Why Learn How to Talk on the Phone Professionally

Why Learn How to Talk on the Phone Professionally

Talking on the phone may be an essential part of your job, or you may only have to make or answer phone calls in English from time to time. You may need to speak on the phone in English every day or even as part of an exam or job interview. Sometimes your job may even depend on a phone call!

Skyping (or video calling) in English involves the same skills as traditional telephoning, but with a webcam so will be seen by the other person.

You will discover that improving your telephone skills will also help with your speaking skills in general. What’s more, it will help you gain self-confidence and even improve your self-esteem—both when speaking English and your native language.

Tips for Learning Business English Telephone Phrases

The great thing about learning these telephone phrases is that you will actually get to use them in real life. Here are some tips for learning these new phrases:

Don’t be afraid of making mistakes

The first time you use some new phrases, you will probably make some mistakes. Everybody does when they learn something new; it’s completely normal.

Hopefully the people you talk to will be patient and understanding. However, some people who have never learned a second language don’t understand how difficult it can be. Don’t let them discourage you! Remind yourself: When you make mistakes, you are making progress.

Learn from your mistakes

Another great thing about mistakes is that you can learn from them. Every time you finish a phone conversation, write down the mistakes you think you made or the phrases you are not sure about.

You may even want to record your phone conversations if that’s possible and allowed where you work. Then you can listen later—by yourself or with a tutor—to look closely for new phrases you used correctly and where you need more practice.

Use three new phrases in your phone conversations every day

Once you read the phrases below, choose three every day to use in your phone conversations or whenever appropriate. If you don’t use the new words, they will no longer be fresh in your mind. They will be part of your passive vocabulary, which means you will probably recognize them when you hear them, but you won’t be able to use them yourself on the spot.

If you can’t find a way to include them in your real telephone conversations, try writing down imaginary phone conversations so you can use the new phrases. Remember: By using new words, you learn new words!

Practice new grammar concepts in phone calls

You can use the previous learning strategy with grammar as well, not just with new vocabulary. Every time you see a new grammar structure, write it down, make your own examples with it and then use it at work!

Here are some example topics, as they relate to phone conversations.

Modal verbs

· Could I ask who’s calling, please?

· How may I help you?

Expressions followed by verbs ending in “-ing”

· Do you mind waiting a few minutes?

· Thanks for calling.

Expressions followed by infinitives

· I’m calling to clarify …

· I’d like to leave him a message.

· When is a good time to call?

Must-know English Phrases for Business Telephone Calls

Taking a call

When you answer the phone at your job, you’ll want to always greet the caller professionally. Here are two formats you might use to do so.

1. Hello/Good morning/Good afternoon. [Company name], [your name] speaking, how may I help you?

For example, if your name is Alice and you work at a company called Quick Translations, you might say:

Good morning! Quick Translations, Alice speaking. How may I help you?

This quickly tells the caller who you are, and then lets them explain why they’re calling.

2. [Company name], [your name] speaking.

This second one is a shorter greeting: Quick Translations, Alice speaking.

You can also use “This is [your name]” as another way to say “[Your name] speaking.”

Making a call

Sometimes you are the one initiating (beginning) a phone call. You may have more time to prepare in this case. You can use one of the formats below for greeting people when you call them:

3. Hello, this is [your name] from [company name].

For example, if you are Neil Jenkins and you work at ABC Travels, you might say:

“Hello, this is Neil Jenkins from ABC Travels.

You may want to include your surname (last name) if you know the caller doesn’t know you very well.

4. Hi, it’s [your name] from [company name].

You may also say “Hi, it’s Neil Jenkins from ABC Travels” to start a phone conversation.

Asking for somebody

It’s important to know exactly who you want to talk to and you can use one of the options below.

5. May I speak to [person’s name]?

This first phrase is a question, and slightly more polite than the next option. Here’s an example:

May I (please) speak to Mr. Smith?

6. I’d like to speak to [person’s name], please.

For example, “I’d like to speak to Mr. Smith, please.” You may use this one when you’re quite sure the person is available to talk to you.

Giving reasons for calling

At the beginning of the phone conversation it’s best to clarify why you are calling. This helps both speakers talk about what’s relevant.

7. I’m calling to ask about/discuss/clarify…

I’m calling to ask about your current printing promotion.

8. I just wanted to ask…

I just wanted to ask if you need any more articles for next month’s magazine.

9. Could you tell me…?

Could you tell me the address of Friday’s networking event?

Small talk

Whenever you want to be friendly with someone, you can make small talk. You can ask them about their day, or you may be more specific if you remember details from your past conversations.

10. Hi, [first name], how are you?

This one is more general and you can use it when you don’t remember anything specific to ask about.

