Overcome the fear of making calls

Making calls for business is terrifying to many people – What if I stutter? Or if I say the wrong word? What if I don’t get the answer I want? What if I don’t make a good first impression? etc. are questions that most of the people faced with making calls have. So they just don’t want to do it…

A female customer service agent shows her frustration with the telephone and computer.

Now, the first photo I found on Google was the most relevant one so I had to pick this one (which you can find here). I suspect most of the people having to make phone calls look like this. Or at least, they would look like this if we didn’t have cordless phones 🙂 Hey, I once looked like that!

It takes a lot of work with yourself, but you can also practice some tricks to help you get more relaxed.  These bits of information will help you before making the call, during the call and after you finished it. It’s no rocket science, just basic common sense. You will be talking to people just like you, with two eyes, two arms, one nose.

First of all, before the call, you should:

  • Do a bit of research about the person/company you’re calling. After all, you don’t want to seem like you randomly picked them to call, even if you did. But showing a bit of interest beforehand looks really nice!
  • Set your mind to show the value your product/service add to their life. It’s about them so make them feel the can’t live without what you’re offering or that they need it so bad that don’t know how they lived before finding out about you.
  • Detach from expectations. Just set your mind to expect any response and be prepared to answer afterwards. Do not set high or low expectations, do not set them at all! Treat your conversation partner as you’d treat a friend.

Second, when you’re actually on the phone with someone, you might want to try the following during the call:

  • SMILE! Just wear a smile on your lips while talking to them. From ‘Hello!’ to ‘Thank you, goodbye!’, people can sense your mood and if you’re smiling to them, even on the phone.
  • Make sure you are brief. People are busy and do not have patience to hear stories. Just get to the point quickly. Who, what, when, why, where – the wh-questions are the golden rule!
  • Ask questions and listen to the answers. Find out what they need by asking just a few questions to help you get their idea. Also, if they are big talkers, just listen to them, do not interrupt. After all, you called to have a conversation and would be a two-way communication.
  • Be passionate. Even when presenting yourself and the company, make sure you speak from the heart, like you really believe what you’re saying. Actually, you should really believe in what you’re saying, because then why-the-heck are you doing it?!
  • Close on a positive note. Okay, maybe you didn’t get the answer you wanted, but that might be just for the now. Ask if you can call them again after some time. Ask for recommendations, maybe their friends are potential clients. Also, you can ask for an email address, so they keep updated about future news.

And last but not least, after the call make sure you got everything right. Maybe you wrote it down while talking to them. Do not call them again because you did not write down their friend’s name or just to double-check the phone number. And if you promised to call back in three month, then do that then. Not earlier! Maybe a bit later, like after three months and a week. Also, if they gave you their email address and you said you’re going to send them an email, make sure you don’t forget. So just do it right after you hung up the phone.

You get nervous and anxious when you concentrate on yourself, your emotions and what can happen to you. Instead, think of the person you are talking to, treat them as a friend whom you’re trying to make life better. They will perceive you less as a stranger and more like a person who treats them like human being, not a buyer.

My advice to you is that you make that call you hate between two phone calls with friends or family. Call your best friend or mother, talk about life things, going out or having dinner together. Then, right after you finished talking to them call the person you’re supposed to immediately, while you are still in the happy and relaxed mood. Keep it short with them – for you and for them both. This way, you haven’t got time to start panicking. After the call, call another friend or member of the family to keep your mind from going crazy and start analyzing what you did wrong. And so on.

Tip: it gets easier in time! Good luck on the practice!

Public Relations: Have you got what it takes?

I frequently get asked about the PR field. Last time, the conversation took place with a 20-something-year-old who’s hesitant about what to do next in this life.

– I was thinking to go for PR, if I can’t find anything that I like to do. How do I know if I’ve got what it takes? What’s the job? What do you actually do? How did you start?, they usually ask.

My reply is – ‘I didn’t choose PR, PR chose me.’ Basically, because it’s true. It all started as an extra thing to do besides university, in order to earn my own money. And I got really lucky this way, I admit it.

It was my second year at university and I got this question – ‘We saw you were passionate about Facebook, how would you like managing our business page as a job?’. Now, passionate is a special way of describing my Facebook skills. I was basically obsessed… All day, every morning till night, I was online on Facebook. I posted about everything, sharing things that I liked or found interesting. My day would be defined by the time between the new and the old posts in my news feed. But I said – hey, I’ll give it a try. And so I started learning about the professional way of using Facebook. Yes, it all started with Social Media for me, and then my duties got bigger and bigger. I would manage all the online accounts and then even got to the offline part – events, meetings, gatherings, projects. Anything that had to do with representing the company I worked for, a dental clinic in Bucharest.

Job Description

PR is easily defined by its name, yes – it is about managing the connections between the company you represent and the public. As a PR, you are responsible for the image and reputation perceived by the community. Your tasks consist of establishing, implementing and maintaining multiple ways of communication, as well as strong relationships with the media reps.

A PR officer can find his/hers place whether in an agency/PR consultancy firm or as an in-house specialist. The PR agencies enjoy the benefit of offering a wide range of services in many areas of expertise, but they can also concentrate on a particular field, such as consumer or B2C (business-to-consumer) PR, corporate or B2B (business-to-business) PR or just general public affairs.

