Business Phone Systems| Establishing Telephone Presence

February 5th 2010

Installing business phone systems into your business is clearly one of the more important tasks to complete as your business starts. Nearly every company eventually does some sort of commerce over the phone, so you’ll need to decide on what your business’ phone presence will be. Here are some great tips to think about!

First Impressions mean the world, so if you are grumpy because you just lost a sale, a customer was irate for some reason, or even if an employee or you made a mistake on an excel spreadsheet you must put a smile on your face as you answer the phone. You’d be surprised at what will happen when you do.

Be attentive and don’t multi-task on other projects, like scanning emails or anything that requires a tiny bit of your attention away from what you’re doing. Listen and let the caller finish whatever they are saying. Sometimes a customer, if it’s a complaint, just needs to vent or be heard. Also, letting the customer talk and tell you what they want is a huge way of getting them to accept what you say.

Work to mimic their syntax and speed of speaking if you can. Don’t copy their accent, but listen to how they speak. This can work to put them at ease. Always speak with a positive and upbeat manner. Agree and proceed with them.

If you are an outbound caller for your company, be sure to have a script of some sort. Plan it out a bit, but be ready to move away from it if necessary. If you need to get certain information out there, ask yes or no questions, and then have your script head in that direction. Nothing can be more confusing for a potential customer when they respond and you just keep talking like you hadn’t heard them.

So, remember, a business telephone system is a primary form of communication in your business. If used correctly, you can create many wonderful successes.

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