The other day, a co-worker from a former employer stopped in at my office to chitchat. The talk eventually turned to how things were going at the gigantic media conglomerate where we’d worked together for several years.
With a vast variety of news outlets on the Internet and television constantly eroding the local newspaper’s market, this media giant was instituting a number of changes to remind readers of its importance as a news source. One of those changes was a mandatory phone greeting all employees were to adopt immediately.
“We write the words that speak to you,’’ is the greeting my friend was asked to recite whenever he picked up the phone, add to his voicemail message and put on his e-mail signature. So serious was the company about consistent use of the greeting that supervisors announced plans to spot-check employees to make sure they were using it.
SAY WHAT?
Now, I don’t take issue with the use of a corporate greeting. I understand that a professional greeting can set a positive tone for excellent customer service. And though it can’t do much for employee morale to warn that you’re going to spot-check to see if they’re following through with the greeting, I don’t have a problem with that either.
But I do take issue with the greeting itself. For an institution built on imparting news in a direct and efficient way, how does the media company’s greeting; A. tell the caller they have reached the right company, department or person; B. actually greet the caller, and C. get right to the point of the call?
While a phone greeting should be a positive reflection on you and your company, that doesn’t mean it should be another commercial message a caller has to wade through to take care of business. Further, this greeting is prosaic to the point of sounding forced and cheesy to both the caller and the employee answering the phone.
It’s clear that companies often either don’t give the concept of a phone greeting any thought at all or way over-think it. To illustrate my point, consider the business phone calls you’ve made over the past few weeks.
Recently, I called a small service company and got an abrupt, “Yeah?’’ on the other end of the line. On another, I got a “Hello, this is Bob,’’ and then Bob started talking to a co-worker who was interrupting the call with his own question. Neither company has given a thought to professional phone etiquette.
On the other end of the spectrum, I called a discount retailer to check if they had a widget in stock. The greeting went something like this: “Hello, thanks for calling (insert major retailer name here), where we give you the best deals on everything, every day. We’re open 24 hours a day to serve you better. My name is Amber. Where can I direct your call?’’ The greeting took longer than the rest of the call. And, as you can imagine, Amber didn’t sound the least bit enthusiastic after saying the same thing 244 times that morning.
IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE THIS HARD
I think the company my friend works for is guilty of over-thinking the new phone greeting. Being a huge corporation, the greeting was probably the subject of several executive-level meetings, scrutinized by a consulting firm and reviewed by a sizable marketing department. The result is a message that says nothing of importance and wastes the customer’s valuable time. I can’t imagine hearing “We write the words that speak to you’’ will generate new business or improve service to existing customers.
The good news is all of that hullabaloo was unnecessary to craft a useful business phone greeting … Which is a good thing, because portable restroom operators don’t have the time and manpower to sit around thinking too much about phone greetings. Consider these suggestions when developing your company’s phone greeting:
Think like the caller
Why is a customer calling your business? It might be to order a restroom. It might be to complain about a restroom in need of service. Either way, they want to get right to the point and make sure they’re talking to the person who can handle their questions. The last thing they want is a flowery or drawn-out commercial for your business.
Keep it short and simple
There’s nothing wrong with the old-fashioned, “Hello, Ralph’s Restrooms, Ralph speaking.’’ But there are ways to present a friendly voice or an interest in providing quality customer service. As you develop a few options to consider, take your watch and time them. Keep your new greeting to three ticks of the second hand and make sure it’s easy enough for all of your workers to remember.
Content is king
What must the greeting include? How about the company name (if a receptionist doesn’t answer first) and your name and a pleasant greeting? Here’s a no-nonsense sample: “Hello, COLE Publishing, this is Jim.’’ Maybe add an invitation to be of service: “How can I help you?’’ This is all basic stuff, but I’m surprised that many businesses don’t require a standard greeting like this.
You can go beyond the basic without creating a ponderous greeting or a 30-second advertisement for your business. Consider a phrase like this: “We care about customer service.’’ It emphasizes a top priority of your company without belaboring the point.
A specific offer to customers is also a possibility at different times. For example, let’s say you’re going to run a special on individual restroom rentals for parties over a holiday weekend. Here’s your greeting in June: “ABC Restrooms, Ask about our Fourth of July party discount. This is Joe.’’
Upbeat but serious
You want to convey enthusiasm for your work without sounding like a cheerleader. Stay away from something like, “It’s a great day at John’s Jons.’’ The hazard with too much happy talk is that the caller might not be particularly happy. And their mood might have something to do with your company’s service. Be upbeat and courteous with your new greeting, but beware of coming off as saccharine sweet. That will only throw fuel on the fire of a customer complaint.
Pay attention to the caller
When you settle on a brief greeting that covers all the necessary information, it’s time to focus on delivery. When the phone rings, take a breath, make sure there are no distractions around you and answer the phone. Be polite and treat every ringing phone as if a major customer is on the other end of the line. As part of any employee training about phone greetings, stress that interrupting a phone conversation is forbidden.
A FINAL WORD
For any phone greeting to be effective, it has to be used by your staff. This means employees need to understand why consistent greetings are good for the business. If the greeting you select is logical and straightforward, it will sell itself to those who have to use it every day.
Give it your own litmus test. Try the greeting yourself for a few days and see if it feels right … Or if it feels like saying, “We write the words that speak to you.’’
