If you’re not a student of inbound telephone call statistics, you may not be aware that every business day, many phone calls are terminated before the sale or transaction is made because callers don’t like to wait on hold in silence…and they hang-up!

Ok, there may be other reasons why people hang up early.  Maybe their tea-pot started whistling, or the baby cried, or the dog was eating their homework…but much of the time, it’s because the caller felt like their On Hold experience was not up to par with their expectation of customer service. 

That is to say that their perception of the time in waiting was too long…

…and their response is to disconnect or hang-up, terminating the sale or transaction

…and possibly the relationship present and future.

Enter Albert Einstein and his Theory of Relativity, commonly expressed as E=mc² .

This, thankfully, for the rest of us, has also been expressed like this:

“When you sit with a nice girl for two minutes, it seems like two seconds.

             Put your hand on a hot stove for two seconds, it seems like two minutes.

                         That’s relativity.”

The way your callers perceive their elapsed time On Hold is relative.

- A pleasant On Hold experience will be perceived as a less time than actual

- An unpleasant On Hold experience will be perceived as more time than           actual. (Ouch!)                                                                                                  

Making an On Hold experience more painful than it needs to be is simply wrong…and bad for business…especially when there are intelligent, proven, and cost effective methods to cause On Hold time to be perceived as shorter than it actually is.

Want to create a more pleasant On Hold experience that’s seems shorter rather than longer ?  Get in touch with a real studio specializing in On Hold message creation, preferably a member of the On Hold Messaging Association.

"Hi, you've reach Frank at 555-551-5151. Unfortunately, I'm either on the other line, away from desk, or out of the office. Please leave a voicemail after the beep."

We've heard it 1000 times. That generic greeting at the end of a long string of unanswered rings that tells us to do exactly what we already know. We don't think much about it, but how we record this message can significantly impact what happens next. We're going to identify what's wrong with Frank's voicemail greeting and tell you how to leave a more effective one for your business.

Here's what's wrong with Franks message:

1) "Hi, you've reach Frank at 555-551-5151.
If we dialed the number, we already know what it is. There's no reason to restate the number. If the person dialed the number by accident, they will know as soon as they hear the voice and your name

2) Unfortunately, I'm either on the other line, away from desk, or out of the office.
Frank has pretty much run the gamut of why he could be away from his desk. This statement could be accurate, but it doesn't do much for the sake of the caller.

3) Please leave a voicemail after the beep
If in 2009, the person doesn't know what to do after the beep, they're probably not worth the time.

Here are five ways to leave an effective personal voicemail greeting for your voice mailbox using Frank's example.

1. Be willing to change your voicemail greeting regularly.
Your schedule and availability are likely to change frequently, so get into the habit of recording your voicemail message to reflect where you are and how you'd prefer those getting in touch with you to respond. An old, out-of-date greeting can leave a negative impression, especially when it's clearly inaccurate. For example, it's December 18th and your voicemail says you'll be out of town for Thanksgiving. An up-to-date and accurate voicemail greeting leaves the positive impression that you're on top of your schedule and give appropriate attention to your voicemails. For example, "I'm in the office Monday, Tuesday and Thursday of this week leading up to Christmas." Likewise, Frank could also say. "This is Frank Smith. I'm in the office today. Please ..."

2. Leave helpful information

Don't waste time telling callers you're out of the office, away from your desk, or on the other line all in one greeting. This can be assumed considering you didn't pick up the phone. Instead, provide specific and helpful information such as when you'll be back in your office or alternative ways you can be reached, be it by email or through an administrative assistant. For example, "if this is urgent, please dial ## to speak to ______. I can also be reached at frank@email.com, as I check my emails regularly."  If you offer callers an out to reach an assistant, test it on occasion and be sure it works for you.

3. Be specific about what they should include in their message (instructions)
Consider that your callers may be calling from a cell phone.  Perhaps they are calling from a noisy environment, and they also may be in a hurry.  In addition to keeping your greeting short and concise, be sure to speak very clearly and slowly enough to ensure that the caller has 100% confirmation they have reached your mailbox.  Upon recording your greeting, be sure to end your greeting by pressing the appropriate command button within your voice mail system fairly quickly after you have stated your last word.  This creates that ‘beep’ tone that callers hear that triggers them to leave their message.  If you happen to wait for 4-5 seconds after you have concluded your greeting to press your associated ‘end greeting’ command, then your callers will also have to wait those same 4-5 seconds in eager anticipation for the coveted beep tone. 

4. Use discretion when including humor. 

Leaving a memorable voicemail message or voicemail greeting can help you get the call back you're seeking, but only when done correctly. Humor or offbeat material can help you in this cause, but it can easily lead to awkward reactions and misunderstandings. It's a good bet to keep your messages "business casual" at the very least.


