With most every prospect and client almost perpetually keeping a cell-phone or a smart-phones in his/her possession, doing business by phone is becoming more important than ever. As a result, companies and free-lancers have a business need to practice good telephone manners such that they facilitate the building of strong relationships. The purpose of this entry is to share some of what we do here at Clean Cars of America to be successful on the phone and everywhere.

I am Dunn Dunnavant of Clean Cars of America. I have been working in jobs that involve telephone sales and/or telephone customer service since 1993. I have done everything from soliciting charitable donations by phone to selling mortgage loan products by phone to making telephone collection calls. So, I am not surprised, after 18 years of diverse telephone business experience, that I am often complemented on my telephone manners. In fact, often even when I am not actually hearing complements, I “sense” from my listener that he/she appreciates and enjoys aspects of my telephone communication skills. Though my job here at Clean Cars of America involves a lot more than just communicating by phone, I must credit my telephone skills as being one of my most important job qualifications.

Most everything that happens at Clean Car of America seems to begin with or in some way involve the telephone. We spend more time talking to prospects and clients by phone than in-person. Usually, inperson meetings are scheduled by phone. Logistics are communicated between our management and our field technicians primarily by phone. The all important “FIRST IMMPRESSION” is often made between us and our prospects via the telephone. Furthermore, as cellphones and smart-phones become even more numerous, future success will become increasingly dependent on telephone success. Our present and future success is inseparably connected to telephone communication. So we take very seriously the time that we spend on the phone. Partly because of the telephone skills that I use and teach, Clean Cars of America, has survived the “Great Recession,” is experiencing rapid growth and has become the most distinguished vehicle cleaning company in the Tennessee region.

The bottom-line is as follows:

1. After one conversation with me by phone, prospects generally are not reluctant to answer the phone the next time they see my name and number on their caller ID, even if they are busy.
2. Voice-mail messages that I leave are usually answered.
3. Initial calls that I make often lead to sales being closed, referrals being made and long-term relationships being built.

If you are not currently using a technique like the following, implementing it in a sincere, genuine manner may prove to be dramatically ameliorative to your business. Please note that what I am about to reveal is also very beneficial as a frame of reference for in-person communication, and email and text as well. However, we will focus here primarily on telephone manners. I hope that you find this immensely helpful. Please post a comment below.

My telephone manners are based on the following maxim: “Everyone wants to feel important and loved.” So, when I communicate, my conscious intention is to move the listener toward feeling loved and important. To accomplish this, I project that:

1. I am a wonderful man
2. I am having a wonderful day
3. You must be very important because I am excited about sharing my wonderful day with you

Sometimes, if the opportunity presents itself, I literally try to convince the listener that they are having a wonderful day as well…or I subtly invite them to share in my wonderful day.

So, for example, a telephone conversation might go something like this:

<Ring, Ring (Prospect/Client Calling)>

Dunn (projecting that I am having a great day): “It’s a great day at Clean Cars of America; this is Dunn; how may I help you?”

Caller: “I need to have my company’s fleet of construction vehicles cleaned…how much do you guys charge?”

Dunn: “What a great question! I’m glad that you asked. In order to give you the best answer, I need to ask you a few questions. Is that OK?

Caller: “Sure.”

Dunn: “Perfect! First of all, how are you today?”

Then, I transition into discussing how WONDERFUL everything is, benefits that Clean Cars of America offers, costs, realistic expectations, referrals, and how important it is to Clean Cars of America that we maintain long-term, amicable relationships with all of our clients.

IMPORTANT: I always say that I am wonderful, fabulous, spectacular, etc. I never say that I am pretty good, OK, alright, or anything less than great My experience is that as I sincerely act as though everything is wonderful, that my experiences become more wonderful. This requires a paradigm shift, but it has REALLY worked for me.

I like to end conversations with something like:

“Is there anything else that I can help you with right now?”

If they say “No.” Then I reply with something like:

“My name is Dunn; Thanks for choosing Clean Cars of America. And remember, its a wonderful day if we say so.”

When I call a client, I always try to limit telephone conversations to 2 minutes or less. That is respectful of the client’s time and of my time. Projecting that I am considerate of the listener’s time differentiates me from any competitor who is less considerate. My being considerate also makes the listener feel important, liked/loved, and helps bond them to me. If I need 5 minutes, 10 minutes, etc, I try to ask for the necessary time. I am careful to limit the conversation to the time that I asked for. However, unless the listener consents, directly or indirectly, to a longer talk, I find it better to keep business conversations short.

When making an out-bound call, after the listener answers I usually say something like “Hi (listener’s name)! This is Dunn Dunnavant with Clean Cars of America; How are you today?” After they respond, I say “Can you spare 2 minutes right now or am I calling at a inconvenient time?”

If the client says it is a bad time, I simply reply “When should I call you back?”

When leaving a voice-mail message, I usually say something like “This is Dunn Dunnavant with Clean Cars of America. Hi (client’s name), I’d like to speak with you for about 2 minutes. Please give me a call at 615-525-7682 when you can spare two minutes. Thanks. And remember, its a great day if we say so.”

Using the above described Clean Cars of America telephone technique communicates to the listener that you are considerate of his/her time and feelings, and thus that he/she is important to and/or loved by you. Your considerate, positive posture differentiates you for less considerate competitors. People like dealing with considerate individuals as they think to themselves “I like talking to this guy. I must be important to him, otherwise he would not care how I am feeling. And he is always so positive and upbeat. I wish everyone that I talk to was as nice. I’m gonna help him in anyway that I can…”