Professional Protocol (ESCO)

PROTOCOL AT WORK:
EMAILS & CALLS

EMAIL ETIQUETTE

USE A
PROFESSIONAL
SALUTATION

Use professional salutations and always assume the highest level of
courtesy. Always address them appropriately. “Hi” and “Hello” are
acceptable. When in doubt, always use “Dear”.

✗
Hey

!
Dear Mr Stark

✗
Yo

!
Hello Stark

USE OF
SLANGS IN
EMAILS

Avoid using shortcuts to real words or slang in your emails.
Shortcuts such as “u" (instead of “ you"), "4" (for “for”) in businessrelated
e-mail is not acceptable. Slangs should not be used in your
professional emails. Any deviation has the potential to make you
look less than professional.

✗
How are u?

!
How are you?

MISSPELLINGS

Proofread! Don’t confuse your reader. When in doubt, use the
dictionary. Otherwise, consider rephrasing.
Also, make an effort and use the appropriate words. For instance,
know the difference between “their” and “they’re”, “you’re” and
“your”.

✗
They’re services

!
Their services

CAPITALISATION
OF PROPER
NOUN AND
PUNCTUATION

Courtesy also includes that you make the effort to communicate as
educated and professionally as possible. Type in full sentences with
proper sentence structure. Proper capitalization and punctuation are
a must! Failure to capitalize when necessary suggest laziness or
disinterest. None of which is positive for instilling confidence or
encouraging others to conduct business with us, or you!

✗
your brilliant
lets proceed and i will update the team. their waiting for tis update.

!
Let’s proceed and I will update the team. They’re waiting for this update.

BEWARE OF
“REPLY ALL”

(We are all guilty of this, at times.) Use this with discretion! Do not
hit "reply all" unless every member on the e-mail chain needs to
know and that you are sure of this. You certainly do not want to
include unintended recipients in your email.

EMAILING
FROM MOBILE

Using mobile for business communication may result in sending
emails with typos or formatting errors. Please consider informing
your recipient of this by including a disclaimer.
“Sent from my mobile. Please excuse the brevity of the message.”
or similar.

BE IMAGE
CONSCIOUS

Your e-mail is a reflection of you. Every e-mail you send adds to, or
detracts from your reputation. If your e-mail is scattered,
disorganized, and filled with mistakes, the recipient will be inclined
to think of you as an unprofessional or disorganized
businessperson. Unfortunately, other people's opinions do matter
and in the professional world, their perception of you will be critical
to your success as well.

CALL ETIQUETTE

IDENTIFICATION

Always identify yourself to the caller.

✗
“Hello.”

!
“Hello. Good afternoon,
this is ESCO/Stark speaking.”

BE
PROFESSIONAL

Maintain a level of professionalism throughout the entire
conversation. After all, you are agents / face of the company. Your
interaction with the caller may determine the caller’s impression of
the company. A lackluster interaction suggests a lack of interest or
commitment.

BE INTERESTED

Do not sound distracted or disinterested in the call. If needed,
reschedule the call instead of creating the wrong impression to your
caller. Put yourself in the shoes of your caller and think about how
you would like to be spoken to if you’re calling in as the customer.

CLOSING THE
PHONE CALL

Thank the caller for calling in! Be courteous.

TRANSFERRING
CALL

While we all take the courtesy to inform the caller on why you're
transferring, the same respect should be given to your colleagues
instead of blindly transferring without any message to them.
Moreover, you wouldn't want to frustrate your caller by having your
teammate asking the same set of questions that you have asked.
This will also give your teammate the chance to prepare for the call.
Put yourself in the shoes of the caller and your teammate. Your
innocent teammate may very well be on the receiving end of the
customer's frustration / annoyance. This can be prevented if you
could spare 2-3 minutes explaining the call just as you made the
transfer.
Proper business telephone etiquette can make a positive impressive
on our callers and among ourselves.

1 Explain why
Explain to the caller why you need to make the transfer.
(It could be caller has reached the wrong department or you do not have the
authority/information that the caller is seeking for).

2 Give your info first
Give the caller your name and extension in case you get disconnected. This
will also give the caller a sense of importance and that you are personally
concerned about the caller's situation. And, remember to always be
pleasant.

3. Ask Permission
Ask the caller for permission to initiate the transfer.
This will also give the caller a chance to ask other questions, if any.

4. Wait for an answer
(from your teammate!)
Do NOT blindly transfer the call as soon as you hear the other phone ring.
Wait for the other person to answer and explain to them the reason for
the call.

5 Complete
the Transfer
At this point, you can complete the transfer by connecting the caller and your
teammate by hanging up your phone.

PROPER ETIQUETTE GOES A LONG WAY,
SO LET'S ADOPT THIS HABIT.