We’ve all encountered him or her on the phone: the person whose voice assails our ears like fingernails on a chalkboard, making us want to conclude our business as quickly as possible.
As a business owner, then, the last thing you want is an agent whose speaking voice makes callers cringe.
“In a time when face-to-face meetings seem to be rare and more business is conducted via the telephone, your voice could be hindering your success,” advises Laura Lake on TheBalance.com. “On the telephone we do not have visual cues or body language to strengthen our position and message.”
Optimizing voice is especially important when you’re investing in a call marketing campaign that’s driving inbound leads; one study by BIA Kelsey found inbound calls convert 10 to 15 times more often than web leads, with 29 percent of inbound calls across industries resulting in sales, appointments or reservations.
Fortunately, your sales agents can take several steps toward developing professional voices that are more apt to elicit positive responses from callers. Consider sharing the following tips during your telephone sales training.
- Focus on conveying enthusiasm, energy and confidence rather than uncertainty or disinterest. You’ll hurt your credibility if you sound too hesitant.
- In general, those with lower-sounding voices are perceived to be stronger, more confident, more credible and more in control. Those with naturally high voices may want to modulate their pitches for optimal success, though experts do recommend raising your pitch at certain points of your script to emphasize important points.
- Smile as you speak; that creates a sound frequency that comes across friendlier.
- Mirror each caller’s speaking pace. Avoid annoying callers with overly slow speech or confusing them with a rapid-fire pattern. Exercises for modulating the speed of your language patterns are here.
- Avoid “uptalk” speech patterns whereby every statement sounds like question.
- Let yourself use your hands as you talk; that fosters a broader, more natural vocal range.
- Sit up straight to fill your lungs, speaking deeply from your chest (not your nose and throat) so your words don’t come out nasally or whiny.
- Edit scripts to fit your language patterns so you sound more natural.
- Avoid interrupting and/or dominating callers. Listen, employ verbal confirmation such as “I see” and “Uh-huh” and paraphrase back your understanding of what’s being communicated.
Ask Dial800 about call marketing campaigns tailored to driving revenues toward your business. Including our real-time call recording feature enables instant feedback and training opportunities on your business calls. Take a demo to learn more.
Learn more about call tracking to improve your business phone calls.
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