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Important notes
Clients
Clients can be internal (individual members of the
business) or external (customers or members of the public).
Communication with these clients can either be by telephone,
in person or written by fax, email or letter.
Interpersonal skills
All communication with clients is conducted in a professional and courteous manner according to the requirements of an organisation. The following interpersonal skills are facilitate effective communication.
- Using appropriate body language – body language indicates to others how you are feeling. When communicating with a client, it is important you greet him/her in a pleasant manner with a friendly smile, make eye contact while they are talking and nod or comment to let them know they are being heard
- Summarising and paraphrasing to check that what the client is saying is understood
- Providing an opportunity for the client to confirm their request
- Using appropriate questioning to clarify and confirm the client’s needs.
- Actively listening to what the client is saying
- Showing sensitivity to the client’s specific needs
The most effective communication depends on the ability to use appropriate questioning techniques, to actively listen and to convey the appropriate attitude through body language.
Responding to client enquiries
Most client enquiries are made in person, either
face-to-face or over the telephone, by email, letter or fax.
It is important that these enquiries are dealt with promptly
and politely. The first impression of a business is formed
immediately on contact with that business.
Most enquiries involve the following responses.
- The arranging of an appointment
- Information being given about the business’s products or services
- General information being given about the business (eg opening hours)
- The enquiry being passed on to a colleague or another department
- Clarifying or resolving a problem
Questioning techniques
- Asking a variety of questions to find out what the customer wants
- Paraphrasing what the customer has said to make sure that you have fully understood what they want
- Clarifying information by asking more questions
- Summarising what both you and the customer have said
If the customer has put the enquiry into writing, they may need to be contacted by telephone in order to clarify what they want.
Types of questions
There are three basic types of questions
- Closed question – a question that is looking for a yes or no answer. For example, “Do you live at 100 Sydney Road, Sydney?” In this case the person would answer yes or no.
- Open question – a question that is looking for some information. For example, “Where do you live?” In this case the person would give their address as the answer.
- Reflective question – a question that is asking for a reflection or an opinion.
Making telephone calls
When making a telephone call for business purposes, remember the following points
- Know the name of the person you wish to talk to or at least know the position they hold
- Work out what you want to say - the purpose of the call
- Have any information you may need actually in front of you so you don’t have to interrupt the call to find something
- Have a pen and paper out in case you need to write some notes
- Greet the person and introduce yourself
Effective telephone techniques when answering calls
The receptionist is the first point of contact a customer/client has with a business, so it is important to make a good impression. Most organisations have a policy for answering the telephone, which may include
- Answering the call within a certain number of rings
- Using a greeting like “good morning” or “good afternoon”
- Saying the name of the business
- Introducing yourself
- Asking how you may help
It is also important to use a clear voice and a pleasant manner, use concise language and don’t speak too loudly.
Sometimes enquiries are outside the receptionist’s area of knowledge and he/she needs to transfer the caller to another person. The receptionist should explain this to the caller before putting them on hold, then briefly describe the situation to the person to whom he/she is going to transfer the call. This will save the caller from explaining it all over again which creates a good impression. If the extension being called is busy, the caller should be asked if they would like to wait or leave their number so they can be contacted when the person is free.
After announcing an incoming call, sometimes a staff member does not want the call transferred to them. In this case, the caller should be told that the person is at a meeting and is unable to answer their call at the moment. Their phone number should be taken so that they can be contacted at a more convenient time. This is called screening calls.
Most organisations have a policy regarding the non-disclosure of confidential information. This may include personal details of staff or details of a new product that has not been launched yet. It is important that all employees know what information cannot be given out over the phone.
Some important points to remember
Do
- Use your voice to show enthusiasm and interest
- Put a “smile” into your voice
- Speak clearly so that you can be understood
- Spell difficult words or names if the person on the other end is writing down a message
- Repeat phone numbers
- Speak at a moderate pace
- Keep the mouthpiece of the phone directly in front of your mouth so you can be heard properly
- Give top priority to long distance calls
Don’t
- Sound flustered
- Answer the phone angry as the caller will pick up on it
- Speak with something in your mouth
- Use slang or offensive language
- Answer a phone and continue to speak to someone else
- Leave a caller waiting – keep the caller advised on the progress of his/her call especially if the person being called is on another phone call
- Drop the volume of your voice at the end of a sentence
- Leave the switchboard unattended
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