Administrative Professional's Day

This telephone tutorial will teach you how to take messages, telephone etiquette, and how to make a call. The telephone is the most used piece of equipment in your office. So it's important that you polish up on your telephone techniques.

• Telephone 
  • Etiquette
  • Messages
  • Making a call

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Telephone Tutorial

For today's lesson we'll put some names to your boss, the caller, the firm, and your self.  This will help you understand the lesson better.

Your Boss - Mr Brown
Firm - Secretarial.com
Caller - Mrs Smith
You -  Mary.

The very first step is to set up speed dialing on your telephone to allow quick dialing of numbers you frequently call and to quickly transfer incoming calls to your firm's extensions. Great! No more fumbling for a phone number or extension number.

If you don't have a phone that allows this, its a good idea that you try to get one the next time your phone system is updated. All phone systems will have instructions on how to set this up.

Pen and Paper
Always have pen and paper by your telephone to make notes, if necessary, when speaking to your caller.  It's also a handy backup if you need to refer to it at a later date.

Etiquette
The 4 things you need to address in your greeting are:

• Welcome your caller,
• Announce who your firm is, 
• Introduce yourself,
• Let them know you're here to help them.

Your company will be judged on your telephone manner, so it is very important that the first contact the caller has is with someone who is courteous, happy, and ever so willing to help.  Your greeting will also confirm to them they have called the right number by announcing your firm's name in your message.

Always try to pick it up within the first few rings.

EXAMPLE:
Now let's have a go. Ok, your phone is ringing, you pick it up within the first few rings, then you say:  

"Good afternoon, welcome to Secretarial Site Dot Com, this is Mary. May I help you."

Then pause...

The caller will then usually announce their name and give you the person's name they wish to speak to or some detail as to what they're calling about so you can connect them to the right person.  (Sometimes it's not this straight forward though).

If they do announce their name, jot it down straight away if you don't think you'll remember.  Also its helpful to make notes when they give you the reason for their call so you don't have to ask them again for the details.

Now that you have their name, its always more friendly to repeat their name back to them when addressing them.  It makes them feel important and that they're not wasting your time.  For example:

"Yes, Mrs Smith, if you could hold the line one moment, I'll put you through to Mr Brown."  

or

"Yes, Mrs Smith, I'll just check and see if Mr Brown is available to take your call right now"

This is where its helpful to have your internal extension numbers already set up, so that all that's required is a glance at the extension number to see if Mr Brown is on the phone or not (his extension no. will light up), and then its just a matter of pressing his number and announcing the caller.

When announcing Mrs Smith's call, you would tell Mr Brown:

Who the caller is
Which line the caller is on
What it was the caller wished to discuss

"Mr Brown, Mrs Smith is on line 1, regarding the online tutorial on telephone etiquette.  She has a few queries about it.  Would you be able to speak with her thanks?"

or if he's not available, say something similar to this...

"Mrs Smith I'm sorry but Mr Brown is out of the office for half an hour.  If you'd like to leave your number, I'll have Mr Brown call you as soon as he returns to the office."

Now because Mr Brown is out of the office, you'll need to take a message.  It's very important that you get your message correct - the correct phone number - repeat it back to ensure you have taken it down correctly.

Now, not always the caller will volunteer what the call is about.  So it's your job to find out.  This is for a couple of reasons.  One is that Mr Brown knows what the call is about and can make sure he's got his supporting paperwork, if necessary, before he takes the call; the second thing is that you know that Mr Brown IS the right person to answer the query and not another person in the office.

Now you must ask the question politely.

"Mrs Smith, could I ask what the matter is regarding"

or

"Mrs Smith, may I tell Mr Brown what it is in relation to?"

Usually, either of these questions will get you the answer.  Sometimes callers do not want to reveal to you what they are calling about.  If this is the case, you may like to get authority from your boss to advise the caller that you cannot put them through without advising your boss the subject of the call.  If all fails, put the call through but explain to your boss that the caller wouldn't give you any information about what it is he/she is calling about so that your boss knows you did your job.

 

MESSAGES
It's most important that you get the following details from the caller:

Name
Phone Numbers - mobile, office or home
What the call is about

Your written message should also contain:

Date
Time
Your name - so he know's who took the call

The caller may also give you additional information, such as:

Times the caller will be unavailable
File reference on a letter

If you do get a file reference, make sure a copy of the letter is available for Mr Brown's reference before he makes the call - he may just not remember the content of the letter without seeing it again.

If you're having difficulty understanding what the caller is saying, try spelling out the particular words e.g.

Her name is Smith but you can't quite get it.  Give examples, like 'S' for Secretarial, 'M' for Mother, 'I' for whatever springs to mind etc etc etc 

Now always end your call with a 'goodbye' message.

Thanks for calling Mrs Smith, Goodbye.

Making a call

Once again use your speed dial for the numbers you frequently call.  It'll automatically pick up an outside line and dial the number for you.

