Customer Service Tips Is Your

Customer Service Tips Is Your

Voicemail

Fierce, Fun and Fabulous?

by Nancy Friedman, Founder, Chairman Telephone Doctor Customer Service Training

When was the last time you listened to your own voicemail greeting? Since you recorded it? Years ago? The message you have on your voicemail is often the first impression potential customers have of your business. I have helped many franchise folks with their voicemail greeting, and on a scale of 1 to 10, most were a 2 or a 3. Some got up to a 7 or 8. This is a critical thing to get right. And it’s not that hard. Below are some common voicemail mistakes people make. Generally they can be: • Too long • Too short • Boring • Lacking emotion • Uninformative

A most-overlooked business tool, some folks have a message which sounds like a sequel to “Gone With the Wind.” Others simply say, “Hi, this is Bob, leave a message.”

Come on, we can do better. Much better.

One guy in Chicago had this: “You know what to do, GO.”

My guess is you haven’t checked in and called your own voicemail in a long time. So, your first assignment from the Telephone Doctor is to do just that. We cannot fix what we do not know. Call your own voicemail. If you’re not 150% happy with it… take 60 seconds of your busy day and rerecord. If not for you, for your callers.

Here are the Big Five voicemail/cell phone frustrations.

I’m not at my desk right now. (OMG!) DUH? That’s a hot lot of news. What a boring, semi useless statement. Live a little. Let your call- ers know where you are – not where you’re not. Tell them, “I am in the office all this week” or “I’m in a sales meeting till 3 pm.” Let them know if you do or don’t check messages. Let them know when you will be back. 1.

Your call is very important to me. (THE GROANER) OMG. Really? A big-time waster. The caller is thinking, “Well, if I’m so darn important, where the heck are you?” And then again, think about it. Maybe the call isn’t so important to you. You just don’t need this phrase. 2.

I’m sorry I missed your call. (USELESS) How dull. Of course, you are. (Although, there are probably some that you’re not sorry to have missed). OK to leave this phrase out! It’s a given. Use the time and space for something more valuable − like where you are and when you will return! Or, who they can call for more information. 3.

I’ll call you back as soon as possible. (AND WHEN IS THAT?) Not interesting and not fun. Mainly because your “as soon as possible” and my “as soon as possible” may not - and probably are not - the same. And based on our Telephone Doctor surveys, probably not true. The truth is most people aren’t returning their phone calls in a timely fashion (if at all). If you’re telling your callers you’ll call them back, make sure you do. If you think you may not return the call…then try this: “Go ahead and leave your phone number and I’ll DECIDE if I’ll call you back or not.” (Just kidding!) Unreturned phone calls rank high on the frustration list. “As soon as possible” is not an effective phrase. All you need is to say, “I will call you back.” (Then do it! Or have it returned on your behalf.) Not returning a phone call is like not using your turn signal. Just rude. 4.

No escape. (Everyone needs an escape) Hitting operator - ZERO, while not available on your cell, remember to tell callers to hit ZERO for the operator (or whoever) if they need more information on home or office phone. On your cell, you can give them another name and extension. The main point is to offer an alternative when you’re not there. Plus, you’ve bought back some time to say something more interesting or helpful to the caller. 5.

TELEPHONE DOCTOR Customer Service Training VOICE MAIL WARNING NOTICE

COMPANY NAME: OFFENDERS NAME:

Your cell phone message has been charged with:

1. Spoke way too fast. 2. Spoke way too slow. B O R I N G 3. Message was sequel to GWTW

4. Message OUTDATED, UNHELPFUL or PROVIDED NO INFORMATION 5. No SMILE. BLAH.

YOU CAN DO BETTER!

• Your voice mail is your vocal business card. Callers deserve better treatment.

• Call your own message at work and your cell phone. Hear what your callers hear.

• Watch Telephone Doctor’s one-minute video 5 Frustrating Voice Mail Phrases. http://www.nancyfriedman.com/warnings

Signed: A concerned caller

(Signature, Optional)

Courtesy of the oce of... Nancy Friedman Keynote Customer Service Speaker www.NancyFriedman.com nancy@telephonedoctor.com O: 314-291-1012 /C: 314-276-1012 © 2019 Nancy Friedman GOLD STANDARD Of Customer Service

And please, please, please remember to SMILE when recording the message. Believe it or not, callers can “hear” the smile in your voice!

Nancy Friedman, Founder and Chairman of Telephone Doctor Customer Service Training, is a sought-after speaker for franchise and corporate conferences, sharing tips and advice in customer service, communication and sales. As a former franchisor, she brings the good, bad and ugly for us to review. Author of 9 books, Nancy can be reached at www.nancyfriedman.com, or email her at nancy@telephonedoctor.com or a call: 314-291-1012 CST.