11. How are you getting on with…?

This second phrase is more specific and should be used if you remember certain details. This will make the other person feel good about talking to you and may even improve your relationship. For example, if you remember that a company will move to a new office building, you might ask:

How are you getting on with preparations to change office buildings next month?

Taking messages

If you answer a phone call and the caller wants to speak to someone who is unavailable, you should take a message. You can do that in any of the following ways:

Leaving messages

On the other hand, when you make a phone call and the person you want to talk to is not there, you should leave a message for them. Here’s what you could say:

16. Could you please take a message? Please tell her/him that…

Could you please take a message? Please tell her that Cindy from accounting called about Mr. Shapiro’s expense reports.

17. I’d like to leave her/him a message. Please let her/him know that…

I’d like to leave him a message. Please let him know that tomorrow’s lunch meeting is cancelled.

Asking for information

When you ask people to give you information, it’s important to be polite. Using the modal verb “could” and a question is helpful in this case.

Making arrangements

If you have to make arrangements, it’s important to be polite as you negotiate. Here are some phrases you might use:

Shall we say January 20?

Asking for suggestions

When you have to decide on times and places to do things, you can invite the other person to make suggestions. It can be seen as a sign of politeness.

What would you suggest?

Making requests

When you ask people to do things for you, it’s again essential to be polite. You can use the magic words “could” and “please” as seen below:

Promising action

When you promise action, you may want to add when something is going to happen. Remember that in English we don’t use the future tense after time expressions like “when” and “as soon as.”

Saying you cannot help

There are situations when you can’t help the other person, and it may be hard to say so. Just be firm and polite:

Ending the call

Remember to thank the other person for calling or for helping you. You can do that in any of the following ways:

Thanks for calling.

Thank you for your time.

Once you learn some of these expressions to help you with phone calls, you will feel much better about your language skills. Don’t forget to practice them every day, and remember: People can’t always tell how long you’ve been studying English, but they can easily tell if you are smiling when speaking on the phone!

The 100 most useful telephoning phrases

Summary: A carefully chosen list of the most important phrases for making and receiving business and personal telephone calls, including lots of useful language for starting and ending calls, dealing with communication problems, taking and leaving messages, etc.

Telephoning can be one of the biggest challenges in another language, but memorising and practising the most important telephoning phrases below can make it really manageable.

Answering the phone

Good morning/ afternoon/ evening. ABC Limited. Alex Case speaking. How can I help you?

Saying who you are (caller)

My name is Francis Cripps. I work for JUPG PLC.

This is Francis Cripps (again), (calling) from JUPG PLC.

Hi Alex. It’s Francis Cripps (from Finance/…) (again).

Asking to speak to someone

Can I speak to Kim Smith (in the Sales Department), please?

Is Kim (Smith) there?

I’d like to speak to someone about replacing our photocopiers/ about…

I need to speak to someone in the shipping department/ in…

Asking about the receiver

Sorry, who am I speaking to, please?

Is that Kim (Smith)?

Is this the right number for the HR department/ for…?

Is that the… department/ division/ section/ team?

Are you the right person to speak to about…?

Leaving messages/ Dictating

Can I leave a message?

Can you tell her that…?

Can you ask her to send me six hundred and fifty HYDV765s/ to…?

My office number/ work number/ landline/ mobile (number)/ home phone is oh one double six treble one.

My (postal) address is twenty three black new word bird park new line midtown capital b capital b capital p capital m.

The URL is http colon double slash high dash life dot com slash alex underscore case.

My (work/ personal) (e)mail address is alexcase all one word at outlook dot com.

Asking people to wait

Please hold the line. I’ll connect you to a member of our customer service staff/ I’ll check if she’s available/ I’ll…

Just a moment while I get a pen and some paper/ while I find the file/ while I…. Okay, please go ahead.

Just a minute. I’m (just) getting your account up on the screen/ I’m (just)…

Ending taking messages

Okay, I’ll make sure (that) he gets your message. (I’m sure he will get back to you soon.)

You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever.

Steve Jobs

First let's look at what factors go into choosing a career:

Choosing a career involves 4 main stages:

• Self Awareness

• Opportunity Awareness

• Decision Making

• Taking Action

Sometimes these stages will overlap and sometimes you have to return to a previous stage.

Self Awareness. The first stage of Career Choice is Self Awareness. This involves looking at your SKILLS, VALUES, INTERESTS and PERSONALITY and analyzing where your strengths and weaknesses lie. This is important both in choosing the right career and also for success in applications and interviews where you will find many questions which test whether you have been through this process.

Opportunity Awareness. Once you have done some preliminary self-analysis, the

next stage is to gather information on the opportunities open to you.

