Telephone Etiquette

Phone etiquette is a highly valuable tool to have in an employee’s skill-set, and our Telephone Etiquette workshop will help provide those skills. This course will help your participants improve their phone skills which will make them more confident, improve sales, and help gain new customers while retaining your current clientele. A more confident employee is also one that is happier, and happier employees will produce happier customers.

Through this workshop; participants will learn the skills to increase productivity and improve performance. This will produce a positive environment throughout your business and influence the organization as a whole. Recognizing the different skills used between inbound and outbound calls along with knowledge on how to deal with rude or angry callers makes this workshop a great investment.

At the end of this workshop, participants should be able to:

  • Recognize the different aspects of telephone language
  • Properly handle inbound/outbound calls
  • Know how to handle angry or rude callers
  • Learn to receive and send phone messages
  • Know different methods of employee training

Course Outline:

Module One: Getting Started

Housekeeping Items

The Parking Lot

Workshop Objectives

Action Plans Form

Evaluation Form

Module Two: Aspects of Phone Etiquette

Phrasing Tone of Voice

Speaking Clearly

Listen to the Caller

Case Study

Module Two: Review Questions

Module Three: Using Proper Phone Language

Please and Thank You

Do Not Use Slang

Avoid Using the Term “You”

Emphasize What You Can Do, Not What You Can’t

Case Study

Module Three: Review Questions

Module Four: Eliminate Phone Distractions

Avoid Eating or Drinking

Minimize Multi-tasking

Remove Office Distractions

Do Not Let Others Interrupt

Case Study

Module Four: Review Questions

Module Five: Inbound Calls 

Avoid Long Greeting Messages

Introduce Yourself

Focus on Their Needs

Be Patient

Case Study

Module Five: Review Questions

Module Six: Outbound Calls

Be Prepared

Identify Yourself and Your Company

Give Them the Reason for the Call

Keep Caller Information Private  Case Study

Module Six: Review Questions

Module Seven: Handling Rude or Angry Callers

Stay Calm

Listen to the Needs

Never Interrupt

Identify What You Can Do For Them

Case Study

Module Seven: Review Questions

Module Eight: Handling Interoffice Calls

Transferring Calls

Placing Callers on Hold

Taking Messages

End the Conversation

Case Study

Module Eight: Review Questions

Module Nine: Handling Voicemail Messages 

Ensure the Voice Mail Has a Proper Greeting

Answer Important Messages Right Away

Ensure Messages are delivered to the Right Person

When Leaving A Message for Others…

Case Study

Module Nine: Review Questions

Module Ten: Methods of Training Employees

Group Training

One-on-One Training

Peer Training

Job Shadowing

Case Study

Module Ten: Review Questions

Module Eleven: Correcting Poor Telephone Etiquette

Screening Calls

Employee Evaluations

Peer Monitoring

Customer Surveys

Case Study

Module Eleven: Review Questions

Module Twelve: Wrapping Up

Words from the Wise

Review of Parking Lot

Lessons Learned

Completion of Action Plans and Evaluations

Recommended Reading