第20课　A CUSTOMER ON THE LINE

"Am I saying it wrong?" isn't right. An adverb is needed here, so the question should be "Am I saying it wrongly?"

Mei Ling realises there's no-one in reception at HotDotCom...

Mei Ling: Nora's gone to the hospital for her check-up today, Gary, so there's no one on reception. Can you cover all incoming calls, please?

Gary: Okay, sure. (to himself, practising his pronunciation) Er... Good morning, HotDotCom. Er... Good morning, HotDotCom. How can I help?

The phone rings, Gary answers...

Gary: Good morning, HotDot Com. How can I help?... Oh... You hold on, ah? ... (to Jaya) Jaya, where's Jane?

Jaya: She's gone to the Asia Hotel conference.

Gary: Okay. (Into phone) Sorry, gone out.

Jaya: Who was that, Gary?

Gary: Dunno, lah.

Jaya: You don't know? It's a good job Mei Ling didn't hear you.

Gary: Eh?

Jaya: It could have been someone important. Next time find out who it is, please.

Gary: Okay.

After a while, the phone rings again...

Gary: Good morning, HotDotCom. How can I help? Who's that?... Okay... Okay...Gone out. You call back, ah.

Gary hangs up...

Gary: (To Jaya) I find out who it is - Mr R Singh. Do you think he's Jane's new boyfriend?

Jaya: He most certainly is not. He's the reservations manager of one of our top Indian hotel chains! You can't speak to customers like that, Gary!

Gary: (Protesting) But Mei Ling asked me to cover the phones!

Narrator: Gary's first words are certainly polite and clear, but after that he sounds as if he's ordering the caller around:

Replay...

Gary: Good morning, HotDotCom. How can I help?... Oh...You hold on, ah.

Narrator: As for Mr Singh - Gary's tone and sharp language must make him feel as though we don't care about him:

Replay...

Gary: Who's that?..Okay... Okay...Gone out. You call back, ah.

Narrator: At HotDotCom we value all our customers, so everyone needs to use language that makes the caller feel important.

Jaya: Perhaps we shouldn't put Gary on phone duty again until he's learned some basic telephone skills.

Mei Ling: That's why I've set him a new goal. He has to sit alongside you or Nora whenever he can and learn a better way of handling customers on the line.

Gary spends time listening to Jaya and Nora, observing their telephone skills...

Jaya: Good morning, HotDotCom. How can I help? ... I'm afraid Jane is at a conference all day. This is Jaya, the Webmaster, can I be of any help at all?

Nora: Good morning, HotDotCom. How can I help? ...May I ask who's calling? ...Ah - Good morning, Mr Singh, I'm afraid Mei Ling's on another line. Would you like to hold or shall I ask her to call you back?

Mei Ling: Okay, Gary. You can take over now.

Gary: Good morning, HotDotCom. How can I help? I'm afraid everyone's at lunch right now. This is Gary speaking. Can I take a message?

Voice on phone: Yes Gary. Could you remind everyone to call in to HotDotCom tomorrow for another telephone lesson. The number is...

《联合早报》

Speak Good English Phone-in Lesson
打电话·听课文 1800 7341015

Speak Well, Be Understood.　好英语，利沟通。
Written by Laraine Bamrah, Paul Tolton, Delphia Choo, Alaisdair Raynham and Steve Adams for the British Council in association with the Speak Good English Movement.
©Ministry of Information and The Arts and British Council Singapore 2001

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