Jovimay B. Broughton

© TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Phone Etiquette Soft Skills Training Objectives At the end of this module, the teammates should be able to: - Define what is telephone etiquette - Enumerate the tips for proper telephone etiquette [ - Explain the importance of telephone etiquette to a business - Apply proper telephone etiquette when interacting with customers over the phone © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential What is Etiquette? et·i·quette ˈedəkət,ˈedəˌket/ noun [ the customary code of polite behavior in society or among members of a particular profession or group. © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential [ What is wrong with this image? © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential What is Phone Etiquette? Telephone etiquette refers to a set of rules that apply when people make calls to others or when they are receiving a phone call. There are slightly different rules for a variety of situations. and making and receiving personal calls is not the [ same as making/receiving business calls. Within this set of rules, there can be additional differences, especially for business calls where companies may want callers or receivers to say certain things. © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Tips for Phone Etiquette A warm, helpful, professional and friendly voice on the phone can build customer loyalty, or if missing, drive them to a competitor. Extend the common courtesies to your callers and create a [ reputation of legendary service to keep your customers coming back. © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Tips for Phone Etiquette 1. GREET A warm, friendly, professional greeting including company names, dept name (if appropriate) and the person’s name who answers the call. It is suggested that the greeting end with a helpful statement that assures the caller you are willing to help. 2. LISTEN One of the most important techniques in telephone etiquette is to actively listen to the customer. Listen for both the content as well as the intent. Usually the customer tells you both in his/her opening statement. By listening actively to the customer’s opening comments, you can then RESPOND with a statement that assures the customer you HEARD. 3. EMPATHIZE In other words, walk a mile in your customer’s shoes. Pause for a moment to be empathetic and then respond. [ © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Tips for Phone Etiquette 4. PROBE Although probing is not a technique that may come naturally to everyone, it is a required skills for anyone serving customers over the phone. Keep it simple and remember the basic open questions … Who… What… When… Where… How. 5. COMMON COURTESIES Ask permission to place a caller on hold and get the caller’s attention when you return. Most of us can remember all too clearly a time when we were placed on eternal hold and wondered if we had been forgotten. A simple rule to remember: call the customer by name when you return to the line and wait for her to respond, then continue. [ TIP: if you know the wait time will be a few minutes, tell the customer before you leave the line. You will save on customer irritation and possible repeat calls. To the bottom line of a business, you could lose revenue and productivity. © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Tips for Phone Etiquette 6. AVOID COMPANY JARGON & RULES All companies have their own set of rules and terminology. These can sometimes be perceived as hot buttons for some customers as most of us do not want to hear quotes about what you can and cannot do from the company manual. [ 7. OFFER SOLUTIONS/ALTERNATIVES If you know you can’t do what the customer is asking, just tell him/her what you CAN do. There are usually alternatives that a customer will be willing to accept, IF you just take time to offer! © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Tips for Phone Etiquette 8. TONE Since you are not face-to-face, the most important measure of good communication in this case is voice quality and tone. Keep it positive and enthusiastic. Remember, the image the customer has of the person who is answering your company’s phone is the image the customer has of YOUR COMPANY. Is it flat, monotone or upbeat and perky? Is it abrupt, indifferent or polite and empathetic? [ 9. APPRECIATION Before the caller hangs up, make sure your customer service associate has expressed sincere gratitude for the customer’s patronage. © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Tips for Phone Etiquette 10. GO THE DISTANCE Run an extra mile for every customer – every time! Take time to extend yourself in some way to make a positive, lasting impression on the customer. Providing exceptional telephone service is nothing more than following “the Golden Rule” what we all learned as a child. [ © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Call Listening Activity Type of Call Agent Name Click to listen Juul Consumer Line / Inbound Tim Call 1 Marcia Call 2 Juul Consumer Line / Inbound Carmelita Call 3 Pax Consumer Line / Outbound Tim Call 4 Pax Consumer Line / Outbound [ © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Q and A [ © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Objectives After this module, the teammates should be able to: - Define what is telephone etiquette - Enumerate the tips for proper telephone etiquette [ - Explain the importance of telephone etiquette to a business - Apply proper telephone etiquette when interacting with customers over the phone © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential Thank you! [ © TaskUs 2014| Learning and Development | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary and Confidential