It’s all in the tone!

Posted by Maxine on July 3, 2010

I have been reminded this week that successful telemarketing results vary so much by tone of voice, especially in the initial call opening. I’m sure we have all heard the saying “It’s not what you said but how you said it!”

There’s a statistic somewhere that shows that around 35-40% of what is said is perceived based on tone of voice, inflection, and speed.. ie; how it is said not what it is said. I cannot find the article to support that claim so I’m afraid it’s just one of those stats that has stayed in my head. I also remember reading somewhere that tone, inflection and speed of voice are all things that stimulate the right side of the brain (the emotional bit) rather than the left side of the brain (the fact, logic and content bit) so in this regard, the tone of voice is important to convey the feelings and emotions associated with the call rather than just concentrate on the content. Of course both are needed… something interesting by way of content but no matter how appealing and beneficial the content will be it will be lost if the tone of voice makes the recipient switch off emotionally to what is being said because of the way in which it is being communicated by tone of voice.

Different telemarketers can all say exactly the same thing but the tone of voice will often be the deciding factor between a successful call and a non-successful one!

My tips:

Keep tone of voice to a natural and conversational tone (don’t use a bossy, cheesy or bored tone! Nor one that comes across as you are expecting a negative reaction to your telemarketing call!)
Try to speak in a tone that encourages dialogue – This is usually higher in pitch
Try to use a soft tone of voice that will come across as helpful and friendly
Make sure that the right tone is used for the pace of the call
Slightly exaggerate the usual tone that you would use in friendly dialogue. A bit like you would use if you met someone at a social event for the first time and wanted to engage in conversation with them.
Experiment with speaking a bit louder than your usual voice to convey confidence and to be clear about what you are saying.
Keep a glass of water to hand for drinks in between calls

The “Smile as you Dial” school of thought…

I know this sounds a bit 80′s but it’s so true that being in the right frame of mind for a telemarketing call, really influences the chances of success. When people talk on the phone they imagine what the other looks like. If you have a “smiley voice” it’s much more likely that people will engage in conversation with you.

It’s not possible for every person to adopt the same tone of voice as it’s part of our personality and make up as individuals. However, we can learn to experiment with using different tones in a conscious way.

A good exercise is to have a phrase written down on a piece of paper then use a recording device to record your voice saying this phrase in a number of different ways experimenting with tone. Record a selection and then play them back to yourself and see how you sound. Try this with a big smile on your face and see how different you sound. Try again sitting up straight and being confident. Then put your favorite one into practise… and see what happens.

(Then come back to this blog and post your comments )