As a receptionist at your business’s front desk, one thing you’ll have to become well-versed in is call screening. Screening calls is a delicate art—you have to let the right people through without blocking someone important, and you don’t want to waste your boss’s or other departments’ time.
Here are five receptionist call screening tips to make your life easier:
Don’t Make It Obvious
The first of our receptionist call screening tips is to avoid making it obvious that you’re screening callers. Don’t make it clear to the caller that you’re evaluating whether or not to put them through to their desired party; no one likes to feel that they’re being blocked. Simply ask the caller for their intention and craft the conversation naturally from there.
Be Pleasant and Patient
Phone etiquette rules still apply when you’re screening calls for your department or boss. That’s why remaining pleasant and patient is another important piece of advice on our list of receptionist call screening tips! By being short, intrusive, or unpleasant over the phone, you won’t make a good impression for your business as a whole. Plus, the caller may get angry and could even complain about you once they’ve reached their desired party.
Get All of the Information You Can
Getting all of the information that you can out of the caller is another essential bullet point in receptionist call screening tips. Otherwise, you won’t be able to make a sound decision on whether to refer the caller to another department, put them through to your boss, or take a message. Do all that you can to find out who the caller is and what they need.
Ignore Robo-calls and Beware of Scams
Hang up on robo-calls, and be careful when you come across a human salesperson or telemarketer. Once your business has been scammed, it’s too late! Of all our receptionist call screening tips, this is the most pertinent when it comes to your fellow employees.
Use Your Best Judgement
Our final entry in the list of receptionist call screening tips is this: use your best judgement. Ultimately, your own human intuition is the greatest tool you have when it comes to effectively screening calls. Trusting your gut instinct is the best way to know whether or not you should put a caller through, take a message, or end the call entirely.
By following these basic receptionist call screening tips, your entire front desk will be able to screen calls in an appropriate, effective way. That means legitimate callers will get to the necessary place, and you won’t be wasting anyone’s time!
