Our main operator receives the calls, once I have do not disturt light on in order to give the student in front of me all my attention. Sometime a simple interuption can do alot of damage.
Jean-Max,
This is so true! What advice do you have for those who don't have the option of putting on their DO NOT DISTURB light?
Dr. Jean Norris
When there is a student in the office, first ask them if they mind if you answer the phone. It's important to make sure they are comfortable if you take a call so that they don't feel annoyed or ignored.
If the student says, yes that is fine. Answer the call, get the name and contact information of the student and let them know that you are currently with a student, and would love to get back to them once your meeting is over.
Like mentioned in the slides before, don't say anything negative. Approach the situation in a positive way. For example, don't say your busy, or that you can't speak, but let me them know that you are occupied with an inquiring student.
It sounds like you have given this a lot of thought and practice Christine. Not only are you showing respect for the prospective student sitting in front of you but the person on the phone as well. What type of an impression do you think this leaves with the person sitting in front of you when the phone rings?
Dr. Jean Norris
I basically show the student a clear approach of my reason for answering the calls, and being alert in a timely matter of the inbound calls.
This seems to be an approach that many admissions professionals use. How do you establish the possibility of phone calls with the student who might be sitting in front of you?
Dr. Jean Norris
We always give preference to the student who has taken his/her time out of their day to come for a visit. When we have a student in the office, all calls must go to voicemail, to be answered immediately after the appointment is over.
Thank you for sharing your approach LeAnn, I'll be the prospective student sitting in the office appreciates the undivided attention. I'm curious, what does your voicemail message say and how quickly do you typically get back to the people who are leaving messages?
Dr. Jean Norris
The voice mail presents our info, who we are, thanks them for calling and asks that the prospective leave a message with their name number and that we will get back to them shortly.
We get back to them as soon as we can.
Returning calls in a timely manner is so important so I'm happy to see that it is a priority for you. Thank you for your follow up!
Dr. Jean Norris
Gather the Student contact information and give them a class as soon as I can. I don't like them wasting time
I agree with this practice and also try to do this at the times needed.
Thanks for sharing Marvin. How do the students sitting in front of you typically react to this practice?
Dr. Jean Norris
We practice the same procedure here where we work, we believe that the protential students deserve our full attention and respect.
Elizabeth,
This is a great practice when it can be done. Sometimes resources are limited though. What advice do you have for those who can't follow this practice?
Dr. Jean Norris
Most of the time we pick up the call and do the 3 first steps from the hierarchy and take a basic information to give a call back and continue the service to the student in my office.
When I have a student at my desk and the phone rings, I politely excuse myself and take the phone call. I take all the necessary information from the caller, name, phone # and follow through. I complete the phone conversation and continue with the student in front of me. I thank them for being so patient while I was on the phone and continue on from there.
SUHEILY,
Great use of Comm Hierarchy! Thanks for sharing! What kind of impression do you think this makes on the student in your office?
Dr. Jean Norris
Breanna ,
That is great, very polite! What kind of impact do you think it would have on the student in your office if you did not answer the call?
Dr. Jean Norris
Dennis, I am lucky as you are. We don't take our calls directly. They are all routed through our front desk. So when I am with a student they get all of my attention. WE have multiple admissions reps in our department and we all know the current students. So if I am unavailable to speak to a student someone can always jump in and help out.
