Has this happened to you lately?
You call a business from whom you want to buy something or from whom you want information. Dream. is answered The voice on the other end speaks with the same level of clarity and emotion that was last heard at a fast food restaurant window… “thanks for calling company xyz, this is George, how can I be at your service today?”
Or maybe the name of the company you called has been mysteriously shortened. Thought you were calling Acme Widgets, Inc. but they say “AWI” or worse: “Widgets”?
Or maybe the person answering the phone just took a bite of a crisp, crunchy apple?
Or are you put on hold and no one contacts you to see if you are still alive?
Your company’s telephone presence is just as important as your web presence, logo, signage and advertising. It is an integral part of your marketing. If a caller makes a bad first impression, all the other things he does to entice prospects and customers to call are wasted because, as the old saying goes, he only gets one chance to make a good first impression. . The person answering the phone can gain or lose customers for life in one quick moment if the caller is harassed, rudely or ignored.
Chances are these lapses in good phone skills are also happening at your company. If good phone technique is important to your business, do a “phone audit” from time to time. Call your company (or have someone else do it for you) and listen to the greeting, then call three competitors and see how they compare on clarity, attitude, personality, and friendliness.
Although the caller cannot see the person on the other end of the phone line, they can still discern the person’s body language by hearing their voice. For this reason, a well-known telephone trainer suggests putting a mirror next to the phone and training people to smile and look at themselves when answering to give the caller an invisible smile with their greeting. I’ve heard people make fun of this, but I’ve also heard that “an insincere smile beats an honest frown every day.”
Keep in mind that the same personality issues translate to voicemail reply messages and other mechanical communications, so they should also be monitored and audited to be friendly to callers.
Callers can learn a lot in just a few seconds on the phone. Make sure they learn the right things about your company to make a good first impression.