How Your Phone is Answered Says a Lot about Your Cleaning Company
The way you and your
employees answer your phone is extremely important to your business.
Much of the contact you have with customers or potential customers will be
through the telephone so you want them to feel that they're dealing with a
professional, courteous business. Here are some tips for ensuring your phone
answering skills are top notch:
·
Answer
incoming calls by the third ring.
·
When
answering the phone, be warm and courteous. Remember that you're representing
the company and you want to make a good impression by having a pleasant sounding
voice.
·
Speak
slowly and clearly. Don't talk so fast that the caller can't understand you.
·
Speak
with a moderate volume. Don't speak so soft that the caller can't hear you, and
don't speak so loud that they have to hold the phone away from their ear.
·
When
answering the phone, have a standard greeting, and then identify yourself and
your company. For example, "Good morning, ABC Cleaning Company, this is John.
How may I help you?"
·
Have a
positive tone to your voice. If you're not having a good day, be conscious of it
because the tone of your voice is easily detected. Be positive with your responses as well.
Instead of saying, "I don't know" say something like, "Let me find out for
you".
·
Take
complete telephone messages. Use a telephone log and get the caller's name,
company name, phone number, who the message is for, and a detailed message. If
you're not sure how to spell the name ask them to spell it out for you. Be sure
to get the message to the correct person right away.
·
Return
calls either the same day or within one business day. Nothing is more irritating
to a caller than to make a phone call and not have it returned right away.
·
If you
need to put the caller on hold, ask if it's ok to do that and get back to them
right away. Don't leave people on hold for too long. If they're waiting for
someone who is on another line, check in with them to see if they want to
continue holding.
·
Don't
use the speaker phone. People don't feel comfortable being put on speaker phone
and gives them the impression that the call isn't private.
·
Avoid
using an answering machine. . .voicemail is a more professional choice. Either
way, be sure your message offers the information they need: greeting, company
name, etc.
· Make sure all employees who will be answering the phone are trained the same way so phone answering is always pleasant and consistent.
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