The phone takes your face away
In a shop a smile, a nod and a hand pointing at the right shelf do half the work. On the phone that is gone, and your voice and your words carry the whole thing alone.
The customer in front of you sees the queue; the caller hears only silence, and silence does not read as busy, it reads as being ignored. Say out loud what you are doing while you are doing it. A sigh, eating, a television in the background: across a counter none of it registers, on the phone it is all there is to hear.
The first five seconds
Before you finish your first sentence the caller has decided whether they reached a real business or a mess. Your tone, your speed and whether you sound ready for the call decide it.
Pick up sooner. Three rings is a good target, and past five people start wondering whether anybody is there. If you cannot get to it, let it go to voicemail rather than answering and putting somebody on hold.
Then open the same way every time: a greeting, the name of the business, your own name. Goedemorgen, Bakkerij Nour, u spreekt met Amina, which is good morning, this is Bakkerij Nour, Amina speaking; met is simply the Dutch way of saying this is. Elsewhere, use the normal opening where you are. Then stop talking and let the caller say what they rang about.
Your voice, and hearing each other
Most people speak too fast on the phone, faster still when nervous. Take it a notch slower than feels natural: it sounds normal at the other end, and you are asked to repeat far less. Raising your voice does not help somebody who cannot follow you, and it often sounds angry. Slow down, shorten the sentence, choose an easier word.
Say so at the first sentence you miss, not the fifth. Sorry, ik versta u niet goed, kunt u dat herhalen means sorry, I do not understand you well, could you repeat that. De verbinding is slecht, the connection is bad, is often true and lets the caller say it again without feeling foolish. Never tell somebody you cannot understand their accent.
When the caller is the one struggling with the language, keep sentences short and let them answer before you add the next. Say numbers in small pieces, spell names letter by letter, and read back what you think you heard. Never finish somebody's sentence: waiting three seconds is cheaper than guessing wrong.
Name and number first, then notes
Ask for the name and telephone number before you start solving anything. Mag ik uw naam en telefoonnummer is may I have your name and telephone number. If the line drops you can ring back, and the customer is not lost. Read the number back digit by digit; one wrong digit turns a customer into a job you never did.
Write while they are speaking, in their words, in one notebook or one file. Four things cover most calls: who rang, when, what they want, and what you promised. Keep it where a colleague can find it, not in your own phone, because somebody must answer for you when you are off sick. Those notes are personal information, so keep only what you need.
Ask before you put anybody on hold, say why, and give a real length, not soon. Before you transfer a call, say who you are passing them to and why, then tell that person before you hand over. Promise only what you control.
Calls you make, and voicemail
Before you dial, write down the one thing you need from the call, and have the order number, date and price in front of you. Open with your name, your business and your reason: Goedemiddag, u spreekt met Amina van Bakkerij Nour. Ik bel over uw bestelling van vrijdag, which is name, business and reason before anybody has to ask for them. Then ask komt het gelegen, is this a convenient moment.
A promise is a time, not the word later. Ring back even when you have no news, because thirty seconds of nothing new keeps a customer where silence loses one.
Record a greeting on your voicemail: the business name, what to leave, and when you will ring back. In a message you leave, give your name, business and reason in the first sentence, and say your number twice, slowly. Check voicemail at two fixed times a day and empty the box; a full one takes no messages at all.
Difficult calls, and closing well
With a caller who will not stop, wait for a breath, use their name, and say what you will do next. An upset caller needs to finish the first sentence uninterrupted, so take the facts and the number before you explain anything. Do not match an angry voice. Going quieter and slower is what brings the volume down.
Hand the call to somebody senior when money must be refunded, when a promise has to be broken, or when you are threatened. You may end a call that has turned abusive: say once that you will end it, say why, and write down what happened. If a caller says somebody is in danger right now, tell them to ring 112, the emergency number in the Netherlands, or the emergency number where they are.
