People prefer to do business with people they know and like. The telephone offers you an excellent way of establishing and deepening good relationships with your customers or clients. Here are some tactics to help you use the telephone to best advantage.
Telephone calls have the advantage of being quick and allowing you to get direct feedback from the person you’re phoning. This helps you to keep in regular contact with key organisations and key decision-makers in your marketplace.
Successful telephone management
Face-to-face versus the telephone
Remember that speaking to a person on the phone is very different from speaking to the person face-to-face. It is a different form of communication and you have to compensate for some loss. This makes building a successful relationship on the phone considerably more challenging.
For example, telephone communications mean you can’t see the other person’s facial expressions, gestures and body language. Since sight is the most dominant of our five senses, communications experts estimate that these visual ‘unspoken’ impressions account for around 80% of all communication.
On the telephone you have to compensate for the loss of these visual elements, and it is your voice and phone manner that have to convey the all-important ‘first impressions’ and build rapport.
The telephone smile
The telephone smile does work. Some businesses actually encourage employees to install a small mirror next to the phone as a reminder to smile. Try smiling before you pick up the phone and you’ll find it will automatically improve your tone and attitude, and this will come across in the phone conversation.
Sitting up alertly or standing while you phone rather than slouching in a chair will also help. Because the person can’t see you, you have to project the correct physical posture and attitude, and adopting both before you dial does help this projection.
Phone etiquette
Observe common courtesies. Make sure that you return calls and keep promises. If you say you will call back with information before 3:00pm then ensure that you do this. It is always more impressive to under-promise and over-deliver than the other way around. Your task is to build credibility and a reputation for reliability.
Courtesy and appreciation are the most important attributes. Always thank people for their time in speaking with you. If it is a toll call or you suspect they are speaking to you from a mobile phone, be aware that the cost to them is mounting.
Keep the call brief, offer to phone them back, or suggest they use your free phone number if you have one. Most people will really appreciate you saying something like; “There are a few more points I’d like to discuss with you. As you’re on your mobile/as this is a toll call for you, may I call you back straight away?”
Phone language
The formality or informality of your language will depend upon how well you know the customer. As a general rule, formal but friendly is far better than too informal.
Never swear on the phone and avoid telling jokes to people you don’t know. Avoid jokes on taboo topics: sex, religion, politics, race and gender. It’s alarmingly easy to offend the person on the other end who may have beliefs or prejudices you are not evenly remotely aware of.
Even crowing over an All Black victory might backfire if the customer turns out to have strong overseas connections! Avoid any hint of sarcasm or irony (“So the cheque’s in the mail then?”) as these do not come over well on the phone and are likely to be misinterpreted.
“What irritates you about phone calls?”
Conduct some market research to improve your telephone skills. Ask as many business people as you can the question above and note the answers carefully so you can avoid or remedy the pitfalls. For example, you might discover people hate having calls interrupted while the person on the other end is distracted by another incoming call or an interruption. Work out how you can avoid these irritations during your calls.