When the caller answers, always announce yourself and either say who you wish to speak to or what the matter is about.

You would say:

"Hello, it's Mary from Secretarial Site Dot com calling on behalf of Mr Brown.  Would Mrs Smith be available to speak with Mr Brown?

If the caller isn't in, find out the most convenient time to try again, or have them return your call.

You would then say:

"Hello, it's Mary from Secretarial Site Dot com calling on behalf of Mr Brown.  Could I leave a message for Mrs Smith to call Mr Brown when it's convenient.  His phone number is 1234 56789.  Thank you.  Bye."  

At all times always keep your cool even if the caller is being difficult.

Books and videos on telephone etiquette are readily available and I have selected some to help you - my selection for mastering the telephone

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Some example replies to say when your Boss is out:

"I'm sorry, Mrs Smith, Mr Brown is in a meeting until 4.30 this afternoon.  I'll have him return your call as soon as he's free."

"I'm sorry, Mrs Smith, Mr Brown is out of town until Thursday next week.  Can the matter wait until his return, or if not, I could get a message to him if it's urgent?"

If it can't wait, you need to consider the following:

Referring it to another person in the office;

contacting Mr Brown by phone, email or fax and giving him the details so he can then contact Mrs Smith.

Don't dwell too much on this aspect, as you would have established some guidelines for determing when and when not to contact your boss if he was away out of town, before he left.

See below the type of information you can access right here:

What does the Role of a Secretary entail
The Secretarial role is not for everyone even though it is challenging and changing. See if you have the desired qualities.

Learn how to use Tips and Tricks in your Secretarial role
Working with tips and tricks could make all the difference in making you number one in your profession.  See what time saving and other techniques you can use in your daily routine.

Is there such a thing as Secretarial Ethics?
Secretaries throughout the world would certainly work using a code of Ethics - see how the ethics we have developed can assist you in becoming a valuable member in the workforce and could even assist you in climbing the corporate ladder. 

Books written specifically for the Secretarial profession
Books are still an invaluable learning aid used by the Secretary and great for continual reference.  You will be surprised how just one piece of advice will be used over and over in the office and as times continue to change you will have the need to reference these books time and time again.  

Does the one resume suit all the Secretarial jobs you apply for?
You need to know what to include, what not to, and most importantly how to adapt your resume to the job you are applying for. 

Have your say when you visit the Secretarial Forum
A forum is available for you to share or seek information, comments or advice.  Please feel free to post your questions.

Free Office Tutorials in the following are available

Telephone Etiquette - Do you answer the telephone correctly?  Are you friendly and let the caller know you're listening and interested?  If not, don't distress, we have a lesson for you that will make your Company proud. 

Making Appointments - you will learn how to make appointments and what information your Manager needs so he has all the facts and is prepared. Only then will the meeting will be successful.

Writing Correspondence - Step by step instructions on how to lay out your office correspondence with all the relevant information.  You will even learn how to write your letter so the message is conveyed to the recipient successfully.

All about Meetings - There are many aspects to be aware of to make a meeting run smoothly.  If you are the key person responsible for setting up meetings from preparing meeting notices and agendas, to taking minutes of the meeting, you are in the right place.  You can choose formats and tools that will make your job easier.

Useful Links for any Secretary
Check out the links we've made available for you to be kept informed, save time, and awareness of training available.

Need training to master the advance or basic techniques
The training offered on this site is focused to assist you in your day to day duties whether you need to learn the basics first before proceeding to the more advanced lessons.  You make the choice.

A Secretarial Newsletter
What better way to keep informed then signing on to receive a copy of the www.secretarialsite.com newsletter.  It's totally FREE.

What is MOUS Certification?
Find out more about this certification.  You can even take the exam and receive your MOUS certificate.  If you're not quite ready, take the courses that you need to enable you to become certified.

Executary Seminars
The Secretarial Site has up to date news on various seminars focused towards Secretaries, Office Professionals, executive Secretaries, Administrative Assistants, and Personal Assistants, in locations that may suit you.

Recommended Employment Agencies
Employment agencies are listed in selected countries to save you time.

Can you touch type, or, do you know your typing speed?
You can quickly and easily take a typing test to check your speed.  You can learn to increase your speed and best of all you will learn how to touch type. 

Need to translate this website into another language?
Go now to the website that will make translation easy. All you need to do is copy and paste this URL   http://www.secretarialsite.com into the window on the website.

When is Administrative Professional's Day/Secretaries Day
Administrative Professional's Day is always the last Wednesday in the last full week of the month of April and this full week is dedicated to Administrative Professionals.  Mark it now in your diary so you and your fellow workers can celebrate.  Better still, spread the word and enter it into your Manager's diary so he/she is made aware of it.

But what happened to Secretaries Day?  It has been renamed to Administrative Professional's Day!  Did you know the National Secretaries Association, now known as IAAP, began this special recognition. 

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