Designing telephone announcements professionally – The first impression of your company counts

Have you ever gone through the call process of your customer service from a customer’s point of view? Do you know the phone prompts and what selections you need to make to get to your destination? If not, we encourage you to give it a try. After all, the telephone is still the most popular contact channel for many customers, but all too often we find that companies have not yet focused on the professional appearance on the phone.

What measures do we recommend?

With the first greeting text, you should welcome your caller and give him the impression that it is desired. When choosing the speaker’s voice and the music, make sure that they fit your company. While the right voice for a bank or insurance company should primarily convey seriousness and credibility, sympathy and emotion may be more important for a furnishing shop or travel agent. If you record telephone announcements in several languages, we always recommend using “native speakers“.

Provide the caller with important information such as your opening hours, alternative ways of making contact or a request to stay on the line for a short time. Possible waiting times can be designed with infotainment: provide the caller with additional information about the company or announce new products and services.

When formulating the announcement texts, use the simplest possible language and make it as easy as possible for the caller, who may be in a stressful situation. Repeat important information such as phone numbers or email addresses so that the caller can take notes at their leisure. Be brief and to the point, because what is said is processed by the short-term memory.

Even small phrases make a big difference: instead of “You have not made a selection”, it is better to politely point out to the caller “We could not recognise your selection”. Or instead of “At the moment all our services are busy” it is better to hold the customer on the line appreciatively “Thank you very much for your patience, we will be right with you”. When carefully preparing telephone greeting texts, it is worthwhile to have them checked by experts. Some agencies offer this service – if necessary, we will be happy to recommend a selection of suitable agencies.

In addition, use the “Analytics” function of your waiting field. Here you can gain very important insights. The average waiting time of your hangers-on shows you the willingness of your customers / sales partners to wait. Try to use the waiting area in an intelligent and interesting way to make it effective for your company, but also positive for outsiders. For example, an announcement about the current waiting time can be helpful at this point, or the offer of a callback can help to demonstrate your willingness and quality of service if the call is not answered immediately.

What advantages do you achieve with professional telephone announcements?

The one-time investment in a professional appearance on the telephone is always worthwhile. With the right concept and professional telephone announcements, accessibility can be controlled and improved, and caller losses minimised. Use the telephone consistently as a marketing channel. The potential or existing customer is already listening to you, inspire him or her for your service on the phone as well.