In-house specialists can be found both in public or private sectors, but also in non-profit organizations. They are in charge for both internal and external communications and will face a challenge bigger than a PR consultant, given the fact that for this role, an in-depth knowledge of the field and business environment is needed.

I was an in-house PR officer in the dental field and even though my knowledge of actual medicine was limited, I found it amazing! My motivation came from learning new things, on a level that it makes sense for the future. I took part in dental interventions that showed pure anatomy. And with it, along came the struggle. As an outsider, I was highly impressed. As the employee of the clinic, I was taught basic dental activity. But as a PR specialist, I had to find the right way of putting into words an intervention that seems scary to the public. Challenging enough? This is a level apprehension not possible for an external PR.

Qualifications & Background

As any other field, some study is required. The most relevant fields would be:

  • Public Relations
  • Marketing
  • Journalism, Communication and/or Media
  • Creative Writing
  • Social Sciences.

I come with a background of Psychology and a passion about Communication and people – what drives them, what motivates them, etc.

Passion is much more important than whatever degree you’ve got. Passion is the first thing people read when they see you, and trust me when I say that you won’t have your degree subject written on your forehead.

One way for an employer of any kind to be sure of your passion is providing a history of volunteer work or internships. The no-pay or low-pay activity gives them an idea of how up you are for gaining experience. Subsequently, there are trainings, workshops and courses you can attend in order to deepen your knowledge and understanding of the field.

Skills

This is it – you either have it or you don’t:

  • Amazing verbal and written skills
  • Self-confidence, excellent presentation and networking skills
  • Creativity
  • Attention to detail
  • Patience and great interpersonal skills
  • Ability to handle pressure and juggle with different priorities and deadlines
  • Drive, flexibility, pro-active attitude, open-mindedness and willingness to learn new things
  • Analytical thinking and problem-solving skills
  • Excellent organizational and planning skills
  • Business orientation.

Activity & Responsibilities

If you’ve made it to this point, now it gets real. PR is never just PR. PR has a way of asking for some Marketing skills, Event Planning, Budget Planning, Social Media or even Project Management talent.

Still here? Good, let’s see what this is all about.

Your work tasks may include, but wouldn’t be limited to:

  • Plan, develop, implement PR strategies
  • Set up the PR budget and needs
  • Create and maintain a favorable image and reputation of the company/brand/organization
  • Build relevant relationships with the media reps
  • Write press releases and promotional materials
  • Market research
  • Develop a Social Media strategy
  • Create new business opportunities
  • Attend and/or plan events, press conferences, open-days and/or exhibitions
  • Create a PR crisis strategy
  • Update information on any online platform
  • Constantly search to grow the contact list
  • Manage projects and/or product launches
  • Coordinate photo opportunities
  • Manage sponsorship and/or partnership opportunities
  • Write and edit all written communications – articles, speeches, case studies, reports
  • Manage the logistics of brochures, leaflets and/or videos.

FYI – For Your Info

These are just a few of the PR needs of any company, brand or organization. They may vary when working in a team, but just be prepared.

  • PR specialists are usually office-based, but the duty might also involve travel when meeting clients or potential clients, suppliers or partners
  • The dress-code is usually smart, unless a certain event says otherwise
  • Working hours may vary and involve unsocial hours
  • The career ladder can go from PR Assistant to Manager and then to Senior
  • Salaries do vary, depending on the career level, location and employer.

 

With that being said, it is important to know that PR presents a fierce competition when it comes to jobs in the field, for women and men equally. With the glamorous picture aside, a great significance should be given to both the pressure and the reward of choosing a career in this field.

 

Shall We? Let’s!

These past few months have taught me new things and changed a lot of how I pictured life till 24. One of them is also about the online and about being there. Some logistical issues like not having internet connection led to not writing on the blog anymore. And when that happens, sometimes you miss it. Other times, you worry you might have forgotten how to even do it. But there are moments when you come up with new ideas! So this is it now, I’m back here and there’s a catch 😀 From now on, you’ll be able to find business articles as well as the personal ones.

The new category, The Communicatoraims to share information and details about PR, Social Media, Marketing, Blogging, Communication, Storytelling, Networking, Social Relations, so that they can be understood and practiced by anyone who needs them or is passionate about them. It’s important to mention that the articles and info here are what I find valuable and believe they make a change by being shared – situations that I have encountered in my own activity and experience in these last 4 years of being in the field. In case of needing further info or examples or just for asking complimentary questions, the communication remains open after the articles are being published, so we can keep in touch whether by commenting on the article or by private message, through the contact page.

On the other hand, The Human category will represent, as before, the side of personal experiences and lessons, events in everyday life. It is my pleasure to share with you stories that have taught me different things, that helped me grow. Because, at the end of the day, we are not alone in this world and we do have so much that we can help each other with, right? 🙂

While The Human will be available for reading in Romanian and English, The Communicator is gonna show articles in English exclusively.

Now, this being out in the open, I just gotta write and find no excuses for it! There’s internet connection, there’s a new laptop on my desk, I am excited as a dog seeing its owner, so I’m gonna go for it!

We’re starting with a first picture about what a PR Specialist is and what does he/she do… Enjoy!