Telephone Etiquette

[Shamim Ansary]

Telephone Etiquette's to Improve Communication

What are Telephone Etiquettes ?

Telephone is an important device with the help of which people separated by distance can easily interact and exchange their ideas. Got a brilliant idea and want to convey it to your friend staying out of the country, use the telephone. Telephone is one of the easiest and cheapest modes of communication.

Telephone etiquettes - An individual needs to follow a set of rules and regulations while interacting with the other person over the phone. These are often called as telephone etiquettes. It is important to follow the basic telephone etiquettes as our voice plays a very important role in creating an impression of our personality, education, family background as well as the nature of job we are engaged in. The person giving the information is called the sender and the second party is the recipient.

Let us now study the various telephone etiquettes.
Please find below the various telephone etiquettes.
   

    01. Always remember your voice has to be very pleasant while interacting with the other person over the phone. Don’t just start speaking,
         before starting the conversation use warm greetings like “good morning”, “good evening” or “good noon” depending on the time.

    02. Never call any person at odd hours like early morning or late nights as the person will definitely be sleeping and will not be interested in
         talking to you.

   03.  In any official call, don’t use words like” Any guess who I am? “as the person on the other side might be occupied with something and can
         get disturbed. Always say “Is it Ted?”, and do ask him, “Is it the good time to talk to you?” and then start communicating. If the person
          sounds busy always wait for the appropriate time.

    04. Make sure your content is crisp and relevant. Don’t play with words, come to the point directly and convey the information in a convincing
         manner. First prepare your content thoroughly and then only pick up the receiver to start interacting.

   05. After dialing, always reconfirm whether the person on the other side is the desired person whom you want to interact with. Always ask “Am
         I speaking to Mike?” or “Is this Jenny?” before starting the conversation.

    06. Always carefully dial the numbers, never be in a rush or dial the numbers in dark as it would lead to a wrong call. If by mistake you have
         dialed a wrong number, don’t just hang up, do say sorry and then keep the phone courteously.

    07. Never put the second party on a very long holds. Always keep the information handy and don’t run for things in between any call as the
          listener is bound to get irritated.

    08. While interacting over the phone, don’t chew anything or eat your food. First finish your food and then only dial the number. If you are
          reading, please leave the book aside, first concentrate what the other person wishes to convey and then continue with the book.

    09. After completing the conversation, don’t just hang up. Reconfirm with the receiver whether he has downloaded the correct information or
          not and do end your conversation with pleasant words like “Take care”, “nice speaking with you” and a warm bye. Never say Goodbye.

    10. Always speak each and every word clearly. The person on the other hand can’t see your expressions so remember your tone should be apt
          to express your feelings in the correct form.

    11. Don’t take too long to pick up any call. If you miss the call, make sure you give a call back as the other person might have an important
          message to convey. Avoid giving missed calls at work places as it irritates the other person.

    12. In professional talks, never keep the conversation too long as the other person might be busy. Always keep the content crisp and relevant
         and do come to the point after formal greetings.

    13. If you are not the correct person and the speaker needs to speak to your fellow worker always say “one moment please- I will call him in a
         minute”. If the colleague is not in the office premises, always take a message on his behalf and don’t forget to convey him when he is back.

    14. Decrease the volume of the television or turn off the speakers while speaking over the phone as noise acts as a hindrance to effective
         communication

    15. If there is any disturbance in the network, don’t just keep speaking for the sake of it; try to call after sometime with a better line.

Remember all the above telephone etiquettes must be practiced for an effective and healthy telephonic discussion and smooth flow of information.