Read the newspaper or watch the news and see what’s happening around the world. That way you can talk about some current events. Talk about a movie or show you’ve both seen that you liked or disliked and what you both think about it. Share a funny or interesting incident that happened to you, either recently or a long time ago. Ask them about any noteworthy happenings going on in their life right now or recently.
The benefit of knowing ahead of time roughly how long you want this call to be is that you can avoid ending the call too short or staying on too long, by preparing topics of conversation appropriately.
It can also help to have some questions ready to ask, especially when the conversation falls silent. Some possible questions include: How was your day? How’s work been going? How was your weekend? Have you been working on any projects recently? Seen any good movies recently?
When to end the call can usually be felt by noticing more frequent pauses in the conversation and that you’ve run out of interesting topics. The personality of the person you’re talking to, and how often you see and/or talk to them, are both going to be big factors in how long the conversation will go on. Once you get the feeling that the conversation is coming to a natural ending point, end the call gracefully, similarly to if you were talking to someone in person and had to leave. The structure of the calls end should look like: a positive statement about the chat, optionally add what you’re about to do next, next let them know you’d like to talk again, and finally say goodbye. For example: “It was good to talk to you. I’ve got to go prepare dinner, but let’s speak again soon. Goodbye. " Of course, in between each statement, let the other person respond first.
Customer call: From front desk receptionists or a sales team members, there are a number of jobs in which you’ll have to make and receive many calls from current and prospective customers and clients. Appointment call: Sometimes, you’ll need to make a call to make an appointment, for anything from seeing the dentist to getting your oil changed. Work call: This includes anything from calling work to call in sick to calling your boss to talk about a recent work development.
Don’t use slang or informal speech. Use the other person’s appropriate title when greeting them. If you need to put a customer on hold, ask them permission first. Speak clearly and slowly enough to be heard. If you miss what the other person said, don’t say “what?” Say “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that,” or “pardon?”
Some people also find it helpful to look in the mirror while they speak on the phone.
For calling customers, these lines can be something like “I hope you’ve enjoyed doing business with us,” or “thank you for calling blank, how can I help you?”
