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Virtual Receptionist Tips: How you can Turn a Caller's Frown Inverted
If you work with an active answering service or answer phones as part of your job, you will come across frustrated callers every now and again. Everyone makes mistakes and often folks have other things going on in their lives that leave a poor style of their mouths. Though these calls could be tricky, they can be also an excellent opportunity to turn someone's day around. Taking these steps will show your clients that you care and you may just make them right into a loyal customer with your thoughtfulness:
When talking by having an unhappy caller:
1. Allow them to explain and reiterate what you've heard. Sometimes folks just need to vent. Provide them with a moment to describe their situation and inform them you've understood their issue by repeating what you've heard.
2. Acknowledge their emotion. A supportive "That does sound frustrating" or "I can see where you're coming from" will go quite a distance. But if you don't feel it, don't say it; faking empathy can perform more harm than good.
3. Offer to help. Like a virtual receptionist, you may not have the ability to fit everything in your caller asks (i.e., answer their question in regards to a bill or physically find a worker). However, there's always something that you can do! Use helpful phrases like "Let me" or "I could be happy to" and add a healthy dose of reassurance ("Let me have a message for John, our billing specialist. He'll be the best person to speak with regarding your bill. I will make sure he gets the message right away.").
4. Guide your caller. Always result in a question. Guiding a caller with questions keeps you in charge of the call helping you gather any pertinent information. A quick question will do, for example "May I have your phone number?" or "What's the best time to reach you?" Basically, whatever you need or you think could be useful to obtain issue resolved quickly with as little additional effort from your caller!
If you're a small company answering service employee, it might all get together such as this:
Your entire product is down? That is terrible! Allow me to take down an in depth message for our support team and read it back to ensure everything is correct. I'll make sure they understand this immediately so we might have you ready to go as soon as possible. What's the best telephone number for any return call?
Bonus tip: Virtual receptionists and in-house receptionists alike might want to range from the caller's frustration in the message, so the other party can prioritize their issue and become prepared for the return call. Something like, "Sheila seemed frustrated and would really like a call when possible" must do the trick!
If phone answering is a component of your job and you receive a message from an upset caller:
1. Ring instead of reply. Even when your client sent an e-mail or created a voicemail, when emotions are participating, a phone call or face-to-face conversation is the best way to go. Conveying a positive tone within an email is a lot harder compared to your voice. When talking over the phone, you get to add warm and kindness for your voice and diffuse the situation better.
2. Gather your tips. Before you dial their number, pause and think about what you'd like to discuss. For example, if pulling up their account information can help the call go smoother, do that before hopping on the phone.
3. Think positive thoughts. Negative thinking won't build your follow-up any easier. Instead, envision your conversation going well, and your colleague's concerns being assuaged. It'll calm your nerves thus making you sound well informed as you fix their problem!
Whether you are a virtual receptionist or CEO, we suggest trying these pointers whenever a colleague, customer, or co-worker is frustrated - you'll turn their frown inverted!
