Communicate in the workplace

1. Communicate in the workplace

2. Maintain a welcoming customer environment A welcoming customer environment is an area that the client feels comfortable in. The first impression a client receives of the salon environment largely depends on the efficiency of the trainees who work there, as they are often responsible for the day to day maintenance of the salon environment. You can help to maintain a welcoming salon environment for customers and clients by: Minimising excessive noise-loud, thumping music and shrill voices will detract from what should be a relaxing experience for the client. Maintain a clean and tidy working environment- an untidy salon gives the impression that the quality of services provided is below standard. Maintain a temperate climate- an environment that is too hot or too cold is uncomfortable. Minimise distractions- having conversations with friends, colleagues and other customers while providing services to a client is unsettling and may create a barrier to communication.

3. Greet customer warmly according to store policy and procedures You will communicate every day with your colleagues, customers, and clients. Communication plays an important role in customer service and teamwork and effective communication directly relates to the success of a beauty business. Creating an effective service environment includes sending the right verbal and non-verbal messages to our customers. This may include following store policies and procedures in regard to your personal dress, presentation and conduct in the workplace.

4. Who do I have to communicate with? Working in the beauty industry, you have to deal with people with a range of attitudes and beliefs, personalities, socio-economic and cultural backgrounds and people with varying physical and mental abilities. It is important that you adjust your behaviour to maximise your ability to communicate with customers and clients. Broadly speaking, customers can be divided into two main groups. Internal customers - People who work with you. External customers - People who work outside your organisation.

5. What does communication involve? Good communication involves more than just the exchange of information. It consists of several parts. These are: • Sender the person giving the message • Receiver the person who is getting the message • The message the information being sent. This can be written or spoken • The channel the method the message is given eg fax, telephone or conversation etc. • Feedback used by the receiver and sender to show they have understood the message • Interference the barriers or things that can stop the message being understood e.g. noise, the way the message is decoded

6. Audience awareness Audience awareness is your ability to understand the needs, experience and level of understanding of the receiver of the message you are trying to send, for example; the public, colleagues, employers, and stakeholders. You must be able to display sensitivity to your audience in the way you organise and present ideas, and respond to feedback (for example, favouring plain language over jargon when communicating with the general public). Understanding the particular perspective of your colleagues and clients and communicating appropriately with them (for example, discussing information about clients or tasks) will help you to tailor the way that you communicate to suit their needs.

7. Personal Presentation An understanding of and ability to use gestures, expressions and non-verbal cues to help communicate a message (for example, changing the tone and volume of your voice to convey emotion and feeling, or controlling posture and nervous gestures to present confidence to your audience will help to get your message across easily.

8. Body language Body language is communicating with parts of your body, usually your eyes, face, hands/fingers, arms, and body position. It can be both positive such as: smiling and nodding or negative for example: frowning with your arms folded. We often underestimate the input of body language in the communication process. During communication, both the sender and the receiver are unconsciously evaluating and interpreting the body language being used.

9. Create effective service environment through verbal and non-verbal interaction One of the most crucial steps in the process of customer service is the initial contact with the customer. You must create a positive first impression. To do this you must communicate the impression of being: • Alert • Friendly • Helpful • Interested • Responsive Remember you only have one chance.

10. Acknowledge the customer • Let the customer know that you realise they are there. • Smile - your facial expression will denote your mood. • Make eye contact - this lets the customer know that you know that they are there and ready to serve them.

11. Greeting the customer The procedure for greeting customers varies between workplaces. You should know your workplace policy for greeting customers. In general you should: • Speak clearly - the clients will not understand you if you mumble your words or are too quiet in your approach, ask the customer how you can help. • Introduce yourself- clients will feel more at ease if they know your name. • Be patient and polite-sometimes it will take a period of time to determine the clients’ needs. If you are impatient or impolite, you may lose a client altogether. • Call the client by name-familiarity is comforting, if you know the customer’s name, use it.

12. Use questioning and active listening to determine customer needs Listening is one of the key ways members in a business are able to understand the needs of their internal and external customers. Listening carefully to your customers at all times will enable you to determine their needs and develop a rapport with them. Becoming an effective listener rather than someone who just hears what is said will enhance the quality of your personal and professional relationships, you will improve your productivity, as well as your ability to influence, persuade, negotiate. What’s more, you’ll avoid conflict and misunderstandings – all necessary for workplace success. An effective listener is characterised by their ability to: • Listen carefully • Use empathy • Have an open mind • Not interrupt the speaker • Ask questions to confirm their understanding • Summarise the information they have been given • Repeat the information back to the speaker

13. Active Listening The key to receiving messages effectively is listening. Listening is a combination of hearing what another person says and psychological involvement with the person who is talking. Listening requires more than hearing words. It requires a desire to understand another human being, an attitude of respect and acceptance, and a willingness to open one's mind to try and see things from another’s point of view. Listening requires a high level of concentration and energy. It demands that we set aside our own thoughts and agendas, put ourselves in another’s shoes and try to see the world through that person’s eyes. True listening requires that we suspend judgment, evaluation, and approval in an attempt to understand another’s frame of reference, emotions, and attitudes. Listening to understand is, indeed, a difficult task! Active listening has four steps: • Attending to the message. • Interpreting the message. • Understanding the message. • Indicating your understanding

