Returning
your Phone Calls - by Michael Stone
During a recent seminar in
Sacramento, California, I asked, “How many return every phone call
the same day or by 9 am the next morning?” Of 110 people in the
room, 4 raised their hand. Less than 4%.
I didn’t ask the question to
embarrass or make anyone feel guilty. We were discussing the rate of
business failures in construction. The percent of companies who fail
in construction is somewhere between 90% and 96%. Every time I ask
that question, the percent of companies who return every phone call
is 3% to 6%. Hmmmm, I wonder if there could be a relationship?
Perhaps returning phone calls isn’t
important to you. That is fine as long as it doesn’t cost you money.
But that, my friend, is seldom the case.
Let me give you an example.
In 2002, a representative for a homeowner called me looking for a
contractor in his area to do about $350,000 worth of remodeling and
repairs on a home. I tried for two weeks to find a contractor for
the referral. I would call and leave a very clear message of who I
was and what I wanted. I must have called at least 20 different
companies. Most of the contractors I called had even attended our
Markup and Profit seminar. They had heard me preach about the
importance of returning phone calls.
Want to guess how many returned calls I got? One, from the wife of a
remodeling company owner. I told her the whole story; she promised
she would have her husband call back. To this day I never heard
another word.
After two weeks, I called the nice fellow and told him I couldn’t
help. I was embarrassed for my industry. This is a clear example of
contractors with bad habits and priorities in the wrong place. And
please trust me, this is not an isolated incident.
Not returning phone calls is nothing more than a bad habit. Over and
over I hear contractors tell me, “I don’t have the time to return my
calls, I’m too busy.” Baloney. They have the same amount of time as
anyone else. People who claim they are “too busy” are simply
disorganized and irresponsible and there is no nice way to say it.
If you wish to look like a typical flaky contractor, tell others you
are “too busy” to return your calls.
Almost always, a customer’s first contact with you will be by phone.
It is appropriate to treat your customers with courtesy, answer
their questions and meet their needs when they call.
Companies spend time and money training sales people to do sales and
estimating, managers to manage and field people to build projects
for their customers. The ability to answer the phone correctly,
every time, is every bit as important as knowing how to assemble a
new home, do remodeling, or wire or plumb a home.
Make responding to incoming calls top priority. Answering the phone
is everyone’s responsibility. It should be answered before the
fourth ring. The phone should be answered first with a motivational
statement: “Good Morning”. Let the folks know whom they have
reached: “This is ABC Construction Company.” Then tell them who you
are: “This is John/Mary speaking.” Finally, you let them know you
are ready to serve them: “How may we help you?” This is Zig Ziglar’s
approach to answering the phones.
If you have to use an answering machine, that is fine – it is far
better than having no answer at all. But when you ask callers to
leave their number, use it! Return that call as soon as possible,
and that means the same day or by early the next day. Don’t make
anyone wait.
In many cases, the person responsible for returning the call has the
annoying habit of not doing what they say they will do. I can
guarantee you if a person won’t return their phone messages; they
won’t do other things either. Customers are smart enough to know
this and they simply will not do business with companies that don’t
return their calls.
If you are guilty of not returning
phone calls, make a vow to change immediately. If you have an
employee with this habit, give them one warning and then a swift
transfer to the competition.
Let me finish this article with a
quick story of a phone call I got recently from a friend who owns an
HVAC company. He went on four sales calls that day for new air
conditioning equipment installs. He contracted with two of the four
families and the other two were going to get back to him. The
average sale price on the two jobs was about $8,000 with a markup of
2.8. All four families told him they had been trying for several
days to get other HVAC contractors to talk to them, but no one would
return their calls. He returned their calls, and he got the jobs.
If you are guilty of not returning
phone calls, make a vow to change immediately. If you have an
employee with this habit, give them one warning and then a swift
transfer to the competition.
Let me finish this article with a quick story of a phone call I got
recently from a friend who owns an HVAC company. He went on four
sales calls that day for new air conditioning equipment installs. He
contracted with two of the four families and the other two were
going to get back to him. The average sale price on the two jobs was
about $8,000 with a markup of 2.8. All four families told him they
had been trying for several days to get other HVAC contractors to
talk to them, but no one would return their calls. He returned their
calls, and he got the jobs.
This article was written by Michael Stone
Construction Programs & Results
1001 49th Street
Washougal, WA 98671
1-360-335-1100
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