5. Always listen back to your outgoing message
It may have sounded good when you recorded it, but hearing it back through the phone can sound very different. Listen to it and critique it as though you're listening to someone else's message. Pay attention to your tone. Do you sound enthusiastic, reserved, or even bored? Is it clear to the caller how you'd like them to proceed? Is it up to date? In any creative effort, the second and third takes can be leagues better than the first, so even when you think you've got it, give it another go and see how you can make it better. This attention to detail can lead to very positive impressions, especially for first time callers.  Also, it is a good idea to occasionally call yourself as if you are one of your callers.  Dial the full phone number and listen to the entire experience.  You may be surprised at the result.  Many voice mail services or systems add on those canned and optional phrases after your greeting.  They offer callers the ability to ‘send a page’, ‘enter a callback number’ or perhaps even more fairly worthless and outdated offerings.  They are almost always optional in terms of your ability to offer them.  Pull out your manual and experiment with excluding these lengthy canned options.  They simply create frustration and eye rolling from your callers.  They really just want the coveted beep tone as fast as they can get it.  

So what we end up with can be as simple as the following sample greating. 

“Hi, this is Frank.  For Tuesday, I’ll be out of the office all day, but I am checking this mailbox frequently.  Please leave a message.”  

That’s it. 

Simple, and if Frank pressed ‘#’ or whatever his greeting ‘ender’ is fairly quickly, we’re talking about a very painless greeting that conveyed important information to the caller in less than 7 seconds.  Perhaps stylistically or logistically, Frank needs to say a bit more.  Try this one:

“Hi, this is Frank.  Today is Tuesday and I am traveling all day.  Please leave a message and I’ll return your call by the end of the day, or if your call is urgent, press zero to be transferred.  Thanks for calling!” 

It’s still short, conveys an option and suggest to the caller they will hear back from you (but you MUST adhere to calling back). 

Many services and phone systems allow additional features that include the ability for callers to press a key to ring your cell phone or other device.  You can even have the caller state their name so that you can ‘screen’ the call before taking it.  Be careful with some of these features as they can generate negative impressions if not managed properly.  However, if managed properly, you can also generate the impression and reality that you are highly accessible which can be a very positive impression. 

TELEPHONE TIPS / ETIQUETTE 

Have you ever noticed how much attention (and money) a business spends on its lobby or greeting area?  There may be a nice warm reception area complete with artwork, a candy dish and perhaps even a TV screen.   It’s usually well furnished and very clean.  Typically there will be somebody there to welcome you.  The lobby and entrance area is truly very important in that it is an entry portal or ‘touch point’ for clients and partners.   But certainly, there are other ‘touch points’ to a company.  These ‘touch points’ may include outside sales representatives, websites or mailing campaigns.   But of course, the possibility still remains that your telecommunications system is a major ‘point of entry’ or ‘touch point’ to your company.  

Your telephone system:

Years ago, the terminology for what was once known as the common ‘call center’ became known as the ‘contact center’.   That’s because the number of ‘touch points’ increased from a simple voice call, to a potential fax, email or other electronic file.   Certainly there are folks that enjoy communicating via electronic means, but the good ole telephone call continues to rank high as the most effective means of building relationship, rapport and trust between consumers and providers. 

Consider the below tips:

1) Your main phone number is the front door to your business:  Put yourself in the shoes of your callers.  Call your own company and role play yourself as a new potential client.  Try to grasp the ‘caller experience’ and be able to qualify your initial first impression.  

• Was the main phone number answered by a warm human or a cumbersome automated attendant?  Or perhaps, it was answered by a very well designed automated attendant.  The most effective automated attendants offer only 3-5 menu choices initially, with the most commonly desired destination being listed first.  

• Brevity and voice audio quality are critical.  Whether you are using a human or automated attendant to answer the calls, avoid lengthy greetings that include time consuming tag lines or long courtesy statements.  Be sure your automated attendant greeting is professional and of high audio quality.  If a human is answering the telephone, does the greeting sound rushed?  Is the greeting succinct and understandable?  Can the caller clearly hear the name of the company?  

2) Call Screening techniques:  This sure can be a touchy subject and be a matter of stylistic preference.  But once again, we would encourage you to put yourself in the shoes of the caller.   For purposes of this conversation, we’ll define ‘screening the call’ as asking the caller to share their name (either with the human or automation) in an effort to alert the called party.

• Consider NOT screening the call.  While the called party would appreciate the knowledge of who is calling, and preparing properly for the call, consider that Caller ID can do some of that work for you.  There is absolutely a downside of ‘screening’ that should be considered.   If an important caller has been ‘screened’, but the called party can’t or won’t take the call, the caller can only be left with the impression that their call wasn’t deemed as important.  This is a very hard habit to break if ‘screening’ has been in place for years.  Consider a weeklong trial and determine if it works in your scenario.  Your callers will appreciate it.  Sure, an undesired call or two will ‘sneak through’, but that is a minor consequence to the potential that a viable and perhaps sensitive client may feel snubbed.

