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Virtual Receptionist Tips: How you can Turn a Caller's Frown Upside Down

Should you work with an active answering service or answer phones in your job, you will find frustrated callers every now and again. Everyone makes mistakes and often everyone has other activities happening within their lives that leave a poor taste in their mouths. Though these calls can be tricky, they are able to also be an excellent opportunity to turn someone's day around. Taking these steps can have your clients that you simply care and you'll simply make them into a loyal customer with your thoughtfulness:

When speaking by having an unhappy caller:

1. Allow them to explain and reiterate what you've heard. Sometimes folks simply need to vent. Give them a minute to describe their situation and let them know you've understood their issue by repeating what you've heard.

2. Acknowledge their emotion. A supportive "That does sound frustrating" or "I can easily see where you're coming from" can go quite a distance. But when you don't feel it, don't say it; faking empathy can perform more harm than good.

3. Offer to help. Like a virtual receptionist, you may not be able to fit everything in your caller asks (i.e., answer their question in regards to a bill or physically find a worker). However, there's always something you can do! Use helpful phrases like "Let me" or "I would be happy to" and give a healthy dose of reassurance ("Let me take a message for John, our billing specialist. He'll be the best person to speak with about your bill. I'll make sure he has got the message immediately.").

4. Guide your caller. Always result in an issue. Guiding a caller with questions keeps you in control of the call helping you gather any pertinent information. A quick question is going to do, for example "May I've your telephone number?" or "What's the best time to reach you?" Basically, whatever you need or else you think would be helpful to get their issue resolved quickly with very little additional effort from your caller!

If you're a small company answering service employee, it could all come together like this:

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Your entire system is down? That is terrible! Let me take down a detailed message for our support team and read it back to you to ensure everything is correct. I'll make certain they understand this immediately so we might have you up and running as quickly as possible. What's the best telephone number for any return call?

Bonus tip: Virtual receptionists and in-house receptionists alike might want to include the caller's frustration within the message, so the other party can prioritize their issue and be ready for the return call. Something like, "Sheila seemed frustrated and would really like a call as soon as possible" should do the secret!

If phone answering is part of your job and you get a message from an upset caller:

1. Ring rather than reply. Even if your client sent an email or left a voicemail, when emotions are involved, a call or face-to-face conversation is the best way to go. Conveying an optimistic tone within an email is much harder compared to your voice. When talking over the telephone, you get to add warm and kindness to your voice and diffuse the problem better.

2. Gather your tips. Before you dial their number, stop and consider what you want to discuss. For instance, if pulling up their username and passwords will help the phone call go smoother, do that before hopping on the telephone.

3. Think positive thoughts. Negative thinking won't build your follow-up any easier. Instead, envision your conversation going well, as well as your colleague's concerns being assuaged. It'll relax thus making you sound more confident while you fix their problem!

Whether you're a virtual receptionist or CEO, we suggest trying these pointers when a colleague, customer, or co-worker is frustrated - you'll turn their frown inverted!