During the day, I am a receptionist. I work for an electrical contracting company that has about 150 people internally and even more people out in the "field." Let's say 350 people total?
When you call a business - of any kind - please for the sake of the receptionist's sanity...
- say HELLO. Don't just rattle of a name.
- know the last name of the person you are trying to reach. Oh, Michael? We have 21 of those.
- no, I cannot track down the right Michael for you. Ain't nobody got time for that.
- no, we do not have a paging system. We are not a grocery store.
- if you are seeking employment, do not start with "hey yo, you hiring in dere?" No sir, we are not.
- do not call back saying Michael didn't answer. Did you leave a message?
- oh you didn't leave a message? No, I cannot go look for him.
- do not ask for the personal cell phones & emails of the owner and/or managers. you're kidding me, right?
- oh you're old friends? shouldn't you have his number then? do not make up some story of how you know the person you are trying to reach. we know when you are lying.
- do not tell me to pep up. I was plenty peppy until you called 12 times looking for Michael.
- DO NOT say "oh you're just the receptionist?" I am a lot more than a receptionist. Don't even start.
Have you ever been a receptionist? Share your stories below! I know you have some!
Let's be friends. Receptionists unite?
email : miranduh007@yahoo.com
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Oh. My. Gosh. I totally relate! For most of my professional life I have been in a receptionist type position and have dealt with every single one of these things. Sometimes it can be so hard to bite your tongue and be polite to people who blatantly disrespect you and demean you because you are "just a receptionist/assistant". In my opinion, secretaries, receptionists, and assistants hold the business together.
ReplyDeleteYou have no idea how much cred I give my receptionist at work. Our company's phone number must be really close to a BMW dealership's because people ALWAYS call here inquiring about BMWs...it's hilarious but I can imagine how frustrating that is for our receptionist. She has to put up with so much and we definitely couldn't function without her. If she's not there one day, we're lost!
ReplyDeleteI feel ya..where I work, our receptionist is part-time and we have to plan a schedule in order to have the reception covered if she's not there. None of us want to work it unless absolutely have to! I HATE answering phones. Talking face to face? Totally fine!! It's something about the telephone conversation that makes it harder to be polite.
ReplyDeleteHahaha this is too funny!! I'm not a receptionist but I manage a store and I totally understand where you're coming from!
ReplyDeleteIt’s sad to think that a lot of receptionist nowadays are being mistreated by people who ask for their help. Most people don’t really understand their line of work, that is why it’s easy for them make negative accusations. Anyway, thanks for sharing this with us, Miranda. All the best!
ReplyDeleteTom Coshow@ TeleDirect