Module 2 Telephoning

Telephoning is an important part of doing business in English. Telephone conversations, especially

1.Someone answers the phone and asks if they can help.

2.The caller makes a request—either to be connected to someone or for information.

3.The caller is connected, given information or told that they are not in the office at the moment.

4.If the person who is requested is not in the office, the caller is asked to leave a message.

5.The caller leaves a message or asks other questions.

6.The phone call finishes.

all business telephone conversations do not follow this rigid scheme. But this is the basic outline for
most business telephone conversations, especially those made to request information or ask for
clarification.

Here are some addtional phrases to use when another person can't answer a telephone call:

• “I'm sorry, she's on another call.”

• “I'm sorry, Natalie has left for the day.”

• “I'm sorry, Natalie's not in her office right now.”

• “I'm sorry, she's out of town at the moment.”

• “I'm sorry, she's not available at the moment.”

Then, there are two common phrases that are used for offering to take a message:

• “Would you like to leave a message?”

• “Can I take a message?”

If you don’t want to leave a message, you can say:

• “No thanks, I’ll call back later.”

There are two polite ways to leave a message. You can make a statement starting
with “Please” or a question starting with "Could you…" - usually followed by the

verbs ask, tell, or remind and then “him” (if the message is for a man) or “her” (if

the message is for a woman).

• “Could you ask her to call me back?”

• “Please ask him to call me back.”

• “Please tell him/her that the documents are ready.”

• “Please remind him/her that he/she has a dentist appointment tomorrow.”

BEGINNING A CALL

When Helen answers the phone, she says, "Midtown Computer Solutions, Helen

speaking. How can I help you?" This is a common way for a receptionist at a

company or organization to answer the phone. Here are a couple alternatives:

• "Thank you for calling Midtown Computer Solutions. How may I direct

your call?"

• "Midtown Computer Solutions - good afternoon."

To introduce yourself, you can say: "Hello, this is..." and if you want, you can add

your company name:

• "Hello, this is Ryan Bardos."

• "Hello, this is Ryan Bardos from Paramount Publishing."

Then, ask to speak to somebody by using the phrases

• "May I speak with...?"

• "Could I speak with...?"

You can also add the phrase “I’m calling about…” or "I'm calling to..." in order to give

a reason for your call. Use “I'm calling about...” to introduce a topic, and "I'm calling to…" to introduce
an action:

• "I'm calling about the job opening I saw in the newspaper."

To connect or transfer the call, the receptionist says, "One moment please - I'll put

you through." A few other phrases for transferring a call are:

• “Please hold.”

• “I'll transfer you.”

• “May I ask who's calling?” / “Who’s calling, please?”

If you forgot to identify yourself at the beginning of the call, the receptionist will

sometimes use this phrase to ask for your name.

FINISHING A CALL

When you want to finish the conversation, you can use “signal phrases” – these are

phrases indicating that the conversation is coming to an end:

• “Well, it was nice talking with you.”

• “Thanks for calling.”

• “Anyway… I should let you go / I should get going.”

If you want to promise future contact, you can use one of the phrases from the second conversation:

• “I'll get in touch in a couple of days.”

(get in touch = contact you)

• "I'll call you back a little later"

• “Talk to you soon.”

Then you can finish the conversation with one of these “final phrases”:

• “Bye.”

• “Take care.”

• “Have a nice day.”

Response: “You too. Bye.”

Conversation: Role-Play

The following business telephone conversation can be used as a role-play in class to introduce a number
of standard phrases to practice telephoning in English.

Ms. Anderson (sales representative Jewels and Things): ring ring...ring ring...ring ring...

Mr. Smith (Secretary): Hello, Diamonds Galore, this is Peter speaking. How may I be of help to you
today?

Ms. Anderson: Yes, this is Ms. Janice Anderson calling. May I speak to Mr. Franks, please?

Mr. Smith: I'm afraid Mr. Franks is out of the office at the moment. Would you like me to take a
message?

Ms. Anderson: Uhm...actually, this call is rather urgent. We spoke yesterday about a delivery problem
that Mr. Franks mentioned. Did he leave any information with you?

Mr. Smith: As a matter of fact, he did. He said that a representative from your company might be calling.
He also asked me to ask you a few questions...

Ms. Anderson: Great, I'd love to see this problem resolved as quickly as possible.

Mr. Smith: Well, we still haven't received the shipment of earrings that was supposed to arrive last
Tuesday.

Ms. Anderson: Yes, I'm terribly sorry about that. In the meantime, I've spoken with our delivery
department and they assured me that the earrings will be delivered by tomorrow morning.

Mr. Smith: Excellent, I'm sure Mr. Franks will be pleased to hear that.

Ms. Anderson: Yes, the shipment was delayed from France. We weren't able to send it along until this
morning.

Mr. Smith: I see. Mr. Franks also wanted to schedule a meeting with you later this week.

Ms. Anderson: Certainly, what is he doing on Thursday afternoon?

Mr. Smith: I'm afraid he's meeting with some clients out of town. How about Thursday morning?

Ms. Anderson: Unfortunately, I'm seeing someone else on Thursday morning. Is he doing anything on
Friday morning?

Mr. Smith: No, it looks like he's free then.

Mr. Smith: Well, he usually holds a staff meeting at 9. It only lasts a half-hour or so. How about 10?

Ms. Anderson: Yes, 10 would be great.

Mr. Smith: OK, I'll schedule that. Ms. Anderson at 10, Friday Morning...Is there anything else I can help
you with?

Ms. Anderson: No, I think that's everything. Thank you for your help...Goodbye.

Mr. Smith: Goodbye.