Zoom's top ten answering tips!

Here at Zoom we answer all your calls professionally and handle each customer the way we'd like to be dealt with if it were the other way around. 

Here are our top ten tips for professionally handling telephone calls!

#1: Learn the callers business language. We research each sector we answer calls for, making sure we understand and can use similar phrases and terminology, so the customer feel that they can trust us. 

#2: Match the customers approach. If a customer is in a hurry, we'll always acknowledge this and if we have to get help or information from elsewhere, we always let them know an estimate of how long it will take. 

#3. Answer the call after 2 rings and before 6. Answering a call after 1 ring generally can throw people completely, they don't expect such a sudden answer and generally they aren't quite ready! So we answer all calls after 2 rings and always before 6, as no one likes to be kept waiting.

#4. Don't hang up first, let the caller. We never hang up first, as 30% of people on the phone add a sudden "Oh by the way..." and if we hung up first, we'd miss this!

#5. Sound lively, interested and efficient. This is the impression the caller has of the company and we want to keep it that way. We will never lower your businesses reputation.

#6. Have open questions ready in case of a pause. Pauses of longer than 10 seconds are unacceptable to callers, so we always have a list of questions or non-contentious things to talk about to make sure all callers feel comfortable dealing with us. 

#7. Never assume callers are like you. We will never pass comment on issues such as race, religion, politics or even sport, as we never assume that people hold the same views as us. Even a passing comment may cause an issue if there is a difference of opinion and that just won't do when the caller expects a professional phone call. 

#8. Don't worry about good vocabulary. In other words, there's no need to use long, fancy and difficult language as it may well just confuse the caller. We use plain but professional vocabulary to make sure they understand exactly what we are saying. 

#9. Don't say "I don't know". We never say this, it's highly unprofessional. Instead we'll always tell the caller that we'll find out and get back to them, it leaves them with the reassurance that we care and we want to help them with their enquiries. 

#10. Be an active listener to build trust. Listening is critical on the phone and the caller needs to know that you're paying attention to what they're saying. We use short phrases such as "ok”, "I understand" and "yes" to show we are interested and actively listening to what the caller is saying. 

Dealing with a disgruntled caller

Talking on the phone and dealing with callers can generally be quite a pleasant experience. Although from time to time, there will be that one caller that can be quite difficult to deal with, and no matter how polite and civil you are, you still can’t appease the person on the other side of the phone. Dealing with this type of situation can be quite difficult, however there are various ways to diffuse the situation and ensure that it doesn’t escalate any further. 

It all starts by listening to the caller, although this may be the last thing you want to do if they start getting abusive towards you. In this type of situation, the first thing to do is to make the caller aware that you won’t tolerate abuse of any kind, you’re there to help them, not be their verbal punching bag. Saying something along the lines of “I understand that you’re frustrated sit/madam, but I won’t tolerate being spoken to in that manner, I want to help you and ensure that this issue gets resolved” will help tame the situation, as well as putting the caller in their place. If you’re struggling to understand or listen to the caller for whatever reason, jot down key points on a piece of paper, looking back on these notes at the end of the call can sometimes make more sense than in the midst of a difficult phone call where tension levels are high. 

Nothing gets a caller more rattled if they feel as if they aren’t being listened to. This is why it’s key to ensure that you’re actually listening to them, and not just agreeing for the sake of it. You could end up missing key points, misunderstanding the situation and repeating yourself, or worse, making the caller repeat themselves. Try not to pass the caller around to different people either, the caller will only get more rattled and end up having to repeat themselves over and over again. Certain words and phrases can diffuse the situation and ensures that the customer feels as if they’re being listened too, such as “I can understand why you’re frustrated” or “I too would be upset”. Clever vocabulary doesn’t have to stop there. Using words such as honestly, sincerely and genuinely reassures the customer that you are indeed being honest and fair with them. 

When people are angry, all they want to do is vent out their frustrations. It’s important that you let the caller do this, as interrupting mid sentence will only make them more irritable, as you’re stopping them from getting their point across. Sometimes the caller can make you angry as well, but it’s paramount that you remain calm, and most importantly don’t turn the call into a raging argument by passing judgement. This will only reflect badly on you.

It may seem obvious, but don’t shout back, don’t tell them they’re stupid and don’t say they’re wrong. Sometimes it’s about being the bigger person. You know that they’re wrong, other people around you know that they’re wrong, and at the end of the day the caller probably knows that they’re wrong too. Diffusing a difficult situation is much more rewarding than proving someone wrong and letting your pride get in the way.   

Sometimes resolving the situations straight away isn’t always possible, and making false promises may seem like a great solution in the short while, but can be detrimental in the long run for you and the customer. Ensure that the call ends on a high note if possible, it’s always a good sign if someone calls up angry and they go away satisfied.

Be Phone Professional

Call answering to someone involves a lot more than just being polite and friendly, although these key aspects do help; it involves a whole manner of tactics and techniques. We’ve outlined a few to help ensure you’ll stay professional as possible whilst on the phone. 

First of all, start off by trying to answer the phone within a few rings, but only a few. You don’t want to startle the caller by answering it straight away. Recent studies have shown that the caller at the other end of the line usually isn’t ready for the call to be answered straight away and it can seriously off put potential clients. However, you also don’t want them to be continuously hanging on the line waiting for their call to be received, this could lead them to becoming disgruntled even before the call has actually started.