• If your phone system does not allow for an easy way to alert ‘off-hook’ employees of ‘holding calls’, consider using your internal IM service as a way to make your associates aware that callers are holding. If Caller ID / NAME is displayed….make your associates aware of the possible caller.  

• Changing your voice mail greeting everyday to reflect your ‘status’ for the day is optimum, but only if you can commit to keeping it updated and timely and somewhat brief.

• Brevity is king.  Be sure to speak clearly and don’t rush through your name or company name.   The practice of saying “I’m sorry I’ve missed your call, and your call is important to me” is obsolete.  A very simple “Hello, this is Jeff Burton with Burton Construction.  Please leave a message and I look forward to returning your call shortly” is a better choice as opposed to “Hello.  It’s a great day at Burton Construction.  You’ve reached the voice mailbox of Jeff Burton.  I’m unavailable to the phone right now but at the tone, please leave your name, your telephone number and the reason you called and I will return you call at my first opportunity.  If your call is urgent, you can press zero and your call will be transferred to the operator.  Thanks for calling, and here’s the tone!”  Though the latter greeting may suggest a more courteous and even informative approach, the vernacular has become ‘noise’ to callers through the years.  Most everything in the latter greeting can be assumed.

• Record your voice mail greeting via the handset, not the speakerphone.  To the extent possible, always use your primary desk phone whether it be digital or IP to record any of your voice mail greetings.  Desk phones almost always offer far superior audio quality to cell phones.  

• After you have recorded your greeting, be sure to quickly press whatever button (# or *) your system requests to ‘end’ the greeting.  This will help quickly produce the ‘beep’ tone callers are waiting to hear so they can leave their message.  

• To the extent possible, always allow (via programming) an ‘operator revert’ in the form of a zero to operator for the caller, whether you actually state it in your greeting or not.  It is often assumed.  This is particularly important if the caller has reached your voice mailbox with a direct (DID) number to your desk!  Without the operator revert, you have offered your customer a bench in your voice mail ‘jail’, with nowhere to go (except possibly a competitor).  

• Know your phone system.  Spend 15-20 minutes with your user guide to completely understand the plethora of features available.  Many of these features will help you help callers.  

• Know your cell phone voice mail options.  Many personal greetings are often followed by the canned service greetings that offer the caller to ‘send a page, press 5.  To send a fax press 6’.  There are typically options in your service to turn off prompt requests that aren’t appropriate to your situation.   Chances are high that today’s users are not carrying pagers or using the fax option mentioned above.

4) Caller ID Name and Number:  This section is intended for the telecommunications management team of a company.  What NAME do people see in their CALLER ID DISPLAY when you or somebody in your company calls them?  Is it the current and proper name of your company?  Are you sure that it is consistently showing the same NAME no matter what outgoing line you use to make outgoing calls?  The reality is that many businesses are completely unaware of how they are ‘showing up’ to the parties they are calling.  It is quite possible that you are presenting several different names to those you call.   Over the years, as your company places orders for new service with various phone companies, a wide mix of NAMES can occur.  Some businesses are still being identified with the name of a business they acquired several years ago, or perhaps even the name of a former employee or owner that placed original orders.  To make it more complex, though you make think you have this solved, another reality is that your NAME will possibly display differently, contingent upon the phone line carrier of the person you have called.  For example, though you may think your NAME shows as ABC COMPANY to everybody, it may show up as ABC COMPANY when you call a Verizon customer, but it may show up as something completely different if you call a Comcast or Paetec customer.  Try it and see!  Make several outgoing calls from your office to your cell, your house, and other businesses and ask them what they see.  Find out who their carrier is also.  There are services that companies offer to ‘fix’ all of the above issues.  A phone call to your carrier will not in itself fix all of the variables.  You are welcome to contact us for more information!

5) On Hold Treatment of your callers:   As mentioned at the outset of this document, most businesses pay a great deal of attention and money to ‘dressing’ up the lobby or main entrance to their facility.  After all, people do ‘wait’ in the lobby and we certainly would not have them wait in a silent area, void of décor and visual stimulus.  In fact, most lobby areas are decorated with company awards, plaques, framed articles and other items to occupy the waiting client.  Consider doing the same for callers that are ‘waiting’ On Hold.   Since the caller is in essence a ‘captured audience’, it is important to make sure they know they are still connected, as silence makes folks hang up quickly.  This is also a prime opportunity to eloquently and professionally educate the caller on your services.   Proper script-writing and production will provide information that is valuable to the caller with appropriate and properly licensed music in between the messages to enhance the professional image.   The key to creating an effective messaging program is to educate the callers on products and services offered, of which the callers may not be aware.