Rose Training talks…talking (at training organisations). 

Ahhh, the feeling you get when greeted by a professional-sounding voice on the phone. Not only does the voice on the other end calm your nerves (if you aren’t the biggest fan of phone calls!) but it also makes you feel assured, accepted and important, all of which you are! Training organisations often underestimate the effects of professional phone manner. It can literally be the make or break for welcoming new clients – we have a student who decided not to follow through with a training organisation after their receptionist greeted her with ‘yeah?’ Fair enough! Professionalism is key when encountering new clientele; often a voice on a phone is the first contact they will have with your training organisation. As such, it’s imperative that the voice answering calls is enthusiastic, efficient, energised, knowledgeable and friendly! In this blog, we will discuss what makes phone etiquette the bee’s knees of employee-client relations, courtesy of the Rose Training team!

Jessica Rose’s Tip on phone etiquette at your training organisation:

As Business Development Manager, Jessica loves talking to new students and old friends, day in and day out.

Her particular talent lies in forming lasting friendships quickly with her cheery tone and attentive manner. Jessica says that good manner in training organisations is paramount. While it is sometimes a hard art form to accomplish, Jessica believes that practice makes perfect! So the more you pick up the phone when it rings, the better you will become at mastering a professional business manner. Her top tip? She is a big fan of active listening and positive language. This means using language that positively reinforces rather than just acknowledges. A good example is saying ‘my pleasure’ instead of ‘cheers’ or ‘no worries’. While ‘cheers’ is merely an acknowledgement, ‘no worries’ may imply that there may be a ‘worry’ in some circumstances. ‘My pleasure’ is a positive way of saying you are actively trying to help your clients in any way possible, and this gives your training organisation a customer service boost!

Ankita Bellary’s Tip:

Ankita is pretty new to the whole professional phone manner thing. Over her year at our training organisation she has gone from strength to strength with her ability to answer, transfer and respond to questions, compliments and queries on the phone! She admits she is still a novice, but has some wisdom to share. She says to be efficient with your words on the phone. Don’t ramble on if you can help it, because this will disengage the person on the other end. An efficient speaker is a professional one. Ankita started off using a phone script in her early days in the RTA office, and after using it for a couple of months now doesn’t need to refer to it anymore! She thinks that having a phone script handy is great, and would recommend it to anyone learning the ins and outs of training organisation phone etiquette.

Gary Rose’s Tip:

Gary is the king of cool, calm and collected phone manner. His experiences as a teacher, trainer, and leader at our training organisation, has taught him that communication is important, whether face-to-face, online, or over the phone. Gary tells us to focus 100% of our attention on the caller. Why? If we multi-task and are answering an e-mail while on the phone, important details of the phone conversation can be missed. Additionally, a lack of interest (whether intended or not) is very easily detected on the phone. Why? Well, it’s because the person at the other end is paying attention to your voice and not any other social cues, like your body language. Thus, it’s paramount that your voice sounds interested and interesting.

Amy Sommer’s Tip:

TAE guru Amy knows what’s up when it comes to communication as a trainer. She also knows what’s up when it comes to talking to her students on the phone when they ring up with questions or queries. She believes that preparation, within the context of training organisations, is key. If you are being transferred to a call with a student, make sure you have calendars and schedules in your eyesight. Have all the information in front of you rather than sorting hurriedly through tabs or pieces of paper on your desk while someone is on the line. Not only is it unprofessional, but it isn’t a good use of your time! To help with this, use a colour code on your calendars with sticky notes or highlighters. It will definitely aide you when you need to pass on info quickly to your students.

If you want to know more about great phone etiquette, give us a call on 3038 3048 (and we will astound you with our skills!!) or talk to Jessica Rose on LiveChat. While you are at it, like us on Facebook!