Receptionist Courses - Telephone Etiquette

Receptionist courses will tell you as a receptionist you will be the face of the business or company that you work for. It is critical that you use professional demeanor and attitude when communicating with customers.

Understand what to do and not to do when communicating with the public is an important role of a receptionist. Not only will this skill help you maintain clients for your company, it will help show how invaluable you are to your employer.

Enunciate Clearly

· Speak clearly when you are speaking to someone on the phone. In receptionist courses, they will often tell you to speak while smiling. The client on the other line will pick up on this shift in tone. It is also critical to speak slowly, whether it is a bad connection or language barrier, it is important that YOU make the interaction as good as possible.

Be Respectful

· Always speak to clients as you would someone that you deeply respect. Envision that you are speaking to your grandmother or a teacher when you are speaking to a client. The familiarity with which you speak to a friend should not be passed along to your clients. Always answer the phone with "good afternoon" or "good evening" never pick up the phone and speak with familiar language such as "hey what's up".

Be Helpful

· One of the first questions you should ask a client over the phone is "how can I help you" this sets the tone for the interaction and establishes the ground rules for the customer. It shows that you are there to help them and relieves any tension on the customer's side.

Listen, Repeat, Pause

· It is important that you listen to the question or needs of the client, and once you understand their request, repeat it back to them to make sure you have the correct request. If you do not know the answer you can offer to place them on "hold" while you research the answer. Repeating their request back to them shows that you are truly listening to them and making an active effort to resolves their issue.

It is important to always be clear, concise, and professional with a client on the phone. Whether they are there in person or on the other side of the world, you are representing your client and it is critical that you do this in a way that markets your company appropriately.