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When Your Customers Come Calling The Art of Exceptional Telephone Manners

Part 5 of 5: Voice Mail Etiquette

There's no doubt that more business has been lost because of poor service and poor treatment than because of poor product. Yet, it doesn't take any extra time or money to treat people with grace and courtesy, and in many industries, especially insurance, quality of service is one of the few variables that can distinguish a business from its competition. Part 5 of 5 focuses on useful tips to make voice mail more effective.

You Have 37 Messages on Your Voice Mail!

Since it looks like it's here to stay, we can't leave the subject of professional telephone manners without saying something about voice mail. Many people still haven't warmed up to it, but properly used, voice mail can benefit both your agency and your customers. Voice mail can save time for your receptionist, it allows customers to leave detailed messages (they should be encouraged to do so), it can allow them to leave messages after hours, and it can allow agents to pick up their messages when they are out of the office. Voice mail can also lose customers in a maze of confusing options and be a hiding place for staff who don't want to take calls and who rarely return messages.

Your telephone equipment vendor can give you tips on setting up a voice mail system that's customer-friendly, and much will depend on features of the system you have. Here are a few additional voice mail tips to consider.

1. Have a live person answer the telephone. No automated attendants...please...unless it's only for backup. We've already explained what an asset a good receptionist is, so let's not replace her with a machine.

2. Ask your callers if it's okay to put them in voice mail. Those who don't like it can then say no. For example: "I'm sorry, sir, Jim is on another line right now. Would you care to hold or would you prefer to leave a message in his voice mail?"

3. Limit menus and options, keep instructions short, and always state the action first and then the key to press. "For commercial lines, press one."

4. Don't trap callers in voice mail. Always give them an easy way to reach a live person by pressing 0. Remember that insurance is a people business.

5. Show callers you really use the system. Have each staff person change their voice mail greeting often, stating the date and when they expect to return, and always giving that 0-live person option.

6. If there are coverage instructions that your agency cannot accept via voice mail, be sure to have staff state this in their greetings. For example: "Please remember that coverage cannot be bound or limits increased with a voice mail message."

7. Always return voice mail calls (and all calls, for that matter). When you do, your customers will use your VM system more willingly. An unreturned call tells the caller one thing: I'm too busy to talk to you.

8. Don't use voice mail to avoid taking calls. You've got to be in your office some of the time. Your customers will realize that you're hiding from them.

9. Last but not least, ask a few friends to call your agency for the express purpose of testing your VM system. Expect to make changes here and there to make the system more customer-friendly. Have refresher training sessions for staff periodically, and make sure new staff receive full instruction on how to use the VM system effectively.

And thank you readers, for calling the Master Agency Manager.

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This article was provided by Judi Newman of Phaze II Consulting, Inc. publisher of the Master Agency Manager (MAM). The Master Agency Manager is a one of a kind resource for virtually all aspects of managing an independent insurance agency. It is intended to serve as a guide to basic managerial techniques essential to any organization, and contains information on a wide range of general management issues. In addition, it also serves as a source of information on specialized topics directly related to the operation of an independent agency. Emphasis throughout MAM is on the "how" of management practices, as opposed to the "why."

Make MAM a habit by making MAM the first place you look when confronting an agency problem or beginning a new project.

For more information on the Master Agency Manager, contact Judi Newman at 1-800-222-8716 or via email at judinewman@aol.com to learn about this valuable management resource.