Conference Calls - A Bit of Fun

I'm sure you've been involved in conference calls that can become somewhat mundane to say the least. Well, I've taken to pepping them up a little lately and thought it might add a little amusement to your day to hear about it...

We use an automated system for most of the conference calls I have to dial in to and these are set up to allow you to record your name at the start of the call. This not only introduces you at the start of the conversation i.e. 'Andrew has joined the conference', but also announces your departure, 'Andrew has left the conference'. It occurred to me that this little tool could add a whole new dimension to conference calls and offer a little bit of light relief when needed.

I have started the idea off simply and recently made sure that I logged into the call early so that nobody heard the introduction. Then half way through a particular heated discussion where I felt we were going round in circles, I hung up the phone. Now, of course I wasn't there to hear it, but I took great pleasure in knowing that my colleagues had just heard the message, 'Common sense has left the conference'. Childish I know, but these things must sometimes be done to brighten the day.

I've got a few more ideas up my sleeve and look forward to the next conference call. Who knows? If I keep it up, they might stop inviting me.

Are they working for you?

"The only thing worse than training your staff and having them leave, is not training them and having them stay".

Check out these worrying staff sightings from around the UK. Ask yourself, 'Is this my staff?'

Worrying Employee Sighting #1

My daughter and I went through the McDonald's take-out window and I gave the girl a £5 note. Our total was £4.20, so I also handed her a Twenty pence piece She said, 'you gave me too much money.' I said, 'Yes I know, but that way you can just give me a pound back .'

She was puzzled and went to get the manager who asked me to repeat my request. I did so, and he handed me back the 20 pence and said 'We're sorry but they could not do that kind of thing.' The girl then proceeded to give me back 80 pence in change!

Do not confuse the staff at MacDonald's.

Worrying Employee Sighting #2

We had to have the garage door repaired. The GARADOR repairman told us that one of our problems was that we did not have a 'large' enough motor on the opener. I thought for a minute, and said that we had the largest one GARADOR made at that time, a 1/2 horsepower. He shook his head and said, 'Madam, you need a 1/4 horsepower.' I responded that 1/2 was larger than 1/4 and he said, 'NOOO, it's not. Four is larger than two. ' We haven't used Garador repair since.

Happened in Moor Park , Nr Watford UK

Worrying Employee Sighting #3

I live in a semi rural area. We recently had a new neighbour call the local town council office to request the removal of the "DEER CROSSING" sign on our road. She said the reason was: 'Too many deer are being hit by cars out here! I don't think this is a good place for them to be crossing anymore.'

Story from Potters Bar, Herts, UK

Worrying Employee Sighting #4

My daughter went to a local Kentucky Fried and ordered a taco. She asked the person behind the counter for 'minimal lettuce.' He said he was sorry, but they only had iceberg lettuce.

From South Oxhey . Herts. , UK...

Worrying Employee Sighting #5

I was at the airport, checking in at the gate when an Irish airport employee asked, 'Has anyone put anything in your baggage without your knowledge"? To which I replied, 'If it was without my knowledge, how would I know?" He smiled knowingly and nodded, 'That's why we ask.'

Happened Luton Airport ... UK

Worrying Employee Sighting #6

The stoplight on the corner buzzes when it's safe to cross the street. I was crossing with an intellectually challenged co-worker of mine. She asked if I knew what the buzzer was for. I explained that it signals blind people when the light is red.Appalled, she responded, 'what on earth are blind people doing driving?!'

She is a Local County Councillor employee in Harrow, Middlesex, UK

Worrying Employee Sighting #7

When my husband and I arrived at Our Local Ford dealer to pick up our car, we were told the keys had been locked in it. We went to the service department and found a mechanic working feverishly to unlock the driver's side door. As I watched from the passenger side, I instinctively tried the door handle and discovered that it was unlocked. 'Hey,' I announced to the Fitter/Mechanic, 'its open!'His reply, 'I know. I have already done that side.'

This was at Ford dealership in St Albans, Hertfordshire UK.

Worrying Employee Sighting #8

This is a personal one that happened to the MD of Trainer Bubble. He was in a local Tesco store and after putting his items through the checkout, handed a fresh faced sales assistant a crisp £50. The sales assistant looked at him suspiciously and rubbed a pen over the £50 note.

To our MD's surprise the assistant then called over a manager and said, "It's not supposed to go that colour", to which our MD replied, "But you used a highlighter pen." The manager exchanged glances with our MD and headed off to more pressing issues.

Can you afford not to train your staff? Visit www.trainerbubble.com and view our fantastic, affordable training resources.

Worst Customer Compaints - Top Ten

All business owners have to deal with difficult customers at some point but how do your experiences compare with the 10 worst complaints one small company faced in 2009?

Clients are hard to win and even harder to keep, but there are a select few who can make life particularly difficult. Spare a thought then for online retailers Prezzybox.com, who last year had to deal with a client who wanted to return a used toilet brush – this being just one of the many zany gripes they received from clients last year.

Read on for the company's top 10 weird complaints of 2009:

• A gentleman from Leeds was keen to return the green Slanket (or blanket with sleeves) that he had purchased for his wife because her hair was ginger and it would have made her look like a Leprechaun.
  
• A toilet brush was sent back after being used to clean an especially dirty toilet.
  
• A Glaswegian male called Trading Standards after the bars of his football table went rusty. He had left it standing outside for two years without covering it.
  
• A Candy Bra was returned after already having been opened and nibbled.
  
• One unhappy customer sent back a '20 Questions’ gadget, which guesses the object you are thinking about. After answering correctly 37 times, it had failed to guess a disposable nappy during game 38.
  
• A 'Pets Eye View Camera' was returned after a female shopper indicated that the filming was not as 'exciting' as she had hoped.
  
• A 'Puppy Bumperstop Doorstop' was sent back by one client because, although it kept the door open, their pet hamster kept bumping into it when running around in his exercise ball.
  
• A lady returned her 'Henry Hoover Desk Tidy' because its smile was neither big nor happy enough to cheer her up in the office.
  
• A female customer sent back her 'Tipsy Feet' fold-up shoes because she was concerned about the fact that she continued to fall over when walking home after a night out with friends.
  
• A customer complained that the moods suggested by their 'Oggz Colour Changing Mood lights' did not reflect the atmosphere correctly.

Dealing with customer complaints can be one of the most challenging parts of customer service. Visit www.trainerbubble.com to view our training materials on customer service and dealing with customer complaints. By training your team in the art of dealing with customers, you will ensure a positive relationship with your customers and continued sales.