What A Receptionist Shouldn't Do

Your company's receptionist is usually the first point of call for clients old and new, so it is absolutely crucial that they know how to speak to clients on the phone so that they portray the appropriate image of your company. A friendly, cheerful and professional sounding receptionist gives the impression that your whole company is friendly, cheerful and professional.

It is very obvious when you are on the receiving end of a badly handled phonecall. Most of us will have experience of rude or grumpy receptionists, so I'm sure you know what you wouldn't want a receptionist representing you to do! Some examples we have experienced are:

• people only saying "Hello" when answering company calls instead of introducing themselves and the company - this leaves the caller feeling unsure that they dialled the right number, and it sounds very unprofessional.
• an abrupt receptionist gives the impression that their time is being wasted by answering the phone and does not give a welcoming feel to your company.
• telephone calls transferred without any warning - at best the client is left confused about what the receptionist is actually doing, and at worst they can think they have been disconnected and hang up.
• receptionists who don't ask your name before transferring the call and don't announce the call to the recipient. This is frustrating for the caller as they then have to explain themselves again.

Our virtual receptionists not only answer calls promptly, we use the same company spiel you prefer (E.g."Good morning, [Company name], [receptionist's name] speaking, how can I help?") and represent your company to the highest standard. Calls can be transferred easily, just as if we were in your office with you, and we always try to take a thorough message so you know what people were calling for before you call back. Customer service is paramount, so let us know what you need; our service is totally flexible.

Speed Of Call Answering

Many people think that the first step to effective call answering is to pick up that phone as quickly as possible. It's not! It may come as a surprise, but if you think it through, it makes sense; people just don't expect their call to be answered that quickly. You may be ready to answer as soon as you hear the phone ring, but callers expect it to ring a couple of times before anyone picks up. Before two rings have passed, they are probably distracted, or even finishing off something that they were doing before they picked up the call. You don't want to start the call off with the caller feeling like they were caught out, so give them a chance to ready themselves.

Waiting for at least two rings also gives you the opportunity to prepare yourself. Cast an eye at the clock so you know whether you should be saying "good morning" or "good afternoon", remind yourself of the appropriate greeting spiel, and smile. Then you are ready to pick up the phone!

Answering too quick risks an unprepared caller, but take too long and you risk losing the call altogether. Generally speaking you should aim to answer before 6 rings have passed. Some very impatient callers may hang up before that, but most will wait at least that long. Not many will wait much longer.

Call Answering Tips

There are a variety of skills involved in telephone answering, and delivering good customer services. Our Zoomettes have years of training and experience in this, so are well placed to offer you some tips. It doesn't all come as naturally as you might think!

Active listening - imagine you are listening to someone explain something to you in person. What do you do? Do you stand there giving them no response whatsoever? Probably not! Even if you don't vocalise anything, chances are your head is nodding, or tilting, your eye brows raising, and you may even be mouthing words without sound. Much of that will not transmit over the phone, so you need to translate it into audio. A simple 'mmhmm', 'oh', 'yes' or 'right' lets the customer on the end of the phone know you are still there and you are still paying attention. Total silence over the phone worries people as they can't be sure you haven't put them on hold, or even just ignoring them!

Fill the silence - similarly, if you need to do anything that leads to prolonged silence, you should have a few uncontentious questions to ask ("did you have a good weekend") so that there isn't a silence lasting longer than about 10 seconds. You do need to be careful that you don't end up babbling or sounding nervous - you want to portray the image of a friendly, confident company!

Call Answering Hints And Tips

Our Zoomettes may have honed their call answering skills over many thousands of calls answered, but they still have to remember the basics for each and every telephone call. No matter what mood you might be in, it is important to always smile before you pick up the telephone. Despite phone calls not being a visual media, you would be surprised how much of a difference a simple smile makes to the tone of your voice. Now wait. Don't jump to pick the phone up as soon as it rings. Most people won't be expecting an answer so soon, and it's never a good idea to make the caller flustered before you've even spoken! It's best to answer between two and six rings.

All the time you are speaking on the phone to a customer, they are forming an opinion of you and your company, so it's important to give the right impression. If you sound lively, interested and efficient then that is how they view your company. As well as how you speak, it is important to use the right language. You don't need to swallow a dictionary; complicated words could confuse things and alienate the caller, but it is important that you speak the same business language. Using similar phrases helps to build the trust between you.

How you end the call is just as important as how you answer it. You should never be in a hurry to hang up - you will often miss an "oh by the way" style opportunity. Unbelievably 30% of people remember something important at the last minute, so make sure you aren't missing out on those opportunities!