Telephone Techniques & Procedures Answering the phone



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Telephone Techniques & Procedures
Answering the phone
If you work the front desk, you know that the phones can sometimes get very busy. A guest’s first impression of our hotel will often depend on how the phones are answered at the front desk. Calls should be answered in a clear, pleasant tone of voice. Speak slowly and clearly. It’s important that the phone be answered promptly (3 to 5 rings). If you are serving a guest when the phone rings, excuse yourself and answer the phone. The guest who is standing at the front desk can hear the phone ringing. But the caller cannot see that you are waiting on a customer.

If the phone rings while you are on another call, ask the person you are talking with if it is OK to put them on hold for a moment and answer the second call. Never leave a caller on hold for more than a moment, instead, take their number and offer to call them back.


Our answering machine and phone auto attendant are set up as follows:

  • After four rings, if the switchboard is not answered, the call will now ring at the following desks: Kathy’s, Kim’s, Sara’s, and Don’s. There will be an indication at those phones that the call is an incoming outside line (the call cover light will go on). Those calls should be answered, “Best Western Merry Manor Inn, this is (name), may I help you.”

  • If a call is not answered in 8 rings it will be directed to the answering machine at the front desk. The desk person will hear the answer message and will hear the caller’s message as the caller leaves the message.

  • If a call is not answered because the answering machine is busy, the call will go to the auto attendant.

  • The auto-attendant message should inform callers wanting to cancel or change their reservations that they cannot do so by leaving a message with our sales department.

  • We have a portable phone for use when the desk person has to leave the front desk.

  • We will continue to refine these phone procedures until we are perfect.


Never answer the phone "Best Western, please hold." If you are waiting on a guest when the phone rings, excuse yourself and answer the phone. Instead of saying, “Please hold,” answer the phone in the normal manner. If the caller wants to speak to a room or one of our departments, just connect the call. If the caller wants to make a reservation, you should say something like, “I am serving a guest now, but will be done shortly, would you mind holding for a moment and I will be right with you. Or if you prefer, I can take your telephone number and call you right back.”
If you are on a call and the other line rings, instead of letting the second call go to voice mail, ask the caller you are speaking with if it is OK to put them on hold for a moment. “I have another call coming in, may I put you on hold for a minute? I will be right back with you.” If the second call just needs to be connected to another extension, transfer them and return to your original call. If the second caller needs to make a reservation (or if you think that second call will take a long time), offer to take the second caller’s number and call them back.
Don’t keep callers on hold for more than a moment and never routinely let calls go to voice mail.

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