Then close the same way every time: repeat what you agreed, say when they will hear from you, and let the caller hang up first.
Customer Care on the Phone works through all of this section by section, and is available at abdiqanigroup.com.
Note: This article is general business education and does not replace professional advice.
Taleefanku wajiga wuu kaa qaadaa
Dukaanka dhexdiisa, dhoola cadayn, madax ruxid iyo gacan khaanadda ku tilmaamaysa ayaa nus shaqada kuu qabta. Taleefanka taasi way maqan tahay, codkaaga iyo erayadaaduna keligood ayay wax walba sidaan.
Macmiilka hortaada taagan safka wuu arkaa; kan wacayaa wuxuu maqlayaa aamusnaan keliya, aamusnaantuna mashquul uma dhigna, waxay u dhigan tahay in la iska indhatiray. Cod dheer ku sheeg waxa aad samaynayso inta aad samaynayso. Taah, cunto, telefishan gadaal ka socda: miiska dushiisa midna lama dareemo, taleefankase waa waxa keliya ee la maqlayo.
Shantii ilbiriqsi ee hore
Ka hor intaadan jumladdaada hore dhammayn, qofka wacayaa wuu go'aansaday inuu ganacsi dhab ah helay iyo in kale. Waxa go'aansada waa codkaaga, xawaarahaaga, iyo inaad u muuqato mid wicitaanka diyaar u ah.
Dhaqso u qaado. Saddex garaac waa bar wanaagsan, shan ka dibna dadku waxay is weydiinayaan in qof jiro iyo in kale. Haddii aadan gaadhi karin, voicemail ha aado, halkii aad qaadi lahayd oo aad sug ku dhihi lahayd.
Ka dibna mar walba si isku mid ah u fur: salaan, magaca ganacsiga, ka dibna magacaaga. Goedemorgen, Bakkerij Nour, u spreekt met Amina, taas oo ah subax wanaagsan, kani waa Bakkerij Nour, waxaa ku hadlaysa Amina; met waa sida Nederlandka loogu dhaho kani waa. Dal kale, isticmaal sida caadiga ah ee halkaas. Ka dibna hadalka jooji oo u daa inuu sheego waxa uu ku wacay.
Codkaaga, iyo marka aadan fahmin
Dad badan taleefanka aad ayay ugu hadlaan, marka ay welwelsan yihiinna way ka sii dheereeyaan. Hal heer ka gaabi inta kuu dabiici ah: dhinaca kale caadi ayay u ahaanaysaa, waxna kama badan in lagu celiyo. Codka kor u qaadiddu ma caawinayso qof aan ku raaci karin, badanaana xanaaq ayay u eg tahay. Gaabi, jumladda soo gaabi, oo eray fudud dooro.
Jumladda hore ee aad seegto sheeg, ee ha sugin ilaa tan shanaad. Sorry, ik versta u niet goed, kunt u dat herhalen macnaheedu waa waan ku fahmi waayay, ma celin kartaa. De verbinding is slecht, oo ah xidhiidhku waa xun yahay, badanaa waa run, wuxuuna qofka u ogolaanayaa inuu ku celiyo isagoon ceeboobin. Weligaa ha dhihin lahjaddaada ma fahmi karo.
Marka qofka wacayaa uu yahay kan luqadda ku adkaatay, jumlado gaagaaban isticmaal oo u daa inuu jawaabo ka hor intaadan mid kale ku darin. Lambarrada si kala qaybsan u sheeg, magacyada xaraf xaraf u sheeg, oo u celi waxa aad u malaynayso inaad maqashay. Weligaa jumladdiisa ha u dhammayn: saddex ilbiriqsi oo aad sugto waa ka raqiisan tahay malo khaldan.
