Receptionist Skills Course - ABC Training Solutions LTD
Receptionist Skills Course - ABC Training Solutions LTD
Receptionist Skills Course - ABC Training Solutions LTD
Contents
PAGE
Guide objectives 4
Your notes 5
Customer service 13
Communication 29
Saying no to others 52
Case study 58
Personal pledges 64
“The Receptionist is the most important person in my organization. The next call or
visitor could be a new client ready to put £1million of business our way.”
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
The Chief Executive who made this statement fully understood that a company‟s reputation
can rest on the first impressions gained of the organisation. The way the first speculative
call is handled or about the way the potential client is greeted at a first meeting. This
executive believed in „First impressions count‟. No other individual is any less important in
this respect than the receptionist at the front of the building.
The receptionist role is a challenging one. They undertake a multitude of tasks to keep the
„wheels of the organisation running smoothly‟. Passers-by could get an impression that the
receptionist is there just to field calls and receive visitors. Very often it is the „unseen‟
activities that add to the complexity of the role.
The receptionist is often isolated too. They may be part of the Facilities or Human Resources
departments however the very nature of the job means that they spend long periods in
isolation at the front of the building. Even going to the toilet or getting a drink can be
problematic because of the need for Reception to be permanently staffed.
In addition, there are still some stereo typed views that receptionists (being mainly female)
are there to look good, be polite and (as one person commented to me just a few years ago),
“primarily act as eye candy”. Professional receptionists sometimes have to „fight their own
corner‟ in demonstrating how challenging and important the role is, to counter any notion
that „they‟re just a receptionist‟.
This e-guide will help receptionists understand the importance of their role and develop
essential skills required in the effective performance of the role. A feature of the e-guide is
a 26-point diagnostic questionnaire that defines the key behaviours required for superior
performance in the role.
Activity
Discuss the last 2 pages with your boss or a mentor who can offer you some advice.
Ambassador
Team Worker
Liaison
Information Giver
Sales Person
Problem Solver
Using the scale 1-6, rate your skills by circling the number that applies.
1= NEVER do 6 = ALWAYS do
6.
Cheerful goodbye to customers at end of visit /phone 1 2 3 4 5 6
call
7.
Coordinates people effectively (e.g. couriers with packages; 1 2 3 4 5 6
meeting room organisation)
- continued
Misinterpretations in communication
The way we communicate to others in business sometimes breaks down. Review these
popular reasons and think of examples of where you‟ve seen them in practice:
Wrong words. We don‟t choose our words carefully, or we baffle people with the
words e.g. company technical abbreviations and jargon, making assumptions that
they understand
Wrong tone. Try saying “That‟s a good idea” casually; enthusiastically and
sarcastically. All of these can receive different interpretations by the Receiver
Wrong pace. Too fast means people might miss things; too slow and you bore
people
“The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.”
ANON
According to the Radicati Group an estimated 183 billion emails are sent every day. That‟s
around 2 million emails every second sent by 1.2 billion email users! Moreover, there are an
estimated 516 million business email boxes worldwide. That‟s a heck of a potential for mis-
communication, misunderstandings, angry words, bad feelings and loss of productivity if the
messages go wrong.
Communication experts say that email is good for INFORMATION and CONFIRMATION.
However it‟s not good for EMOTION or PERSUASION. It is very difficult to convey enthusiasm,
empathy or sincerity via email. You can type the words, but one doesn‟t get a sense of the
way the words are conveyed, and therefore the message can be misinterpreted.
When sending:
Consider other communication methods e.g. picking up the phone can much quicker than
constructing an email. Email is effective for information/ facts or actions. It is
ineffective as a debating tool. Don‟t use email as an excuse not to talk to somebody
Consider the recipients – who really needs to know? Is it „nice to know‟ or „essential to
their job to know‟?
Don‟t forget pleasantries at the start e.g. “Hi Jane”; “Dear Mr Customer” and consider a
quick socialising comment e.g. “Hope you‟re having a good week”; “I trust you‟re
enjoying the nice weather”
Indicate the subject of the email, and the purpose, in the subject header, to help the
recipient e.g. „Your product order: confirmation enclosed‟. Also indicate any urgency/
action required
Avoid slang, careless writing, thoughtless comments, too many dots or exclamation
marks –emails have the same legal status as letters
Be careful about criticising people and organisations by email. A hasty remark by phone
will be forgotten, on e mail there is a permanent record
Being on the front line of calls, the receptionist plays a very important role in the projection
of a professional brand image for the organisation.
70 % Vocal
30 % Words
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Vocal Words
• Paperwork is lost
• People get stressed – either customers/ clients being ratty or miserable or staff under
intense pressure to get things done
“On two occasions you should learn to keep your mouth shut – when swimming and when angry.”
ANON
Case study
Decide how you might deal with the situation below. Be specific and detailed about your
approach. For example:
Make use of the tips and tactics we have already covered in this guide, as well as your own
ideas and thoughts. Write your thoughts overleaf and then look at some of the points we‟ve
highlighted on subsequent pages.
You are one of two receptionists for a large company based in the City. You look after
meeting rooms, refreshments for meetings and booking audio visual aids. There are 4
different meeting rooms of various sizes.
George, a staff member, comes to see you. He has very important clients arriving in 1
hour. He is going to deliver a presentation in meeting room 1. He says he booked a
PowerPoint projector with reception when he booked the meeting. You did not take the
original booking however you have his room booking recorded, with refreshments
ordered. However there is no mention of equipment being ordered. The other 2
PowerPoint projectors are booked out to other meetings at the moment.
He is quite annoyed and is using a fair number of aggressive statements and phrases:
“You lot are bloody incompetent”; “a monkey could do a better job than you lot”.
“In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure.”
BILL COSBY