Marketing Your Consulting Services.pdf - epiheirimatikotita.gr

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OTHER IMAGE BUILDERS
Sometimes the littlest things can make a big difference in what someone might
think of you and your business.
Telephones
Purchase the best telephone equipment you can. If you are working out of your
home, a second line is a basic requirement. Nothing can ruin your reputation faster
that having your children start to squabble just as you get on the phone with a new
client or to have your three-year-old answer the phone when the vice president of
sales calls you about some work she would like you to do.
Staff should be trained to answer the phone cheerfully and professionally. Establish
a standard greeting and then ensure that everyone uses it. Ours is, “Good
morning, ebb associates, this is Emma.” Establish telephone guidelines as well, including
such things as no eating while on the phone, using the hold button, and
using good listening and note-taking skills. I recently hired, then quickly fired,
someone who could not understand the rule, “Do not eat while talking on the telephone.”
Listen carefully when you call your office. Your clients hear the same greeting
and tone of voice. Is it what you want them to hear?
Luick tip . . .
Develop a ten-minute training program for your staff for how to answer
the telephone in your office. Ask your staff for ideas to improve your
telephone image to your clients.
Answering Machines
If you do not have office staff, ensure that your answering machine is equally high
quality. Use your answering machine like voice mail. And be certain to change
your message regularly. Three times a day is not too much if you need to. What
do you say three different times? “Hello, this is Kim. It’s Tuesday, October 30th. I
am in the office today, but have stepped away from my desk. Please leave a message
and I will call you when I return.” Later in the day, use the same opening (this
lets callers know that the message they hear is current) and add, “I’m out of the
Marketing Your Consulting Services