Of course, the other important part in making decisions is discussing it with other

people. Friends, family and tutors can all play an important part here.

Taking Action. This is the final process of career planning. It involves:

- Finding out about the EMPLOYERS that offer the types of jobs you are interested in.

- Search the VACANCY DATABASE

- Preparing APPLICATIONS and attending INTERVIEWS

Sometimes you may have to return to previous stages in the process, for example, if you are not able to get into your first choice career.

 

This is the most effective way of increasing your chances of getting a job. It covers:

- Learn how to identify & develop your employability skills and “sell” them to employers.

- Identify your interests, values & personal styles and find careers these relate to.

- Find out about a particular career.

- Decide which career options to pursue.

- Prepare a CV, learn how to make applications & interview skills

DEVELOP PERSONAL SKILLS. You should have lots of opportunities to use communication, negotiating and similar skills which are valuable ammunition for your CV.

DEVELOP YOUR COMPUTER SKILLS. Computing skills are important for

almost all jobs.

PREPARE A CV. This will be useful for vacation work applications and can also

be used as a basis for your final year applications.

BUILD UP YOUR WORK EXPERIENCE.

FIND OUT ABOUT THE CAREERS OPEN TO YOU. Choosing a career, though, involves more than just finding out what is possible for you to do – you also need to think about what you want from your career and your skills, abilities and interests.

LEARN TO NETWORK. Networking will help you to get an inside view of careers through work shadowing and information interviews.

 

2. Read the text and discuss it:

Make the Most of Your Career

Part of enjoying your career is getting the absolute most out of it each and every day. Are you maximizing your potential? Are you taking every step possible to excel in your job? If not, then you need to get on track and work for your success. You only get out of your career what you put into it. Heed the advice below to make the most of your career.

1. Ask Plenty of Questions

There's a commonly held myth that asking questions is a sign of weakness. However, when directed at the most successful people in your industry, the exact opposite is true. Asking questions helps you expand your knowledge base, which will open you up to new and exciting opportunities. Asking questions also shows an inherent interest in your industry, proving that you're a diligent, thoughtful worker.

2. Take Off the Blinders

Successful people never have the attitude that certain tasks are outside of their job responsibilities. If you want to be a manager, then you need to know how every person in your department does their job. That means that you have to take off the blinders and be open to experiencing new things whenever you get the chance.

3. Go Back To School

Even the most successful CEOs and entrepreneurs make time to go to educational seminars and take classes at local colleges. In fact, many successful business professionals have multiple college degrees that apply directly to their line of work. While you do not have to pursue a Ph.D, you should at least explore educational opportunities that could potentially advance your career.

If you're a sales professional who deals with people all day, then enroll in some psychology courses to learn more about the human psyche and improve your sales techniques. Simply investing in your education will help you make the most out of your career.

4. Regularly Take On New Challenges

Does your company have a client that no one else wants to service? Then this is your chance to learn more about handling difficult customers. When you take on new challenges, you expand your resume and you often surprise yourself at how much you already know.

5. Become a Resource for Others

Part of feeling fulfilled in your career is being able to share what you know with others. If there are new people working for your company that seem to be struggling, then pull them aside, offer a hand, and help them reach success. Your personal career success is only complete when you're able to share that knowledge with others and help to influence a new generation of people in your field.

6. Have Goals that You Constantly Strive For

There's always a new height you can achieve and new goals you can reach in your career. The key is to identify those goals, and then put together a plan to achieve them.

Instead of coasting along in your job, you should always have short- and long-term goals to push your career forward.

7. Always Be Prepared for the Next Step

One day, you might look around your office and realize that you've completely maximized your potential with your current employer. Does that mean that you've maximized your career? No, it means that it's time for you to move on to that next step in your adventure. You should always keep your employment options open and never be afraid to take that next step in your personal development.

TASKS (topic “Career”)

1 Match the words with their Russian equivalents:

1 ambitious                                              a. Разработка и развитие

2 career plan                                            b. посещать собрания

3 sales and marketing                              c. управление

4 finance department                               d. опытный человек

5 management                                         e. амбициозный

6 personnel department                          f. старший по должности

7 production                                            g. общественные мероприятия

8 Research and development (R&D)      h. финансовый отдел

9 superior                                                 i. дополнительные навыки

10 attend meetings                                   j. план карьерного роста

11 social events                                       k. производство

12 experienced person                             l. отдел кадров

13 extra qualifications                            m. отдел продаж и маркетинга

2 Translate into English:

1 Он достаточно амбициозный, чтобы начать свой собственный бизнес.

2 Необходимо разработать надлежащий план карьерного роста для каждого нашего менеджера.

