These are some essentials to keep in mind during every customer phone contact:

1. Have an attitude: Be pleasant and professional. Cheery is not necessarily the appropriate demeanor to present to an agitated parent or student.
2. Greet the caller: "This is the Office of Residential Life, Mary speaking."
3. Identify the caller: "With whom am I speaking?" or "Who may I say is calling?"
4. Identify the issue: "How can I help you?" Sometimes this is far more difficult than responding to the first issue the caller offers. "How can I get a single room?" may not be an inquiry about how to get onto a Spring Wait list. It could be that the caller is seeking to resolve a roommate conflict, or wants a quiet study atmosphere, or has a special accommodation need.
5. Decide on the expert: When you can resolve the issue or can explain the steps a caller needs to take to resolve an issue on their own, do so. If you can't, decide who can.
6. Call for assistance: When you can't resolve the issue yourself, only then should you transfer a call. But before you do, be sure the staff member you intend to pass the customer to is available. Voice mail is not the next voice an agitated caller should hear. If the staff member is unavailable, obtain a phone number where the caller can be reached and explain that someone will call back as soon as they are available. In any case, be certain the staff member being ask to respond to the caller is apprised of the nature of the call, and who is calling so they can decide how the call should be handled.
7. Call for help: Sometimes a caller is unusually combative or abusive. If they are unresponsive to your request to moderate the tone or the language, it is time to either call for help from another staff member or to hang up.
8. Is there anything else? This simple question or something similar should be offered to every call before you end a phone conversation.