Phone Calls
How do you handle phone calls? Phone calls are important. They are your way of communicating. There may be customers calling. There may be vendors calling. If you let your calls go to voice mail then you may engage in phone tag. If you answer each call you may be interrupted and not get your work done.
I have friend that answers every call even if she is on a call. This works for her. It works for her because she trained herself to do this. She is the queen of multitasking. Multi tasking is doing many things at once. You can learn to multi task and it may work fine for you. If you do not loose your train of thought with constant interruptions then this is the way for you to go.
If multitasking is not your specialty then you will need to devise another way of handling calls. I had a business associate that devoted a time of day every day to handling calls. They blocked out three hours where they answered every call. During these there hours they made outgoing calls also. They placed a message on their voice mail that said they well be available for calls between the hours of 1pm to 3pm. This can be limiting and you can still end up playing phone tag.
Another idea is to divide your tasks by how much concentration they will require. You can send your calls to voice mail for the short period of time you are working on a high concentration task. Or you can do this high concentration task during off business hours. Perhaps you can wake up early a few days a week for these high concentration tasks. Or you can work on them in the evening.
If the high concentration task requires a large period of time perhaps you can divide it up so you can work on it for shorter periods of time.
There is also the option of using e mail for some of your communications. I want to caution you about e mail. It is written and permanent. Be careful with how you word your message. Make them short and polite. They are excellent for anything you want put in writing. Do not use them to avoid talking to someone. Use them is you have a brief communication such as an update. It is not advisable to use them to return a phone call. It is okay to use them if you are the initiator of the communication. E mails should not replace personal contact. They are in addition to personal contact.
No matter what strategy you use there are certain absolutes in business calls and calling. Try to keep your phone conversation brief. Keep it on point. These are business calls not personal calls. Business calls have a different etiquette than personal calls. Your time is valuable and so is the person's time you are talking with. Friendliness and politeness can be limited to , “Hi, how are you. Or Hi, Thanks for....” Keep it short and simple. Be clear and state your point quickly.
Phone contact is necessary. Valuable use of your time is also necessary. Devise a way to make the most of both.
Marcia, Your Confidence Coach
1 comment:
Maintaining a professional image is essential for every business. This is particularly true for home based and smaller businesses. If you work in a small business you have to compete harder and your smart phone is your lifeline to the outside world. It allows you to work anywhere, be accessible at any time and never miss a customer’s call. Still I know that its not easy to handle customer calls but there is also a better way, hire some call handling professionals for your help. We have experienced call handling services provided by Go Niche.. They are best at their work. Helps in integrating business intelligence from sales & marketing and increase your sales & profit.
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