Library Life: Phone Etiquette

Conversation #1

______ Library, how may I help you?

My name is _____ _______ and I lost my book, or I think I lost it, but I don't really know, and it might be in my cottage in North Bay which is several hours away, and my daughter might be able to get it in a week or two, but I don't know. What do I do?

Okay, let me take a look at your account. Can I get your name again?

*Patron now thinks I am an idiot because they already told me their name, and proceeds to spell their name which is something like "Mary Smith"*

Situations like this happen to me several times a week, and there are a few simple ways to change this - but it seems like learning phone etiquette is a thing of the past...or never occurred at all. So, I would like to share a few tips on how to conduct yourself over the phone with a business or organization. Now, organizations have different ways of doing things based on how their computer system works, but this is a generally good guide.
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What to do before making a call:
1) Know what has happened (even if you don't know why)
2) Know what you want to achieve
3) Have your client card/number present

Tips when speaking:

1) Say hello.
You don't need to ask how the person you are calling is, it's okay. You are welcome to (politeness is definitely not a bad thing), but please also keep this relatively brief - often staff are minding phones as well as other things, and drawing out a phone call for a long time over pleasantries can be a bit frustrating. However, please never EVER just launch into what your problem is without even saying hello - it is just plain rude, and people are less likely to do you a favour.

2) First state in a single clear and concise statement what the problem is.
This is not the moment to give the entire backstory of what has occurred. Often people will have launched into their full problem in complete detail...only to be told that they need to be transferred to another location or person. Some businesses have people to answer the phones simply to route the calls to the correct place and answer simple questions (ex. hours of operation, nearest location, etc.), while others have fully trained staff answering the phones and taking care of other things (or somewhere in the middle). Since you likely won't know the capabilities of the person on the other end, the best thing that you can do is to simply inform the person what you need/the problem, so that they can determine what tools will be needed to help you - whether that is opening the correct computer module, or transferring the call.


3) If asked for your name, consider giving your last name first.
Now, this is where businesses differ. I ask patrons "Can I get your last name?" and then I ask for the first name (if applicable). This is simply because that is the default option for our computer system. It helps a lot if you are wanting to take care of items on the accounts of your entire family - I look up a single name, and they are all nearby because of the last name. If they don't specify, I will often say something like "my last name is Rogers, first name Shayna". Yet, I realize that what I have done is unusual, so if they ask me to repeat any of that, I am patient about it - I don't know how their system works. Please don't give your name before being asked, or get annoyed if they ask you to repeat your name - if you didn't allow them to be prepared for the information you provided, it isn't their fault.

4) If your call isn't transferred, you can provide more in-depth information if you believe it will be relevant.
I absolutely don't mind you providing me more information than needed! I just please ask (and I think everyone in a similar job will agree), that if I attempt to interrupt you, let me! I promise that I am not trying to be rude, but the solution to your problem might be a lot simpler than you think, and I might be able to solve it in two clicks without the extra details.

5) Similarly, don't assume what information staff will need, and/or don't try to solve the problem for them before they have tried.
I have absolutely heard before "I used to work in a library, and...". I don't mean to be rude, but I absolutely could not care less. Do you know why? Because unless you have worked with this exact system, it is unlikely to help. I used to have a patron come in and open every single book to the page with the barcode on it so it could be scanned...even though we had switched to an RFID system and the books didn't need their barcodes scanned at all. She meant this to be helpful, but it ended up taking extra time for both of us. I have had people start reading out their barcodes when providing their name is easier, tried giving me the reference number for an item that won't have been processed by our system yet, and everything in between. If you think it might be helpful, we would love it if you ask! If I seem confused by the situation and you have suggestions, please share them - your insight might help. I just ask that you don't assume - it's much easier for me to help you that way.

6) Don't assume that I don't know how to help you.
Ah, assuming again. A person may be:
a) only temporarily covering phones
b) extremely understaffed/busy and need to transfer the call to more available staff
c) obligated to transfer the call because of company regulations regarding job duties, and will only answer that type of question to provide good customer service if everyone else is busy
Sometimes the question will get transferred to another department by a staff member, and then the person from that department will proceed to walk over to me and ask me what to do. No, this isn't super common, but my point is...please don't assume!

7) Silence doesn't have to be scary.
Unfortunately sometimes it takes a few moments to figure out a situation, or find any information to report. That might mean that I am silent for a little bit. Now personally, I try to update the person on the other end from time to time ("I'm just looking into the due dates now") so that they aren't uneasy, because I get that this can be uncomfortable. This silence means I am paying attention to details though, so I would ask that you don't give me additional details such as that your daughter might one day get the book back, or exactly how often you go to your cottage or where it is. This can make it difficult to focus on the details I might need to know to offer you the best solution - help me help you!

Now, let's look at the above conversation again.

Conversation #2:

______ Library, how may I help you?

Hello. I think I may have misplaced a book, and am not sure of the next steps.

Okay, let me just take a look at your account. Can I get your name?

Last name Smith, first name Mary.

Thank you. Is it the Ireland Travel Guide?

Yes, it is. I might have left it at my cottage, but I won't be able to get there for a few weeks.

Okay, I can see that you still have a renewal left on it, which would give you an extra two weeks. Do you think that you will be able to get there by then?      OR (if this is not possible)      Okay, so you have four weeks until we would need to charge you for a replacement cost of this item. I would suggest not paying for it automatically because if you are able to find it, I wouldn't be able to refund you the full amount after. Shall we leave it on your account so that you have the extra time to find it when you go up to your cottage? The maximum that you would pay in fines in $5.00.

....etc.


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This approach allows the interaction to get to the point quickly and effectively, without additional stress, details, or embarrassment. Definitely preferable!


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What do you think of these tips? For any of you working in customer service, are there any tips you would like to provide to your customer base?