BUSINESS ENGLISH TELEPHONING LESSON

wesleybaan

business, economy, english, telephone

Sunday, March 30, 2014

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Communicating on the telephone is a very difficult task for English language learners. Part of the issue is the clarity of the phone call – often it is difficult to hear and even English native speakers can have trouble with a poor connection. 
Another problem is the lack of visual confirmation. We can’t see the lips or face of the person we are talking to, so we have lost some important information for helping us understand what is being said.  We don’t even know if the person we are talking to is nodding their head in understanding or not – or looking confused and frustrated.

IDENTIFYING YOURSELF OR YOUR COMPANY (ANSWERING THE PHONE)

• Nicky Rich Ltd.
• Thank you for calling Nicky Rich Ltd, Susan’s speaking.
• Susan’s speaking.
• This is Susan.
• Susan’s here.
• Doctor Jenny’s office.
• Hello? (Informal)

OFFERING OF ASSISTANCE

• Can I help you?
• How can I help you?
• May I help you?
• Do you need some help?

ASKING THE CALLER TO IDENTIFY HIMSELF/HERSELF

• May I ask who is calling, please?
• Can I ask who’s calling, please?
• Excuse me, who’s calling?
• May I know whom I’m speaking with?

INTRODUCING YOURSELF

• Winifred Young from Dyno Masters Company.
• This is Susan Pang calling
• It’s Mary.
• This is Susan from Dyna Masters.

ASKING TO SPEAK WITH SOME OR ASKING FOR A CONNECTION

• May I speak to Mr. Hsu in Accounts, please?
• I’d like to speak with Mr. Jones, please?
• I’d like to talk to Chris Husted in advertising.

CONNECTING SOMEONE

• Thank you Ms. Young.  Mr. Hsu in Accounts?  One moment please.
• Could you hold the line?
• Please hold and I’ll put you through to his office.
• One moment please, Ms. Forbes.

TAKING A MESSAGE FOR SOMEONE

• I’m sorry, Paul’s not here at the moment. Would you like to leave a message?
• I am sorry, but Mr. Jannsen is out of the office right now, can I take a message?

LEAVING A MESSAGE WITH SOMEONE

• Yes. Can you tell him Clara called, please?
• Can you ask him to call me back?
• Thank you. Could you ask him to call Victor when he gets in?
• Would you tell him that we need to reschedule our meeting for tomorrow?  I have a conflicting appointment that I can’t change

CONFIRMING INFORMATION

• I’ll let him know that you called.
• I’ll make sure she gets the message.
• Just to make sure, let me repeat.
• May I know whom I’m speaking with?
• Did you say 77 Pattimura street?
• Of course.  I’ll let him know that you have a conflicting appointment tomorrow that you cannot change it, is that correct Ms. Young?

MAKING SPECIAL REQUESTS

• Could you please repeat that?
• Would you mind spelling that for me?
• Could you speak up a little, please?
• Can you speak a little more slowly, please? My English isn’t very strong.
• Can you call me back? I think we have a bad connection.
• Could you please hold for a minute? I have another call.
• Is there anything else I can help you with, Ms. Young?
• And may I have you number please, Ms. Young?

INITIAL TELEPHONE CONTACT:

A: 1. Greeting     2. Name of Company    3. Offer of Assistance

A: Good morning, Alpha Data Company.  May I help you?

B: 1. Response to question [if asked]   2. Request person or department   3. Please

B: Yes.  May I speak to Mr. Jannsen in Accounts, please?**

A: 1. Request name

A: May I ask who is calling, please?

B: Winifred Young from Dyno Masters Company.

A: 1. Thank you  2. Confirmation of Request    3. Ask to Hold

A:  Thank you Ms. Young.  Mr. Jannsen in Accounts?  One moment please.

B:  Thank you.

** Another option and quite common is: This is Winifred Young from Dyna Masters, may I speak to Mr. Jannsen in Accounts, please? This option is a bit faster as it removes one step from the exchange.

CONTACT WITH YOUR TARGET PERSON:

A:  1. Greeting  2. Name   3. Offer assistance

A: Hello, Kevin Jannsen here.  May I help you?

