Phone Use

Before I get to this week’s marketing tip, I thought I would let you know I got another letter the other day from my friend. Now I have 5 letters; I wonder how many more I’ll get.

As a child I spent many years in speech therapy classes (my public school offered them). One of the classes in later years was on phone etiquette. We learned what to say when someone calls and what to say when you call. When I worked in retail, the staff was taught how to answer the phone and some 30 years later I still can do the greeting.

Every day I get calls in which the person calling is somewhat polite and asks for the owner or manager. Once I tell them I’m it, they launch into their pitch and I have to interrupt to find out who they and their company are. When I did public relations for a number of companies and organizations and made calls, I learned to identify myself, and then to ask if they were on deadline and if not whether they had a few minutes.

Remember that when you are calling people, you are interrupting them. Therefore you should identify yourself, then ask their permission to continue with the reason you are calling. You might just get a better reception and get a sale as well.

Until next week,