6 Tips For Talking On The Phone

• February 10, 2009
• by Collateral Staff

In almost every marketing article we write, we talk about how you need to answer your phone every time it rings. To take that one step further, you need to practice good phone etiquette every time you answer your phone, or to put it simply, be polite! Below are 6 tips to improve your phone etiquette.

1. Try to answer the phone by the 3rd ring. Everyone is busy these days, and answering the telephone promptly shows the person on the other end that you respect their time.
2. Instead of answering your phone, "Bail Bonds!", say something like, "ABC Bail Bonds, this is Katie. How may I help you?" Answering the phone this way only takes three seconds longer but allows the caller to learn 3 important things: who you are, where you work, and that you want to help them.
3. Pay attention. What does this mean? Don't multitask. Keep a notepad by the phone to jot down notes. Actively listen. While it may be tempting to finish the task you were in the middle of when the phone rang, don't. The person on the other end of the phone can tell if you sound distracted.
4. Be pleasant. An easy trick to sound pleasant over the phone is to smile while you are talking. You can "hear" the smile over the phone. Don't believe it? Leave yourself two messages - one when you are smiling and one when you are not - then listen to the results. The call when you were smiling will sound generally more pleasant.
5. Speak slowly and clearly. While you may be familiar with certain terms such as collateral and indemnitor, the person on the other end may not know what you are talking about. By speaking slowly and clearly, you give the person one the other end a chance to ask questions and understand the bail process better.
6. Extend phone etiquette to making calls. If you miss a call, return the missed call promptly. If the caller left a message, be sure to listen to the message so you know who called and why they called. If you tell someone you are going to call them back at a certain time, be sure to call them at that time. No one wants to be left waiting by the phone.

The biggest trick to good phone etiquette is to treat phone conversations as if they were happening face to face. By being polite and friendly over the phone, people will be more likely to remember the pleasant experience they had working with your company.