The person who answers your company’s telephone has an awesome responsibility. Not only is this person the first contact customers have with your company, but also he or she is responsible for starting a great relationship with your clients, current and potential. The person who answers your telephone is also responsible for potentially screwing up a client relationship or turning a potential customer off of your company. The impression he or she creates is critical to continued success or losing a precious lead. In these economic times you can’t afford to screw up a lead! 
   There are so many times that I call a company and I hear gibberish on the telephone. You can’t understand what the person answering the telephone is saying. Make sure that you have a scripted way of answering the telephone. It doesn’t literally have to be written down (although it’s a good idea). Train everyone to say the same thing when they answer the telephone. And, train them to speak slowly and clearly. 
   A dispatcher recently told me the policy at his company changed. Everyone who answers the telephone (including the owner) answers thusly: “It’s a great day at XXX Company. This is XXX, how may I help you?” They found out that people with problems were less angry and calmer. Just by saying, “it’s a great day”, i.e. a positive statement, made everyone, employees and clients, feel better. Occasionally they get asked why it’s a great day and they answer with a statement about why it’s a great day.
   Everyone answering the telephone should have a message book. Many times when the person I want to speak with isn’t there, the person answering the telephone doesn’t even have a piece of paper and a pencil to write down my name and telephone number. I hear “just a minute I have to get a piece of paper (or a pencil)” very often. If I were a client, I would think that my call isn’t important and therefore my business isn’t important. 
   Whoever answers the telephone needs to be ready with paper and pencil to take messages. The best way to do it is with a message book that has NCR paper in it. This way, if you lose the message, then you can go back to the message book and find a written backup. Also, if you need to speak with someone a few months later, you can always find their telephone number in the archived books. I’ve used the archived books myself. They are invaluable references.
   Make sure that everyone answering the telephone knows what advertising and marketing has been done. They should see copies of the letters, postcards, and print ads. They should hear the radio ads and see the television/cable ads. When a potential client calls because of seeing a letter or an ad, the person answering the telephone MUST be able to answer her questions. Otherwise, you’ll probably lose a lead. And, as stated before, in these economic times you can’t afford to screw up a lead! 
   One of the things that I’ve accepted, but still drives me crazy, is an automated telephone answering system. I understand why some companies do it. However, here’s a good reason to have a live person answering the telephone. Several years ago an owner of one of the companies I work with was dealing with some issues I thought a manager I knew at another company could help him with (after all he had lived through them). Unfortunately, the company owner said he knew the manager’s phone number. As a result, I didn’t give him this person’s direct extension. So, he called the general company telephone number rather than the direct number of the manager. 
   The automated attendant said “press 1 for service, press 2 for sales, etc.” He was trying to find a specific person who was not listed in the directory so he pressed 1 for service. He was put on hold for about 7 minutes (he timed it). He thought if someone really needed service they wouldn’t wait as long as he did. That made him curious.
   So, he hung up and dialed again because he really wanted to speak with this person. This time he pressed 2 for sales. The wait was 10 minutes this time…he was definitely looking at his watch. He hung up again and pressed another number and finally after two minutes someone came on the line. Would a potential client wait that long…especially someone who was trying to give you money? I don’t think so.
   If you have an automated attendant, call your company and press 1 for service, etc. and see how long it takes for someone to pick up the telephone. And, do it at odd hours, first thing in the morning, at lunchtime, right before quitting time. You’ll get the experience of seeing your company through your clients and potential clients’ eyes.
   Remember that the first impression that your clients and potential clients have is the person’s voice (or your voice mail system) on the other end of the telephone. Make it a positive impression.