西方国家的人们接起电话的第一句话通常是:“Hello, this is XXX speaking.”但假如你用的是办公室的电话,就应该先告诉对方“这里是XXX公司的XXX部门”,比如:“This is the front desk of Company ABC.”或“This is Company ABC. Salesman XXX is at your service.”
在询问电话那端是谁时,我们尽量不要用“Who's this?”“Who are you?”这样的表达,前者显得盛气凌人,后者则非常不规范。我们可以这样说:“May I ask who's calling?”“Who's that please?”或“Who is calling please?”当对方明确表示要和某人通话时(“Can I speak to XXX?”),我们可以说:“Hold on please.”让对方稍作等待,或“Is there anything I can convey for you?”来请对方留言。
当做好了所有准备,客户说的话还是很多听不懂,怎么办?别紧张,如果是因为客户语速太快或有口音导致听不懂,我们可以说:“Can you slow down a bit?”“Could you speak more slowly?”“I'm not clear on what you said.”或“I beg your pardon?”等来让对方慢下来或重复一遍。
如果是因为专业名词没有听懂,我们可以采用一些小技巧,比如告诉对方:“We need to check the relevant questions. Would you please email me the content of this conversation later?”来让对方用邮件的形式把谈话重点记录下来。这样我们就得到了一个缓冲时间。