When you do take the call, make sure that your own greeting is professional and polite. Identifying yourself is a great way to start. The caller feels as if they’re being tended to on a more personal level, rather than dealing with an automatic machine. Try and thank the caller for calling in the first place within your greeting. Asking how you can help the caller is practically inviting them to get to the main point of the call, and helps you deal with the enquiry for efficiently. It might be worth playing around and constructing a few phrases together to see what greeting suits you best. Once you have your greeting sorted, try practising it out loud. Ensure that your tone doesn’t come across as monotone and mundane, people don’t want to feel as if they’re burdening you with their call, it can also put you and the company in a bad light. Try not to be too enthusiastic either, people can find this off putting and a little bit fake. It’s all about finding the right balance between the two.

With the greeting out of the way, it’s now about dealing and directing the call in an appropriate manner. Sometimes it’s not all about the caller on the other side of the phone, it can also be about the person they wish to be directed to and being professional towards them. If the caller wishes to speak to someone else, don’t just instantly put them through, try and take control and find out the nature of the call, this will seem more professional to the person you’ve just put the call through. It might be tempting to just put the call though straight away from the callers point of view with no questions asked, but not asking any questions can also come across as quite unprofessional. Try and establish who exactly is calling, what the purpose of their call is and whether the other person taking the call is expecting their call. 

It might be tempting to try and get the call over and done with as soon as possible, but listening is a key factor in maintaining professionalism throughout. If you hang up too quickly or don’t even wait or a response, you can miss vital key points which will only end up reflecting badly on you. The customer also won’t be too impressed. It may be easier to pass judgement on some callers you’ll deal with, however this is the definition of unprofessionalism! If you find that you’re getting a little frustrated with the caller, try to take notes and stay calm throughout the call. Shouting at the customer will most likely start a full blown argument over the phone. 

Just because the person on the other side of the line can’t see you slumped over your desk, doesn’t mean that they can’t tell you’re fed up. A caller will definitely be able to tell if you’re bored over the phone, making them feel as if they’re burdening you. The same goes for eating, chewing and drinking at your desk. Just because the caller can’t see you, doesn’t mean that they can’t hear you munching over the phone. 

This may seem like a lot to remember, but at the end of the day (and the phone call), it’s all about maintaining a good standard of customer service over the phone. 

Start our FREE 7 Day Trial Today!

Here at Zoom, we strongly believe in ‘trying before you buy’. This allows you to ensure that you know what services you’re getting, and that you’re always 100% happy.

Our 7 day trial is perfect for allowing you to get to grips with the services we provide. Let us take control for a week, and you’ll soon see and hear the tremendous difference in your customers. Your clients will no longer hear an automated answer phone message when you become unavailable to take their call, and nor will they ever have to listen to the ‘busy/engaged’ tone ever again. They’re not left to deal with random robot technology, they’re automatically diverted to an actual human being, who is always perfectly happy to answer the call with a smile. Your clients will become more satisfied with not having to leave repeated messages on your answering machine, and instead you and your clients can be assured that the enquiry or message will be directed immediately to the appropriate person. 

Our FREE 7 day trial incorporates our Business Service (Monday to Friday). This is a no obligation service, although all we ask is that you’re not on holiday when the trial is in place. Feel free to have your friends, colleagues, family members call us, and let them report back to you their own opinions and perceptions of our service. When the trial ends, you’ll receive a report from ourselves that includes a breakdown of our costs, as well as a monthly estimate based on the week’s incoming calls. At the end of the day, there’s honestly nothing to lose, apart from your phone’s ‘busy’ tone… 

Some Basic Tips For Answering Telephone Calls Professionally

The telephone is still the preferred communication tool of choice for many when it comes to business, even when web enquiries, emails, social media and live chat facilities are available. So here are our top tips on telephone answering.. 

ANSWER THE CALL QUICKLY - There is nothing more unprofessional than leaving a caller waiting. Research shows that if most of us wait longer that 24 seconds on the phone, we'll hang up. 

ANSWER WITH A SMILE -  You can always tell if someone is smiling or not over the phone. Smiling when delivering customer service when answering the phone is just as important as smiling face to face. If you are happy, the customers happy!

SPEAK CLEARLY & PROFESSIONALLY  – Words like ‘cheers’, ‘uh-huh’, ‘mate ‘,’yeah’ etc. are not professional ways to speak to customers over the phone, keep it friendly but remember they are a customer and not a pal and remember to enunciate every word.

LEARN THE PHONETIC ALPHABET- and use it when you are confirming spellings back, Sounds a lot more professional than saying the first thing that comes to your head! 

REMAIN POSITIVE AND PROFESSIONAL - Even if you have no idea what they are talking about. By using ‘let me find that out for you and come back to you’ rather than ‘I don’t know’ as it shows interest and a willingness to help.

KEEP THE CUSTOMER HAPPY- make sure you go back to update them every few seconds if you have to put people on hold, and remember to keep offering to have them called back

Who answers your calls when you can't?

What do you do when your business has grown beyond your staff's means? When it's time to increase your operations you don't necessarily need to take on new staff, or a call centre - Zoom Answer Call can provide these for you so that you never miss a sale again.

Our Zoom Sales Agents can help you to manage campaigns, orders and customer support, increasing leads and sales for your business.

We can can process orders, take billing details and work with your website's ordering facility. We can provide technical support for customers and manage enquiries so that they are matched with relevant and available engineers. We can provide 0800, 0845 and 0870 numbers to set up advertising campaigns with, as well as help to promote your products and services on each call.

And of course we can provide you with a customised report of the response and activities for each service with our professional Call Centre services.