No, they're not really related, but it's Easter and we love chocolate, so this blog will be about both! While many companies will be preparing to close up shop this evening, we don't stop. Our Zoomettes will be there over the bank holiday weekend to provide our call answering services for our clients. Naturally, we will be our happy, friendly selves, always answering the phone with a smile, but we don't want to miss out on the chocolate eggs!
If you are one of our clients, we already know that when it comes to call answering services, you prefer the human touch, along with the exceptional customer service and telephone answering skills that all the members of our team possess. However, we don't know what easter eggs you prefer! If you have time for a bit of fun this weekend, post a comment telling us what your favourite easter chocolate treat is.
A few of the teams' favourites are; creme eggs (always a winner, but there are those who prefer the mini creme eggs to the standard variety), mini eggs, the eternal battle between the milk chocolate, white chocolate and dark chocolate fans, and my personal favourite is the posh Hotel Chocolat variety!
However you celebrate it, with or without chocolate, Happy Easter from all the Zoomettes!
Showing posts with label telephone answering skills. Show all posts
Showing posts with label telephone answering skills. Show all posts
Thursday, 5 April 2012
Wednesday, 22 February 2012
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!
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!
Friday, 11 November 2011
The benefits of a telephone answering service company
Businesses of all sizes appreciate flexibility when it comes to their call handling. A company’s telephone answering service speaks volumes about them. It is one of the first opportunities a company has to present a professional image to the outside world.
A quality telephone answering service needs to be prompt, answering all calls within a few rings, even when the reception is busy; it needs to be professional, answering with the name of the company; and it needs to be friendly and helpful, with the receptionist asking how they may direct the call and quickly and effectively putting the caller through. Should the requested person at the company not be available, an accurate message taking service should be in place so that the caller receives a call-back.
All this may seem obvious, many of us have been put on hold for too long or have been put through to the wrong person or have never had a call back. Unfortunately this is a basic customer service that many companies still get wrong.
By employing a company such as Zoom to run a virtual reception service and act as your first point of contact, answering promptly with your company name, you will not have these problems ever again. Zoom can also transfer messages via email, SMS or fax instantly to the relevant person.
A quality telephone answering service needs to be prompt, answering all calls within a few rings, even when the reception is busy; it needs to be professional, answering with the name of the company; and it needs to be friendly and helpful, with the receptionist asking how they may direct the call and quickly and effectively putting the caller through. Should the requested person at the company not be available, an accurate message taking service should be in place so that the caller receives a call-back.
All this may seem obvious, many of us have been put on hold for too long or have been put through to the wrong person or have never had a call back. Unfortunately this is a basic customer service that many companies still get wrong.
By employing a company such as Zoom to run a virtual reception service and act as your first point of contact, answering promptly with your company name, you will not have these problems ever again. Zoom can also transfer messages via email, SMS or fax instantly to the relevant person.
Monday, 17 October 2011
Body language matters, even when answering the telephone
Telephone call answering services take great note in making sure their staff are aware of their body language at all times.
When talking face to face, statistics indicate that only 7% of the message is conveyed and understood by the words used, 38% is conveyed by the way the words are spoken and 55% by body language. Of course when the conversation is over the telephone the body cannot be seen, making it easier for misunderstandings to occur.
Whether we are angry or happy, it is shown by our facial expression, and the movement of those muscles will affect the sound of the voice. When we smile our voice is lighter & when we feel anger the voice will be deeper, also the pace may be faster than normal.
When speaking on the telephone your body language still reflects your mood and feelings. The position of your body has a fundamental effect on how words sound, and breathing patterns play a major role in how words are spoken. Restriction happens as soon as you sit down due to our normal reaction of lowering our head and shoulders. Unfortunately, when your shoulders and chin are dropped the words are more muffled. Tone, pitch and pace of the voice are all affected by body language, which as a result can cause the words spoken to be interpreted wrongly.
Be aware of your body language, the way you sit or stand when on the telephone, and your breathing patterns. They all affect how you speak. Body language does matter on the telephone if we want to send messages that are correctly understood. This is why our Zoomettes always smile when we answer.
When talking face to face, statistics indicate that only 7% of the message is conveyed and understood by the words used, 38% is conveyed by the way the words are spoken and 55% by body language. Of course when the conversation is over the telephone the body cannot be seen, making it easier for misunderstandings to occur.
Whether we are angry or happy, it is shown by our facial expression, and the movement of those muscles will affect the sound of the voice. When we smile our voice is lighter & when we feel anger the voice will be deeper, also the pace may be faster than normal.
When speaking on the telephone your body language still reflects your mood and feelings. The position of your body has a fundamental effect on how words sound, and breathing patterns play a major role in how words are spoken. Restriction happens as soon as you sit down due to our normal reaction of lowering our head and shoulders. Unfortunately, when your shoulders and chin are dropped the words are more muffled. Tone, pitch and pace of the voice are all affected by body language, which as a result can cause the words spoken to be interpreted wrongly.
Be aware of your body language, the way you sit or stand when on the telephone, and your breathing patterns. They all affect how you speak. Body language does matter on the telephone if we want to send messages that are correctly understood. This is why our Zoomettes always smile when we answer.
Tuesday, 20 September 2011
Common Telephone Answering Myths
We all know good customer service when we experience it, but do we really know how to achieve it? Telephone answering can be a particular challenge when it comes to delivering excellent customer service as so many of the signs we use to read people's reactions are gone. We are left with only the tone of voice and the words used to figure out what the customer is feeling.
One common myth about delivering good customer service over the phone is that it has been achieved if everyone understands what has been decided and what will happen next. In actual fact, this is not effective communication. Good communication involves discussion rather than simply informing. Discussion helps build understanding on both sides, as well as comfort and commitment from the customer.
Another frequent mistake is to think that being frank is always the best policy. The difficulty is that what one person feels is frank, another person may find insulting. It is important to consider how you come across to other people.
Little changes to your telephone answering skills can make big changes to how your customers see you. At Zoom UK we are always striving to improve our telephone answering service and customer service skills.
One common myth about delivering good customer service over the phone is that it has been achieved if everyone understands what has been decided and what will happen next. In actual fact, this is not effective communication. Good communication involves discussion rather than simply informing. Discussion helps build understanding on both sides, as well as comfort and commitment from the customer.
Another frequent mistake is to think that being frank is always the best policy. The difficulty is that what one person feels is frank, another person may find insulting. It is important to consider how you come across to other people.
Little changes to your telephone answering skills can make big changes to how your customers see you. At Zoom UK we are always striving to improve our telephone answering service and customer service skills.
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