Telephone Etiquette

In order to be a MASTER of the phones, you must first learn and practice proper telephone etiquette. The following will discuss the steps needed to master this very important skill. Always remember, above all else, SMILE THROUGH THE PHONE. This is half the battle!

1. PREPARE YOURSELF

Can you really prepare to take a phone call? The answer is absolutely “YES.” As a Reservationist, one of your main responsibilities is to answer the phone in a timely manner; therefore, you should always be prepared for your phone to ring at any given time.

  • Have a pen and paper ready at all times. Good reservationists constantly write things down throughout their calls
  • Keep your workstation clean and clear. You don’t want anything to interrupt you while speaking to a customer
  • Check body posture.
  • Always have an idea of today’s schedule
  • Be aware of TTA (Time To Answer)

2. START STRONG

A phone call that gets off to an awkward start can certainly go downhill from there. With this in mind, here are a few concepts that will help you get off to a strong start on just about any call.

  • Put your smile on! This is the main key to a good sounding phone call. A customer can absolutely hear a smile through the phone.
  • Practice a 4-Part greeting. Every good greeting should have;
    • Thank you for calling
    • The Business Name
    • Your Name
    • A Call To Action Statement
    “Thank you for calling ABC Automotive. My name is Jason. How may I help you today?”
  • Take a deep breath prior to answering. This will help project a better sound.

3. BUILD RAPPORT

This is arguably the most important concept when it comes to telephone etiquette and Customer Service. You want your customers to like and trust you. If the customer likes the people they are working with, they will surely return for future visits. Not only that but when your customers genuinely like you, you can expect a rise in your dealership’s CSI scores. Repeat customers and high CSI scores are major keys to success in this industry.

  • Smile through the phone.
  • Ask a rapport building question on every call. Make it a part of your daily script.
  • Utilize the customer’s name
  • Be conversational, yet professional. People don’t want to talk to robots.
  • Match customer’s speed and volume.

4. ON-HOLD TECHNIQUES

You never want to put a customer on hold. However, there will be times throughout your day when there is no way around it. For those times when we need to put our customer on hold, please follow the guidelines below to make it as painless as possible.

  • Always ask permission before placing customers on hold. Wait for a response
  • Follow the 90-second rule of thumb. Return to the line and let the customer know that you didn’t forget about them.
  • Always thank the customer for holding. Their time is valuable!

What happens when you need to transfer? Effective Call Transfers

Transferring calls within a busy dealership can be painful for both you as a Reservationist as well as your customer. We never want our customers to think that we are “passing the buck” to someone else. Here are a few concepts to help make your transfer calls a smooth transition to a 3rd party.

  • Let the customer know WHY and WHERE you need to transfer them.
  • Ask permission to put the customer on hold.
  • Get customer’s call back information prior to transfer. This will help in the event that the call is disconnected.
  • Practice WARM transfers whenever possible. This means getting a warm body on the phone, explaining the reason for transfer, and asking permission to transfer.
  • Try to eliminate putting customers through to a voicemail.
  • If there is ever further action needed, we initiate the callback. We should NEVER ask the customer to call back at a later time.

5. PROPER TONE OF VOICE/SPEAKING CLEARLY

It isn’t always WHAT we say, but HOW we say it. A Reservationist’s tone can certainly make or break a call. We want to have an upbeat, positive, and friendly tone on every call that we take or make. This is what the customer will hear the most. The pie chart below looks at 2 different types of communication: Over the Telephone and Face to Face. As you can see, the most important aspect of working with customers over the telephone is TONE, not necessarily the words we use.

  • Self-critique. If you have the opportunity to listen to your recorded calls, do so whenever possible. Ask yourself- Do I sound friendly? Am I upbeat? Am I smiling through the phone?
  • On your way to work, turn the radio up and sing along! This is not only going to help put you in a good mood, but it will help warm up your articulators.
  • In a way, we are actors. Every call is a separate performance.
  • Concentrate. Every call is an opportunity whether it comes in at 7 AM or 7 PM. Fight through those long days to give every customer the same level of service.

6. ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE

Stay away from talking to customers about what you CAN’T do. Instead, talk about what you CAN do.

  • Try to stay away from words with negative meaning or connotations. For example- No, Can’t, Won’t, That’s not my job, it’s not my fault.
  • Use positive words and buzz phrases. For example, Yes, Absolutely, My pleasure, Sure thing, Fantastic.

“Sorry, we don’t have any availability for this Saturday. You really should have called earlier in the week.”

“We are completely booked for this Saturday, but I have plenty of availability next Saturday. Would 9:00 work okay for you?”

7. LISTENING IS AN ART

There are plenty of classes that you can take that will help with your speaking, but there really isn’t much out there when it comes to the art of listening. In conversation, a lot of people will think about what they want to say next rather than fully listening to what the other person is actually saying. Try to stay away from this as being an effective listener falls in line with being an effective communicator.

  • Write things down. Avoid having the customer repeat themselves.
  • Summarize what the customer says. Let them know that you understand.
  • Prevent dead air. This can kill a good call

8. HANDLING “CHALLENGING” CALLS

We have all been in the situation whereas we have a challenging customer on the other end of the line. Although these calls can sometimes be difficult, there is no need to panic if you have the tools to correctly interact with your customer. It should always be your goal to turn that “challenging” call around for the better. We will discuss some of the common “challenging” situations a little later in training, but for now, keep these concepts in mind.

  • Use empathy. Show the customer that you are concerned.
  • Be an active listener. Ask questions. Write things down.
  • Make sure that the issue is addressed prior to leaving for the day.
  • Get on the customer’s level. Practice and perfect the saying “I completely understand how you feel.”

    9. THE FIRST RULE OF CUSTOMER SERVICE

The Golden Rule is simple- Treat others as you would like to be treated. If you follow this simple rule, your calls will sound great and your Customer Service will be memorable.