Do you remember the scene from the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off when the economics teacher (played by Ben Stein) bores his class to tears (and even a little drool) with his lecture on the finer points of the Great Depression, the Laffler Curve, the phrase “Voodoo Economics” and the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act? 

After listening to hundreds of phone calls over my career, I am convinced that most leasing associates end up sounding a lot like Stein’s economics teacher; dull, uninterested, monotone, unengaged and boring when speaking with customers on the phone. One of the reasons for this is simply that people often speak the same way on the phone that they would to someone right in front of them ... and that is a mistake! 

I remember training a woman who was really funny, friendly, outgoing and energetic in person ... but she sounded mad, upset, bored and disinterested on the phone. I made her listen to a recording of one of her calls and at the end of it she looked at me and said, “Is that how I sound? I sound so angry...”

When you speak to someone in front of you, so much of what you’re communicating is non-verbal. The person you’re speaking to has the benefit of seeing the entire picture that you’re painting. On the phone, the only picture you’re creating is the one that consists entirely of your voice ... in other words, on the phone it’s all verbal. 

So how can you sound enthusiastic on the phone?

Boost the Energy: What you may think is too much energy is probably just about right, on the phone. Sure, it may sound silly to the person sitting next to you, but it’ll sound perfect to your prospect on the phone. 

Exaggerate the Vowel Sounds: Listen to the PA announcer at the next sporting event that you attend. You’ll notice that s/he will accentuate and exaggerate certain vowel sounds to make it sound a lot more interesting. So someone introducing NFL quarterback Peyton Manning may sound like this...

“At quarterbaaaack-nuhhhhhhmber eighteeeeen, Peyyy tonnnnnn Mahhhh ninnnnng.”

Of course if you did this exactly like this on the phone, you’d sound weird (albeit memorable), but you can still apply the basic principle to your phone calls. Words like absolutely, sure, definitely, so, really, amazing, going, and comfortable lend itself well to this technique. Also, try to notice in your personal conversations when you lengthen the vowel sounds, "Nooooooo waaaay???" or "Ohhhhhhhh myyyyyyyyyyyy goooooooooooodness!" 

See, you already do this! So, just apply it to your phone calls with prospects. 

Speak Slower: I know this sounds counter-intuitive, since we equate “energy” with “fast-paced” but sound doesn’t always reproduce well on the phone (especially with cell phones); plus, if you have a recording system on your phone, you may experience that annoying echo or reverb from time to time. Speaking slower makes you easier to understand, which is always appreciated by your customers. It will also allow you to use the technique I mentioned above about vowel sounds. 

(In case you’re wondering, I’m not talking about speaking ridiculously slow...just a touch slower than you would speak to someone who is in front of you.)

Practice Your Phone Voice: 

As a kid playing an Atari baseball game (yep, Atari) I used to “announce” the players just like a PA announcer would. Years later, pretending to be an announcer ended up helping me develop my public speaking (and phone) voice...which I still use today. So, as crazy as it sounds, you may want to do a little practice yourself. After all, you’ve probably practiced what you’re going to say, why not practice how you say it?

Be Bold!

Probably the greatest resistance to someone choosing to sound more enthusiastic on the phone (besides hating the phone-which is for another post) is the fear that s/he’ll sound stupid. I understand...I really do. Now get over it. 

Trust me, it’s worth it.