B:  1. Greeting  2. Name and company  3. State reason for calling

B:  Hello Mr. Jannsen, this is Winifred Young from Dyna Masters.  I don’t quite understand the last invoice you sent us for maintenance of our Internet servers.

A: 1. Greeting  2. Address the question

A: Hello Ms. Young.  Let me check that invoice and see what the issue was.  Can you give me the invoice number, please?

CONDITION: Your target person is not available.

CC	Good morning, Alpha Data Company. May I help you?
Young	Yes.  May I speak to Mr. Jannsen in Accounts, please?
CC	May I ask who is calling please?
Young	Winifred Young from Dyno Masters Company.
CC	Thank you Ms. Young. Mr. Jannsen in Accounts? One moment please.
After a moment…
CC	I am sorry, but Mr. Jannsen is out of the office right now, can I take a message?
Young	Yes, please. Would you tell him that we need to reschedule our meeting for tomorrow? I have a conflicting appointment that I can’t change.
CC	Of course. I’ll let him know that you have a conflicting appointment tomorrow that you cannot change it, is that correct Ms. Young?
Young	Yes, that is correct.
CC	And may I have you number please, Ms. Young?
Young	Yes, I am at 422-5692, that’s Dyno Masters Company.
CC	That’s 422-5692. Is there anything else I can help you with, Ms. Young?
Young	No, thank you. That’s all I needed. Bye bye.
CC	Good bye, Ms. Young.

CONDITION: Contact with your target person.

CC	Hello. Phuket Gazette, may I help you?
Suda	Yes, please. I’d like to talk to Chris Husted in advertising.
CC	May I ask who is calling please?
Suda	Suda Forbes from Thailand Travel Magazine.
CC	One moment please, Ms. Forbes.
Chris	Hello, this is Chris Hust. May I help you?
Suda	Hi Chris, this is Suda from Thailand Travel. There was a problem with our display advertisement last week. The telephone number was missing!
Chris	Oh no!  Let me check on an that. Can I give you a call back this afternoon?
Suda	Yes, please do – we’d like a credit or for the ad to run again, please.
Chris	I am sure we can arrange something, Suda.
Suda	Thank you, Chris.  I’ll talk to you later.
Chris	Thank you for letting me know about the problem, Suda.  Bye, bye
Suda	Bye, Chris.

TASK

1. Chose one of your best friends to work as a partner with you.
2. Use the information in the table below to leave and take messages using your name and company information.

Identity	Company	Calling	At	Message
Wesley Baan 423-25-171	Delta Clothing	Andi Badri	Toyota Corp - Human Resources Development	The uniform he ordered have been completed.
Name1 423-22-105	Rembon Microchip	Name2	Petra Computer - Production	The microchip he ordered has arrived
Name1 423-21-152	PERTAMINA	Name2	Tebas Gas Station - Logistic and Supply	Prices are going up next week – it is better to order now
Name1 423-21-171	KFC	Name2	Makale Garbage Manager - Environment and Safety	We need our large trash containers emptied
Name1 423-23-832	Pantan Construction	Name2	Babon Advocates - Operational and Maintenance	Construction of the new offices will be delayed by two months

EXAMPLE

CC	Good morning, Toyota Corp. May I help you?
Baan	Yes. May I speak to Mr. Badri in Human Resources Development, please?
CC	May I ask who is calling please?
Baan	Wesley Baan from Delta Clothing.
CC	Thank you Mr. Baan. Mr. Badri in Human Resources Development? One moment please.
After a moment…
CC	I am sorry, but Mr. Badri is out of the office right now, can I take a message?
Baan	Yes, please. Would you tell him that the uniform he ordered have been completed. He can send someone to take it anytime.
CC	Of course. I’ll let him know that the uniform he ordered have been completed, is that correct Mr. Baan?
Baan	Yes, that is correct.
CC	And may I have you number please, Mr. Badri?
Baan	Yes, I am at 423-25-171, that’s Delta Clothing Company.
CC	That’s 423-25-171. Is there anything else I can help you with, Mr. Baan
Baan	No, thank you. That’s all I needed. Bye bye.
CC	Good bye, Mr. Baan.