PROFESSIONAL
TELEPHONE ETIQUETTE

WHY THIS SESSION?
• Telephone etiquette can make or break the
caller’s perception of your service

INFLECTION
• 86% of the message
is from your tone of
voice
• 14% is grasped by the
actual words
Tone
of
Voice
Words

TIPS TO IMPROVE INFLECTION
• Smile
• Stress Words
• Breathe
• Exaggerate your tone

Test Your Telephone Etiquette
IQ

SCENARIO ONE
The time is 11:45 am, and Harriet is at her desk
putting the final touches on last quarter’s sales
figure report, which is due to her boss by noon. She
is on the final page of the report when the phone
rings. Harriet tries to ignore it for a few moments
(hoping the person will go away), but the ringing
continues. Eventually, she picks up the phone and
says with a smile, “This is Harriet, how may I help
you?” Harriet is demonstrating good telephone
etiquette:
_____ True _____ False

SCENARIO TWO
Ana is a sales assistant at a large hardware store.
Her supervisor, George, is having a brief meeting
with her about some new stock that has just arrived.
Ana’s telephone rings. She immediately picks it up,
greets the customer on the other end of the line, and
politely says, “Let me put you on hold for just a
moment.” Ana is demonstrating good telephone
etiquette:
_____ True _____ False

SCENARIO THREE
Robert is a travel agent who works for a large national
travel agency. His area of specialty is domestic travel.
His phone rings and on the line is a customer who needs
help booking an overseas trip to Morocco. Robert
explains to the customer that he does not deal with
foreign travel by saying, “I’m sorry, you’ve reached the
domestic travel department, you need to talk to
international. Hold on for a moment, and I will transfer
you.” Robert is demonstrating good telephone etiquette:
_____ True _____ False

SCENARIO FOUR
Alex is the assistant to the vice president of
marketing for a clothing manufacturer. He receives a
call for his boss – from a person whose voice he
doesn’t recognize – and says, “May I ask who’s
calling please?” The customer on the other end of
the line gives his name and Alex replies, “I’m sorry he
isn’t in right now, may I take a message?”
Alex is demonstrating good telephone etiquette:
_____ True _____ False

TOP TEN TELEPHONE MISTAKES

1. Assuming other recognize you from your voice.
2. Speaking unclearly, muffled or with food in your
mouth.
3. Not listening.
4. Speaking harshly or with intimidating tones.
5. Talking to others in the room, while on the
telephone.

6. Hanging up without speaking, or apologizing for
wrong number.
7. Forgetting you have placed people on hold.
8. Interrupting while others are talking.
9. Leaving long messages or unclear messages.
10. Ending the call abruptly.

ANSWERING THE TELEPHONE
• Pick up the phone in three rings
• Greet the caller. Good manners shows you respect
the caller.
• Give your name.
• Ask the customer if or how you can help.

Tips for Troubleshooting

PUTTING A CUSTOMER ON HOLD
• Seek permission before putting the customer on
hold.
• Try to keep the duration shortest
• Explain to customers why you are putting them on
hold
• Thank customers for holding.

TRANSFERRING A CALL
• Ask the customer if they mind being
transferred.
• Explain why they are being transferred and to
whom.
• Know the transfer instructions for the
telephone system so that you do not cut off
your caller!

CUTTING CALLS SHORT
• Give a short, sincere explanation for ending the
telephone conversation.
– For example, “I’m sorry to cut this short, but I have a
visitor waiting to see me.”
• Make plans to get back with the caller if
necessary.
– Example: “We have a staff meeting in five minutes.
May I call you back?”

TAKING A MESSAGE
• Explain your co-workers absence in a positive
light but do not be too specific.
• Unnecessary details may seem absurd and
might give the wrong impression to those
seeking service
• Give a reasonable estimate of when the co-
worker will return.

• Offer to help the caller, take a message or transfer to another
staff member.
• Do not make commitments for others-say, "I'll give him your
message when he returns," rather than-"He will call you as
soon as he returns".
• Take accurate, legible messages with time, date, reason for
call, urgency, company represented, if any, the best time to
reach them and all other pertinent information.