Magac iyo lambar hore, qoraalna socda
Magaca iyo lambarka taleefanka weydii ka hor intaadan dhibaatada xallin. Mag ik uw naam en telefoonnummer waa ma i siin kartaa magacaaga iyo lambarkaaga taleefanka. Haddii khadku go'o waad dib u wici kartaa, macmiilkuna ma luma. Lambarka lambar lambar u celi; hal lambar oo khaldan wuxuu macmiil ka dhigayaa shaqo aadan qaban.
Qor inta ay hadlayaan, erayadooda, hal buug ama hal fayl. Afar shay ayaa wicitaanada badankood qariya: cidda wacday, goorta, waxa ay rabaan, iyo waxa aad ballan qaadday. Meel saaxiib shaqo heli karo ku hay, ee ma aha taleefankaaga gaarka ah, maxaa yeelay qof baa kuu jawaabi doona maalinta aad maqan tahay. Qoraalladaasi waa xog shakhsi ah, marka kaliya hay waxa aad u baahan tahay.
Weydii ka hor intaadan qof sug ku dhihin, sheeg sababta, oo muddo dhab ah sheeg, ee ha odhan dhawaan. Wareejinta ka hor, sheeg cidda aad u wareejinayso iyo sababta, ka dibna u sheeg qofkaas ka hor intaadan gudbin. Kaliya ballan qaad waxa aad gacanta ku hayso.
Wicitaanada aad samayso, iyo voicemail
Ka hor intaadan wicin, qor hal shay oo aad wicitaanka ka rabto, oo hortaada dhig lambarka dalabka, taariikhda iyo qiimaha. Ku fur magacaaga, ganacsigaaga iyo sababta: Goedemiddag, u spreekt met Amina van Bakkerij Nour. Ik bel over uw bestelling van vrijdag, taas oo ah magac, ganacsi iyo sabab ka hor inta lagu weydiin. Ka dibna weydii komt het gelegen, oo ah ma waqti habboon baa.
Ballantu waa waqti, ee ma aha erayga dabadeed. Wac xitaa haddii aadan war cusub haysan, maxaa yeelay soddon ilbiriqsi oo war la'aan ah ayaa macmiil hayaysa, aamusnaantuna way lumisaa.
Voicemail-kaaga salaan ku duub: magaca ganacsiga, waxa la reebo, iyo goorta aad dib u wicidoonto. Fariinta aad ka tagto, jumladda hore ku sheeg magacaaga, ganacsigaaga iyo sababta, lambarkaagana laba jeer si tartiib ah u sheeg. Voicemail-ka hubi laba waqti oo go'an maalintii oo sanduuqa nadiifi; mid buuxaa fariin ma qaado.
Wicitaan adag, iyo dhammaynta wanaagsan
Qofka aan hadalka joojinayn, neefta sug, magaciisa isticmaal, oo sheeg waxa aad xigta samaynayso. Qofka xanaaqsan u daa inuu jumladda hore dhammeeyo isagoon la gooyn, xogta iyo lambarkana qaado ka hor sharraxaadda. Cod xanaaqsan ha la mid noqon: aamusnaan iyo gaabis ayaa codka hoos u dhigaya.
Qof kaa sarreeya u gudbi marka lacag la celinayo, marka ballan la jebinayo, ama marka lagu hanjabayo. Waad joojin kartaa wicitaan af xumo noqday: hal mar sheeg inaad joojinayso, sheeg sababta, ka dibna qor waxa dhacay. Haddii qofku sheego in cid hadda khatar ku jirto, u sheeg inuu wacdo 112, oo ah lambarka gurmadka ee Nederland, ama lambarka gurmadka ee meesha uu joogo.
Ka dibna mar walba si isku mid ah u dhammee: ku celi waxa aad isla qaateen, sheeg goorta lagaa maqlayo, oo iyaga u daa inay horta taleefanka dhigaan.
Koorsada Customer Care on the Phone waxay tan oo dhan qayb qaybta u marinaysaa, waxaana laga helayaa abdiqanigroup.com.
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