3 Команда в нашем российском представительстве занимается продажами и маркетингом, а наша продукция производится в Дании, Бразилии, Китае и в США.

4 В этом году он окончил экономический университет и собирается работать в отделе финансов.

5 Все важные решения в компании принимает руководство.

6 Производство материала шло быстро и продажи выросли.

7 По вопросам сверхурочной работы, вам нужно проконсультироваться с отделом кадров.

8 Научно-исследовательский отдел разрабатывает много новой продукции, основываясь на данных о предпочтении клиентов.

9 Мой нынешний начальник – очень хороший руководитель.

10 Многие сотрудники не любят посещать собрания компании, так как считают их неэффективными.

11 Многие компании тратят большие суммы денег на общественные мероприятия.

12 Даже самому опытному человеку иногда нужны советы и поддержка более опытного коллеги.

13 Если вы хотите улучшить свою карьеру, старайтесь в свободное время получить дополнительные навыки.

 

4 Fill in the gaps with the following words:

goals, ahead, move, bonus, making, work, retirement, taking, mistakes.

1 Some ambitious people plan their next career _________ as soon as they get their first job.

2 Our negotiators are ___________ very good progress in the talks with the Russian company.

3 Julia is ___________ some time off next month to visit her daughter in Germany.

4 Jim kept making terrible _________ at work. His boss said he was incompetent, and gave him a sack.

5 If you reach your sales targets every month, you will probably earn a ________.

6 Few people want to _________ anti-social hours even if they don’t have children.

7 Changing companies often is not a good idea if you want to get _______ in your

career.

8 After working hard all her life, Maria decided to take early __________ and travel around the world.

9 A good tip is to create your own ________ and determine what skills you need to reach them.

5 Give the English equivalents:

1) краткосрочные/ долгосрочные цели; 2) значительно; 3) очерчивать, намечать; 4) принимать вызов; 5) достигать цели; 6) овладеть навыками; 7) расширять навыки; 8) заслуживать; 9) делегировать выполнение задач; 10) определять; 11) оценивать достижения; 12) преуспеть в карьере;13)mискать возможности; 14) брать отпуск; 15) составить список

 

1. My grandfather’s advice has always helped me to get ahead in my career.

2. Make a list of all advantages and disadvantages of this work.

 3. We will outline our proposal to the committee.

4. Break long-term goals down into several short-term goals.

5. The CEO should regularly evaluate progress achieved in sales.

6. Now you can delegate tasks to your employees, control the execution and promptly make changes if they become necessary.

7. It takes years to master a new language.

8. Tom has always looked for opportunities to broaden his skills.

9. Investigators are still trying to determine the cause of accident.

10. What goals does the company want to reach in the next two years?

11. The job is very difficult and there are many new challenges I need to accept.

12. She deserves a promotion because her work is excellent and she always reaches her monthly goals.

13. Only one parent can take time off from work to care for a sick child.

14. By building a new factory, we will significantly increase our profits and help local economy

6 Match the words with their Russian equivalents:

1 stuck in smth.                               a) войти в привычную колею

2 to prioritise                                  b) ответная реакция

3 to set objectives                           c) ключевой, решающий

4 to be good at smth.                      d) устанавливать приоритеты

5 feedback                             e) участвовать в чем-либо, заниматься чем-либо

6 to settle into a routine                 f) погрязнуть в чем-либо

7 a meeting of minds                     g) иметь способность к чему-либо

8 to be engaged in smth.                h) ставить цели

9 crucial                                              i) единство взглядов, взаимопонимание

8 Find English equivalents:

1 Во-первых, вам необходимо поставить цели и, когда вы сделаете это, вам нужно будет расставить приоритеты.

2 Ты погрязнешь в той же старой работе на всю свою жизнь.

3 Если вы регулярно будете оценивать свои достижения, у вас будет лучшее представление того, к чему у вас способности.

4 Это все связано с ответной реакцией, не так ли?

5 Если вы все время будете избегать риска, если вы войдете в привычную колею, вы никогда не продвинетесь в карьере.

6 Я уверен, что важно быть полностью сосредоточенным на задании, которое вы выполняете.

 

Why Learn How to Talk on the Phone Professionally

Talking on the phone may be an essential part of your job, or you may only have to make or answer phone calls in English from time to time. You may need to speak on the phone in English every day or even as part of an exam or job interview. Sometimes your job may even depend on a phone call!

Skyping (or video calling) in English involves the same skills as traditional telephoning, but with a webcam so will be seen by the other person.

You will discover that improving your telephone skills will also help with your speaking skills in general. What’s more, it will help you gain self-confidence and even improve your self-esteem—both when speaking English and your native language.