ENDING THE CALL
• End the call on a positive note
• Repeating any actions agreed to be taken and
what is going to be done to help/ serve the
customer

QUALITIES OF A GOOD VOICE
1. Distinctness
2. Pleasantness/
warmth
3. Vitality
4. Naturalness
5. Expressiveness
6. Lower, mellow
pitch

OBTAINING THE CALLER'S NAME
1. "May I tell Mr. Gupta who is calling,
please?"
2. "May I say who is calling, please?"
3. "May I have your name, please?"

OBTAINING THE CORRECT INFORMATION
1. Always repeat and read back messages for
accuracy.
2. "Will you spell the name, please?"
3. "Will you repeat the number, please?"
4. "The correct spelling is P-R-E-T-T-Y?“
5. "The correct number is 5-1-1-6 - (pause)-1-5-3-4?"

PROGRESS REPORTS
1. "Mr. Anubhav’s line is still busy, do you wish to continue
waiting?”
2. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting, may I check further and
call you back?”
3. "That line is still busy, may someone else help you?”
4. "I'm sorry, she is still away from her desk, do you wish to
continue waiting?"

Voice Mail
Dos
• Make sure your message is
polite, direct, and
businesslike.
• Make sure your message
can be understood clearly.
• Return telephone calls
promptly
Don'ts:
• Make crude comments or
mention social
references in
your message.
• Have music playing in the
background.
• Use multiple people when
recording the greeting.

Voicemail Greeting
• Record your own personal greeting;
• Write down and practice the content before recording.
• Include your name and department in your greeting.
• Your regular greeting should include your normal work
hours.
• Use the attendant feature ( if available) to allows the
caller to reach another person in your department from
your voicemail.

Checking Messages and Returning
Calls
• Check your messages daily and return
messages within 24 hours.
• Reply, forward, or delete messages
immediately.
• If you forward a message, be sure to explain to
the person to whom you are forwarding the
message why you are sending it to them.

Leaving a Voicemail Message
• Speak clearly and slowly.
• Be sure to leave your name and extension number.
• Keep messages short and to the point.
• Let the person know the best time to call you back.
• Cover one topic in one message; specify what you want the
recipient to do.

MOBILE PHONE
ETIQUETTE

• Switching it Off : Know when to turn it off or silent mode
it. e.g. meetings, movies, worship, seminars, etc
• Vibrate mode when in places where you can take a call,
but don't want to disturb others.
• Permission : Often, it is correct etiquette to inform
others at the beginning of the meeting that you are
expecting an important call and get their permission.

• Be Polite : Don't scream : speak in a lower-than-
normal voice, you will be heard by the caller,
and not others in the room
• Don't Distract : Avoid talking where you may be
distracting to others.

• Avoid Talking With Someone When On The
Cell
• Use Voice Mail Feature
• Personal Calls Should be taken outside the
Office Premises

Ways to Sound as Good as You
Really Are!
• Alertness- Show that you are wide-awake, ready to engage in a
conversation
• Pleasantness- Put a smile in your voice ☺
• Naturalness- Use, simple, straightforward lang.; avoid
technical terms/slang
• Distinctiveness- Speaks directly into the phone; Use a normal
tone of voice, the louder you are, the louder everyone else
becomes
• Expressiveness- Talk at a moderate rate and volume, but vary
your voice tone

Don’ts
• Frown 
• Mutter
• Sound Tired
• Speak in a Shrill Voice
• Speak Negatively
• Ramble

Do’s
• Smile ☺ (they really can hear it!)
• Speak Clearly and Concisely
• Be Enthusiastic
• Lower the Pitch of your Voice
• Talk in a Positive Mood
• Listen/Discuss

Keys to Good Listening
• Limit your talking
– Can’t talk and listen at the same time
• Don’t Interrupt
– A pause doesn’t always mean the individual is
finished speaking
• Concentrate
– Focus on the conversation. Practice shutting
out outside distractions and personal
concerns

Keys to Good Listening
• Take Notes
– Helps you remember important points
• Listen for ideas….not just words
– Get the whole picture, not isolated bits and
pieces
• Interjections
– An occasional, “Yes,” “I see,” etc. shows that
your listening. However, don’t overuse them