Top Ten Telephone Basicsby Shep Hyken, CSP

This article is not just for the front line people who deal directly with customers.  All of this information is applicable to everyone, from a receptionist to a warehouse manager to a CEO.  Having good telephone skills helps build stronger relationships with everyone!  Whether the call is incoming or outbound, the following can be applied to virtually every call.  

So, let’s get back to basics.  Phone skills are an important part of the job. The way you handle your phone is as important as a face-to-face meeting.  So take the time to go over some of these basics.  Here is my “top ten” phone skills list.

1. Let’s start with enthusiasm.  Try to convey some type of enthusiasm. From beginning to end, show that you care about the person you are talking to.  You don’t need to act overly excited about your phone conversation.  Just have a positive attitude.   It is contagious.  

2. Be sure to smile.  Even though you are on the phone, the other person can sense a smile from you.  Some telephone experts recommend putting a mirror on your desk to remind you when you are not smiling at the customer.  For people who are on the phone all day, a mirror may not be a bad idea.

3. How do you sound on the phone?  Using the right tone of voice creates atmosphere on the phone.  This ties into the first two on this list.  Is your enthusiasm coming through?  Do you have a positive attitude?  Is your phone conversation strictly business?  Is it lighter or

personal?  Your tone and voice inflections will create an impression and help the person on the other end understand what you are telling them.

4. Say “Hello!” (or good morning, good afternoon, etc.)  Have a warm greeting or opening.  Welcome people into the conversation.  Don’t make them feel as if they are an interruption.  If you are too busy, then let someone else or your voice mail pick up the phone.  That is lot better than a greeting that sounds like, “Yah, what do you want!”

5. Say “Goodbye.”  Have a strong closing.  At the minimum, be sure to say goodbye before hanging up the phone.  How many times have you expected someone to say goodbye, have a nice day, etc. only to hear a click?   Don’t do that to your customer!

6. When talking to a customer, avoid company or technical terminology that they may not understand.  Everybody has had this happen at one time or another.  Someone tries to tell you something and you have absolutely no idea what he is talking about.  It sounds like it could be English, and it is.  But, you still don’t understand it because it is technical jargon.  Technical terms or industry buzz-words can put a customer in an uncomfortable position.  They might feel dumb because they don’t understand you.  Or, they may feel frustrated and become impatient.

7. Don’t get angry, even if the customer is.  It is not always easy to keep calm, especially if the customer is angry about something you have no control over.  (Chances are they are mad at something that has

already happened.)  If a customer is complaining and angry, let them vent.  Most likely they aren’t mad at you personally.   Ask them questions to show that you care.  Don’t add to their aggravation.   You might ask them to repeat the problem just to make sure you understand. Be a good listener.  

8. When transferring - ONLY ONCE!  If you are transferring to someone else, make sure that person is available.  Don’t put the customer on the hold, transfer, hold, transfer, hold, transfer, routine.  (I hate when that happens!)

9. Control the “hold” button on your phone.  A survey in USA Today conducted by Nancy Friedman (a.k.a. The Telephone Doctor) showed that customers hate, more than anything else relating to the phone, to be put on HOLD!  There are really only two reasons to put someone on hold: to transfer to someone else or to get information.

10. More on controlling that “hold” button.  If you are going to make a customer wait on hold, for any reason, let them know how long they will have to wait.  When you say a minute and it really is just a minute, it will probably seem a lot longer to them.  So, if you are asking them to hold for an extended period of time, it is probably best to call them back.  Promise to call at a specific time.  Then, keep your promise!Shep Hyken, CSP is a professional speaker and author who works with companies who want to develop loyal relationships with their customers and employees.  For more information on Shep’s speaking programs, books, tapes and learning programs contact

(314)692-2200 or Shep@hyken.com.  (http://www.hyken.com)

Internal Customer Serviceby Shep Hyken, CSP

It has been my good fortune to have been hired to speak to hundreds of clients with many, many different types of audiences.  Most of these clients understand that customer service is not a department you call when you have a complaint.  It is a philosophy.  Customer service throughout an entire organization is the way of the future.  

Still, many people believe that customer service training is only for front line personnel.  And these people seem to only want to train the sales people, and of course, that “customer service department.”  

Service must be a total commitment not just for the front line, but for every employee of any business, from the mail room attendant to the janitor to the president to the CEO. Everyone has a customer.  If it is not the outside customer, then it is the internal customer.

So who is an internal customer?  A simple definition of an internal customer is anyone within an organization who at any time is dependent on anyone else within the organization.  

The internal customer may be a situational customer.  This person may not always be the internal customer.  They might be depending on someone inside the company at a specific time for a specific reason, maybe once a week or even once a year.

An example of an internal customer may be someone in the payroll department.  Let’s say this payroll person is dependent on managers from various departments to call in the employee payroll on time.  If a manager is late or doesn’t report payroll properly, then the payroll person can’t do his or her job, which is getting payroll checks out on time.  The manager failed his or her internal customer.

This internal customer can be someone you work for as well as someone who works for you.  At first you might think that because she works for me that I would always be her internal customer.  After all, I’m the boss!  WRONG!  Of course I am dependent on her to help me with my responsibilities, but she is just as dependent on me to get her the right information and training so that she can do the best job possible.  It goes both ways.  

The concept is sound and strong.  Customer service has to be a total company effort.  It just can’t be the front line who deals with the outside customers, the ones that buy our products and services.  The front line needs the support of everyone within the organization.

The traditional structure of a company has the CEO or President at the top with layers of management underneath, ending with the front line employee who deals directly with the outside customer.  

Imagine a triangle or pyramid.  The CEO is at the top - at the point.  At the bottom, at the base of the pyramid, are the front line employees.  The chain of command flows down.  The responsibility to each level of management and every employee flows down.  This is very

traditional.

In the 1980’s along came Jan Carlzon, the former president of Scandinavian Airlines with his best selling business book,  Moments of Truth.  In his book, he turned the pyramid upside down.  He emphasized the importance in dealing with the outside customer.  He said that rather than the lower level employees serving the higher levels, it should be at least a two way street, if not opposite.  He flip/flopped the pyramid and put the customers at the top and the upper management, including the CEO and president, at the bottom.  

This is the root of internal service.  It is the understanding that everybody supports everybody else in the organization.

A company who has an excellent service reputation didn’t get it without everyone in the company being a part of the service strategy.  Someone once said that if you are not working directly with the outside customer, you are probably working with someone who is.  Everyone within your organization has an affect on the outside customer.

Starting an internal service program is simple.  Virtually every technique you have read or learned about general customer service applies to the internal customer as well.  Small changes in basic terminology will need to be made.  Companies that practice outstanding customer service find it is easier to attract and keep customers.  Companies that practice outstanding internal service find it easier to attract and keep good employees.  Employees who practice outstanding internal

service find it easier to keep and enhance their careers.

So, take care of  your internal customers and create MOMENTS OF MAGIC!Shep Hyken, CSP is a professional speaker and author who works with companies who want to develop loyal relationships with their customers and employees.  For more information on Shep’s speaking programs, books, tapes and learning programs contact (314)692-2200 or Shep@hyken.com.  (http://www.hyken.com)