Lip Service: How to Develop
First-Class Telephone Skills
By Sharie Sipowicz

How much money have you spent on equipment, tools, and chemicals to do the detail job right and to make yourself and your technicians more productive? It is a staggering amount, isn’t it?

But, one piece of equipment, the telephone, is without a doubt your most important asset. Without a telephone you would not even be in business. Sadly, most detailers think they do a pretty good job using their telephone as a business tool. In most cases that is not true. Ask yourself these questions:

• Do you answer the telephone with just your business name?
• Do you experience your customers asking, “What business is this?”
• Do you omit your personal name when you answer the phone?
• Do callers ever ask, “Who is this?”

Did you answer “yes” to any of the questions? If so, let me suggest a few techniques that can dramatically improve your telephone skills and improve your business.

IDENTIFY

If you answer the telephone with only your business name, you are missing an opportunity to establish an emotional connection with the customer. An emotional connection occurs when the customer has a “wow” moment. Customers notice how especially nice you are. If you want this to happen quickly, two important items need to be in your telephone greeting: Thank the customer for calling and state your name. The greeting would, for example, sound like this: “Thank you for calling Deluxe Detail, this is Danny. How may I help you?”

Why do you need to say “Thank you for calling?” Because this phrase is a cushion before stating your business name. It gives the customer’s brain an opportunity to “click in” before hearing the business name. Have you ever dialed a number and while the phone was ringing you forgot whom you called? Then you hoped you would recognize the business when they answered, but whoever picked up didn’t identify the business and you had to ask whom you had called? What’s wrong with this picture? Obviously, it is an unpleasant experience to appear dumb and it causes wasted time on both sides of the telephone line.

The person answering the phone is establishing an image or perception of your business that determines, in large part, whether the customer will make an appointment. The customer is assessing whether the person on the phone is to be trusted and/or is worthy of his or her business. This is an opportunity to gain a customer.

So, “What’s in a name?” Humans process information in very primitive terms. They don’t think in words, they process thoughts through pictures. For example, you have just called a business and you hear this, “Thanks for calling Friendly Detail. This is Sam. How may I help you?” Do you know a Sam? Did you see another Sam just now? How about a Don or a Jim? Your brain automatically fills in the blanks with the faces of real people you know or have known. This creates a sense of trust and friendliness in the customer’s mind.

OFFER TO SERVE

The last sentence Sam added to his greeting is, “How may I help you?” This is your “offer to serve.” It is more than mere words, it tells the customer that you are an expert and if the customer will state his or her needs you will take care of them. In that sense, it’s a statement, not a question. A statement takes control of the greeting and of the customer. It moves the call along.

Your greeting should be delivered at the same measured pace no matter how busy you are. Customers prefer “not to hear you sweat.” If you slowed down just one second when answering the telephone, how much time in a day would you waste in answering 60 calls? How important is that one minute in setting the stage? Practice taking four seconds to answer each call. You or whoever answers the phone should consider every call you accept as a “performance.” Don’t use technicians for this. This should not be a part of their job description. The person answering your phones should love people before things. Technicians love things, not necessarily people. Let the customer “hear your smile.”

Customers will look forward to talking to you or whomever answers the phone if you create friendly phone skills.

These simple techniques will make your business more memorable. It takes minimal time to “perform” the call right. Capture each call with style, grace, and enthusiasm.

Sharie Sipowicz is aftermarket sales manager with Detail Plus Car Appearance Systems Inc. She has been involved in the detail industry for over 20 years, both as a vendor of products and equipment and as a hands-on operator in a retail detail environment. You can contact Sharie at sharie@detailplus.com.