Communication on the phone
I was happy to see in most of your course you gave a number of ways to over come the communication on the phone. To Active listening and to create a list of items to cover in a limited time frame will help me with my new job and being prepared, gave me a number of ideas on being prepared once I start making my my phone calls. I will print out a list from start of my conversation to the end of what I need to communicate and the importants of staying on track and time frame.
Marie brings up a great point, if your school records phone calls utilize the recordings for training and modeling successful outcomes. Thanks for your post!
Dear Doug
My admissions Department utilizes a phone conversation model. We use a guided script with 5 steps. Introduction –first 30 seconds, Surface 2 to 3 problems, Recap, Appointment transition and then close. I listen to calls on a daily basis and use this as a training tool for all my reps . The purpose of our calls is to set the appointment, therefore usually last between 6 to 8 minutes. Hope this helps.
Melissa, sure, that's a great point. Having a framework for your call will allow you to stay on track but also allow some flexibility too.
Dr. Jean Norris
I am on the phone non stop all day in our admissions department and making a general list of items to cover in the phone calls will help greatly when it comes to how many I make in a day.
Doug, thanks for sharing your experience here. It sounds like you have a lengthy background in higher education and so you bring with you a wealth of knowledge and expertise. In regards to the cost discussion, it seems like you have the right idea. Being transparent and upfront about cost is extremely important and you can certainly gauge their feelings based on their response to that information. I like to ask the follow-up question, "Is this what you expected?" because then I can best respond to them. Let us know how this approach works for you.
Dr. Jean Norris
Dear Dr. Norris:
Prior to working in the for-profit education arena, I served as an associate director of admissions in both graduate and undergraduate degree programs. On the graduate side (MBA, Computer Science, IT and healthcare programs), the vast majority of students had access to employer-funded tuition reimbursement. This made for phone calls that were focused more on the actual admissions requirements, though some did ask about cost-per-credit hour. I always tried to hit on a few highlights such as the outstanding faculty, our seeking AACSB accreditation (we received it in 2006) which highlighted our commitment to academic scholarship, convenience of scheduling for adult students, online courses and our international campus (MBA) in Luxembourg. I also enjoyed the face-to-face contact with the prospective students and taking them on campus tours which gave me a more relaxed atmosphere to continue our conversation. The graduate students, for the most part, wanted the personal contact as opposed to a long-winded telephone conversation.
The undergraduate side was at a state college in CT that offered distance-learning and awarded associate and bachelor degrees. This is where the phone calls were very time consuming due to the need to explain the learning environment of online programs and how our regional accreditation was an indicator to the skeptical student that we were not just a degree mill. These conversations also took time to explain financial aid and the FAFSA application process. What I did not have in many cases was some basic information on the student prior to the call. I had to figure out how to make an immediate interpersonal connection before diving into the discussion. This position was almost entirely phone and email based, so the personal connection was very limited. I certainly missed the student interaction along with my committee work and friendship with an on-campus faculty. This format was all about being as informative as possible since I would not have the opportunity to meet the individual in person to further the discussion. At times, I felt too much information provided during the call was just overloading the individual. This is why I sent supplemental emails to keep the prospective student engaged.
My current position works with, for the most part, a non-traditional student population seeking career training. The phone calls can be very time consuming and from what I have noticed from my short time here is that most inquires on the phone can last from 10-30 minutes. This is due to the lengthy enrollment process and program specifics. This is extraordinary to me, but it does cut-down on the actual enrollment process when and if it happens at the school. I believe in the personal touch and student-centered service, but this takes a great deal of time out of the work day. What is frustrating for me is that the conversion rate from inquiry to enrollment is relatively low since financing is a very big issue for many people and our school does not provide traditional student loans at the present time. I am thinking about structuring my calls in a way that I can cover this topic early-on in a positive way as opposed to giving the full program outline then learning that the individual has little or no funding. Your thoughts?
After completing the course, I am looking at developing a more streamlined phone conversation model to cut down on the overall length of the conversation without missing any relevant points. I do find myself enjoying most calls since I believe we are capable of serving a very needy population, but both the prospective student and I can veer off topic quite easily since I have experienced some of the same life events that they are now experiencing. I remember that I should be more empathetic, not overly sympathetic. Can you suggest some strategies for me?
Thank you very much!
Doug
Doug,it sounds like you take great pride in your job and role. I like that your plan is to take time and be prepared for each phone call. I'm curious, what has been the response when some information is given on campus versus on the phone?
Dr. Jean Norris
As an admissions representative who spends a great deal of time discussing our career-focused programs on the telephone, I see great value in making an effort to be much more prepared prior to each call and keeping the conversation on topic. I have experienced calls that have taken over 25 minutes to complete since we really got-off topic several times. My goal is to try and be informative, but up to a certain point. I believe that getting the prospective student to visit the school as part of the overall conversation
increases the likelihood of an enrollment. Having a face-to face conversation is very important for me and I enjoying seeing the interest and excitement of someone who is looking to make positive and significant changes in their life. I feel honored to play a role in that decision-making process.
Mary Jane, well said. The more tools you have in your tool kit, the better chances you have in connecting with your students.
Dr. Jean Norris
