I am writing this article with a lot of joy and excitement after receiving the good news that my daughter has passed her primary national examinations and will be joining one of the best girls school in the country.

I take this opportunity to congratulate all the students for having performed their best and making us proud parents.
In my happiness I try making a few calls here and there to both family and friends and was really irritated when I called one office to ask for somebody, when the next person on line grunted instead of answering the phone as it should be.

Many a time I call an office line and the person answering cannot even give the information instantly as to where you have called until when the person you are seeking is not in or the services you need are not offered in the company or worse still when you are told you have actually called a wrong number.

Today’s sophisticated business phone systems can do more harm than good if proper business phone etiquette is not employed. Simply put: Treat your callers in a way that you would want to be treated on a business telephone call. The main areas of business phone etiquette are listed below and they will help you and your employees create a business phone culture in your company that your customers and business associates will enjoy using.

Giving information

First give the caller your name and the company you are working in. This will give the caller a sense of importance and that you are personally concerned about the caller’s situation. Secondly, tell the caller the name of the person (or department) and extension number that you need to transfer the call to. And, remember to always be pleasant. Also
explain to the caller why you need to transfer the call. Reasons may include: the caller reached the wrong department (or wrong number), the caller has questions that only another department can answer, or you do not have authority to make the decision the caller is seeking. Regardless, make sure the caller knows "why” and that you are not just passing-the-buck

Waiting for an answer

Do not blindly transfer the call as soon as you hear the other phone ring. Return to the caller and announce the name and/or department that you will be transferring the call to. Wait for the other person to answer and explain to them the reason for the transferred call. This will give the other person a chance to prepare for the call and the caller will not have to explain the situation all over again. 

Thank the caller for their patience and ask if there is anything else that you can do.

At this point you can complete the transfer by connecting the caller and the other person or department. Remember to end your connection by hanging up the phone or disconnecting your head set, since it is also rude to eavesdrop on people’s conversation.

If you’ve been asked to pass a message on to a work colleague, always do so as soon as possible. The longer you leave it, the more likely you will either forget to do so or you’ll pass on incorrect details of the call.

The telephone is often the first point of contact a customer or client will have with a company so it is very important that you make a good impression when you’re answering the phone.

Obviously in specific telephone-related jobs such as sales, customer service and marketing, you’re going to need to adopt different styles and techniques in order to be successful, such as being able to handle difficult complaint calls or being persuasive enough to encourage people to buy a product or service from your company but in general terms, even if you only answer the phone as a routine matter of course as part of your overall duties, there are guidelines and etiquette to be followed.

Ends