You’ve probably never considered how the way that you use your phone could influence the success of your business.
After all, the two things seem so disconnected that there’s no reason to think that one might affect the other. As it turns out, though, there is actually a direct connection between how you use your phone and how successful your business is. Knowing how to identify and use this connection can mean the difference between a business that does better than you ever expected and one that just barely gets by.
Before we get too far into how you can use your phone to increase the success of your business, it’s important that you understand just how the two are connected. As it turns out, it has nothing to do with the apps you have on your smartphone or the amount of time you spend doing business vs. making personal calls… instead, it’s very much about how you interact with the person on the other end of the line.
Knowing How to Talk to People
When you talk to someone on the phone, there are no facial expressions or other visible cues to help you get your point across.
The entire power of the points you make comes from your voice and the way that you speak. If you sound confident and speak clearly, this will convey a sense of power and confidence to the person you’re talking to.
If you stumble over your words, use a lot of fillers or mumble, however, this will convey the opposite effect. This may not matter much in personal conversations, but think about how devastating sounding weak or unsure can be if you’re talking to a potential customer.
Being on the phone at work makes you a representative of your business, and it’s not just what you say that matters… it’s also how you say it. The better you’re able to show confidence in your product and a concern for your customers’ happiness through your inflection and speech, the more confidence customers will have in your company.
This confidence is a direct driver of the success of your business, since people are less likely to do business with a company that they have no faith in or that they think doesn’t actually care about them.
Being a Good Listener
There’s more to instilling confidence in your customers than simply speaking well, though.
It’s also important that customers feel that you’re actually listening to them when you talk to them on the phone. Don’t interrupt, show interest in what the caller says and do your best to answer any question that you’re asked. You should also ask questions if you need more information, as this shows that you’re taking an active interest in the conversation and really want to find out what the customer thinks.
This is true regardless of whether the customer called in or you initiated the call. If you’re on a marketing call, it’s especially important that the person on the other end of the line feels that you’re listening to them.
People are often put on edge by sales calls because they know that the caller wants to sell them something that they may not want, so you need to put these fears at ease and get the person you’re talking to feeling like they’re an active part of the conversation.
Watch the Sales Pitches
Regardless of whether you’re handling customer calls or making calls of your own, you may have certain parts of your business that you want to push during the conversation.
It doesn’t matter if it’s a new product, a specialized feature or an upgrade to a customer’s existing service, there’s usually some imperative to try and get that sales push out there. This isn’t a bad thing, but it’s important to use care when making the pitch.
If the conversation turns into too aggressive of a sales push or it’s too obvious that you’re trying to make the sale above all else, the person you’re talking to will go on the defensive and your chance at the sale could go down the drain.
It can take practice to get the sort of phone etiquette down that lets you project confidence and make casual sales pushes over the phone, but it’s well worth it. The more you train yourself (and your employees) to handle the phone well, the more successful your business will be overall.
Best of all, you’ll start seeing the results almost immediately.
