gives the caller control to
reschedule the next call.
• Remember, the job is to get the
message, not promise they will return
the call. That’s the call party’s
responsibility.
Accurate Message Taking
• Taking an accurate and detailed message is
best if following guidelines are kept in mind.
• Correct spelling of the customers first and last
name
• Correct and complete phone number
• Brief message explaining the reason for the
call
• Name of the person the customer wanted to
reach
• Time and date the customer called.
 To Summarize
• Explain co-worker’s absence positively
• Inform of unavailability before asking
for the customer’s name
• Give an estimated time of co-worker’s
return
• Offer help / options
• Practice accurate message taking
Game
 Telephone Courtesy
• Never be rude to a caller, no matter how
nasty they are. Remember to handle yourself
in a professional manner.
• Use the ASAP technique
A: - Apologize & Acknowledge the callers
feelings
S: - Sympathize with the caller. Empathize
A: - Accept responsibility
P: - Prepare to help
 Handling Swearers
• Making the caller aware of what he is
saying will halt the swearing.
For example “Sir, I can handle your
problem, but I am not able to handle
the swearing. I request that you stop.”

Note: - 3 strikes and you are

out rule
 Ending the Call

Leaving a Good LAST

impression is as
Important as making a good
FIRST impression
Key Action for Ending the Call

• Repeat any action steps that you and the

customer have agreed upon
• Ask the caller if you can do anything else for
him / her
• Thank the customer for calling and appreciate
his effort and time
• Let the caller hang up first
• Write down any relevant information as soon
as you get off the phone
 Closing the Call
Effective Phrases for Closing
• You are Welcome Sir / Madam
• We appreciate your calling
• Thank you for calling
• Please call again
• Have a nice day

Acknowledge the details with thanks

And a