You know it’s happened to you. Your phone rings and it’s the important business call you’ve been waiting for. As you look at your children wildly circling you, you ask yourself, “Do I take the call?”
It leaves you wondering how other Mom Entrepreneurs handle at-home-business calls.
Here are 4 quick tips:
1. Don’t apologize.
On the days my son, Ulyssis (age four) is with me, there ARE times he talks or is noisy when I’m on a business call. (That is I use to have this problem, but he's thirty now. Soon to be thirty one.) I used to say, “I’m sorry, my son is here…” But thankfully, I’ve changed. I’m grateful to Ponn Sabra, author of Empowering Women to Power Network for setting me straight. She told me to be proud my son is with me. And she is right. Now when I proudly state, “My son is with me today,” I find callers are gracious. Most reply with, “Oh, that’s wonderful! Enjoy your time with him.”
2. Be prepared for the unexpected.
As a mom, you wear many hats. When on the phone, always smile and project a good attitude. But be prepared to deal with unexpected situations. If children are disruptive during a call, remain calm. This is the time to have a sense of humor and make light of the situation. If the caller hears the background cries and you’re unable to quickly control the situation, offer to call back at a later time. “Would ten minutes or a half hour be better for you?”
3. Give “silent hellos or goodbyes”.
Laurie Hurley of Home Tutoring Business developed a “silent hello” (or goodbye) she uses when on the phone and her girls walk in or out. Laurie wears a headset to free her hands for a big hug and a quiet kiss. Her girls are trained to be quiet and they understand she can’t hang up just because they’ve arrived. The girls compete to see who can be the quietest, and Laurie doesn’t have to hang up on a client!
4. Leave your children “reminders”.
Melody Spier of Ballyhoo Virtual Services purchased a small stop sign for her office door. It serves as a visual reminder for her kids to stop and listen so they don’t burst in during a business call. Below the sign she posted three questions for her kids to ask themselves before interrupting.
1. Is someone hurt?
2. Does it concern schoolwork?
3. Would you pay $5 for the answer? ($5 = the 15 minutes it takes to work through the question and get refocused)
This cut the interruptions down to almost zero after about a week.
By being proud of your decision to work from home, being prepared for the unexpected, giving silent hellos or good-byes, and leaving your children reminders, you, too, can experience more success with your at-home-business calls.
Photo Attribution
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mangpages/3212233291/ CC by 2.0
Bronzi Home Based Business Tips
Tweet
You have great information here which I like it very much about making money online. I think I will be visiting here so often. This blog really rocks! 5 Thumbs Up guys
ReplyDeleteIn today’s professional world, customers want immediate response and timely results. Oftentimes, it is difficult to keep up with the demand being placed. Small companies can become especially frustrated because they do not employ enough workers to perform the company’s tasks and interact with the customers at the same time. Fortunately, there is a solution. Hire some professionals like Bridgebox, UK, their experts will independently analyse your sales and customer service calls to identify weaknesses in your call handling and opportunities for increased profitability in your business processes. Successful businesses use these calls to build bigger and better businesses. So look for professionals. Thanks
ReplyDeleteFind out how 1,000's of people like YOU are making a LIVING online and are fulfilling their dreams TODAY.
ReplyDeleteGet daily ideas and guides for generating $1,000s per day FROM HOME for FREE.
CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT