K Nyane PowerPoint presentation

1. Telephone Etiquette
What is telephone etiquette?
Telephone Etiquette Do’s
Telephone Etiquette Don’ts
Steps for dealing with angry
customers
References
Image is CC BY-NC 2.0 licensed from creativecommons.org

2. What is Telephone Etiquette?
Telephone etiquette is how you
use manners to represent yourself
and your business to customers
when on a call. This includes the
way you greet a customer, your
tone of voice, your body language,
word choice, listening skills and
how you close a call. Good
telephone etiquette is essential to
any business as it creates a good
first impression, reflects
professionalism and creates
customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Image is CC BY-NC 2.0 licensed from creativecommons.org

3. Telephone Etiquette Do’s
Friendly Greetings Answering a call requires a positive and cheerful disposition. Introduce yourself and
business by name and then extend your help. Thank the customer for calling.
Monitor your tone of
voice
Where face-to-face interaction is impossible, your tone of voice is of significance. A
defined tone of voice is important in establishing clear communication between two
people.
Smile Smiling while you are on a call makes a huge impact. According to a study, a smile can
actually be heard through the phone. This is because when a person smiles they tend to
use a more friendly tone of voice.
Control the Call A tone that displays your confidence will have an advantage over a weak tone. A
confident tone also commands attention, is less interrupted and is likely to instill
confidence in the caller or customer. This is called controlling the call.
Honesty Honesty is more important that making your clients happy, if there is something you can’t
do for them make them aware that you cannot assist them. Deliver the honest message is
a polite and empathetic way.

4. Telephone Etiquette Don’ts
Don’t rush the caller Never rush or interrupt the caller. When you interrupt a person in a conversation it
implies that you already know what they will say. When you interrupt them it implies you
already know what they are dealing with. Rushing or interrupting a customer will agitate
them.
Don’t lack confidence A voice that sounds confident will command more attention, trust and will minimize
interruptions.
Don’t engage in other
activities
It is easy to be distracted or let your mind wander, or even do things such as eating or
cleaning your desk while on the phone, but when you are on the phone with a caller, it
should be all about the caller. Nothing should take first priority but the caller.
Don’t shout or whisper Being too loud or too quiet can make a conversation awkward and this may cause you to
not get all the information you require. Speaking calm makes the conversation one that is
easy to understand.

5. Steps for dealing with angry customers
What to do
What not to
do

6. Listen
When you come across an angry
customer listen to them before
trying to defuse the situation as the
caller may want to vent their
frustration. It may be helpful to jot
down the major points of the
problem.
Don’t argue with the
customer
Even if the customer may be wrong
be careful to not sound like you are
arguing with them. Instead let them
finish voicing their frustration and
respond back calmly and
professionally without interrupting
them.
Remain Calm
Focus on using an even tone while
you talk and remember that the
customer is not angry at you. Put
yourself in the customers shoes
and take a few breaths to calm
your nerves.
Make the caller happy
Give the caller some options to
resolve the issue, this will make
them feel in control. Offer them a
refund if possible. Ask them if there
is anything you can do to assist.
Then finally try to make them smile
by complimenting them on their
patient or tell a joke to lighten the
mood.

7. Don’t take it personally
Remember that the customer is not
angry at you. Putting yourself in the
customers shoes is one of the best
to help you not take offense.
Repeat information
Once the angry caller has stopped
talking it is important to make them
feel like you are on their side.
Apologize about the problem and
convey empathy. Then summarize
their main points as this will
reassure them that you were
listening to them.
Don’t raise your voice
Even if the customer is shouting do
not raise your voice as this will
imply that you do not understand
the customers frustration. This will
further make you look
unprofessional which will make the
situation even worse.
Avoid the hold button
When a customer is holding on the
line this only adds to their
frustration. Instead of putting the
customer on hold while you
research their problem let them
know exactly what you are doing to
resolve their problem.

8. References
By Shauna Geraghty, 27 May 2020 - www.talkdesk.com
By Indeed Editorial Team, 22 February 2021 - www.indeed.com
By Marina Prestenbach, 1 November 2020 – www.dexcomm.com
Images obtained from www.creativecommons.org