14. Effective Questioning Using effective questioning techniques will enable you to listen more effectively and determine customer and client needs and build rapport. There are three (3) questioning techniques that are commonly used. They are: • Open ended questions • Closed questions • Reflective questions

15. Open Questions The use of open ended questions allows you to articulate the meaning of what is being communicated and are used in direct and indirect questioning to request information. Open ended questions start with: • What • Where • Who • Why • How • When • Which

16. Closed questions Closed questions are used to get specific information and usually receive yes/no or single word answers. This information should supplement the information gained from open-ended questions. Closed questions usually start with: • Is • Have • Do • Did • Does

17. Reflective questions Reflective questions are used to show you have been listening, and to clarify what you have heard. They are formulated by turning a statement the customer has made into a question.

18. Demonstrate confidentiality and tact You collect a range of information from customers and clients regarding their contact details, personal lives, service history and preferences. To comply with the law and maintain the trust of your customers and clients you must always display discretion, tact and confidentiality concerning client information.

19. Confidentiality Confidentiality is important in the running of the salon. Clients take the opportunity to relax and will often tell things to their beautician that they wouldn’t normally talk about. Sometimes these topics are very personal and could be damaging if repeated outside the salon. For this reason, client confidentiality must be maintained at all times. If confidentiality is broken this could result in the client taking their business elsewhere, and the salon getting a bad reputation. Confidentiality means that customer information is treated like a secret. It is not in your interests to divulge information about a client to anyone that is not directly involved in providing goods or services to the client. Under no circumstances should you give clients personal details to an unauthorised person and personal issues that a client may discuss are not to be discussed in the public arena.

20. Tact Tact is the delicate perception of the right thing to say or do without offending - it is a skill in dealing with people. You are in contact with people constantly for the delivery of products and services. You should try to remain focused on topics that involve the products and services that your workplace provides. Inevitably, there will be some conversation that includes details of the customers’ personal life, but keep in mind that it is inappropriate to discuss: your personal life, politics and religion. These topics can be a source of heated debate and should be avoided.

21. Answer telephone according to store procedures Know how the telephone system works. There are basic functions which you will need to be able to perform such as: • transferring calls • putting clients on hold • retrieving messages left on answering machines You may be able to find the manufacturer’s instructions for the telephone system. If you can it is important that you read the instructions about how to use the basic functions of the system so that you can use the telephone efficiently. If there are no manufacturer’s instructions, another member of staff will be able to instruct you about the use of the telephone and its functions.

22. Store policies and procedures Most workplaces will have policies and procedures for answering the telephone that you will have to follow. This will include how quickly the telephone should be answered, how you should answer the telephone (usually with the name of the salon) and how you should handle the call. Fundamental to developing the correct telephone technique, there a few things that you should learn about your workplace: • Know how the telephone system works • Know your organisation and its telephone policy • Know who you work with • Answer the telephone warmly

23. Understanding the organisation and telephone policy Check with your supervisor about how the phone should be answered and make sure you know the names of your colleagues and their positions in the organisation. This will help you to assist callers who wish to speak to a particular person and avoid confusion. Using the appropriate manner to answer the telephone will create a good impression of the organisation.

24. Answering the telephone The telephone policies of many organisations include how quickly you should answer the telephone. For example: before the third ring. Leaving the telephone to ring for too long may cause the caller to think that no-one is there or that they are not an important customer to your business. To make sure that you sound welcoming on the telephone, here are some tips: • Smile when you answer the phone. This will change the tone of your voice. Try not to sound preoccupied or annoyed. • Don’t interrupt. Allow the other person to get the message across. If you must interrupt, make sure you are polite, e.g. “I’m sorry, excuse me Miss DeVries, Did you say that you were looking for Simone?” • Be attentive. This may involve using word or sounds to indicate that you are listening for example: “mmmm”, “yes” or “ok”.

25. Use of voice As you cannot see the person that you are speaking to on the telephone, the quality of your voice takes on extended importance. Tone, volume and speed all affect the meaning of what you are saying to the listener and how the listener interprets your message. Speak clearly. If you speak too fast it will sound like you are nervous or hurried; too slow and your listener may think that you are not interested in them. Hold the telephone at a reasonable distance from your mouth. Too close and you will distort your voice, too far away and the caller will not be able to hear you properly.

26. Use telephone system functions according to instructions To identify the caller and accurately establish and confirm requirements you must remember to use the questioning and active listening skills that you have learnt in the previous Section. Use open ended questions to find out who the caller is and what they need and reflective or closed questions to confirm their requirements. When you have identified the caller, write down their name and use it in your replies.

27. Record and promptly pass on messages or information You will often be required to take messages or pass on information. Whenever you answer the telephone you should be prepared to take a message. You should always have a pen and a message pad by the telephone. It is important that any information that you record is accurate. The following points will help you to take messages properly. • Write down the caller’s name • Listen to what the caller is saying • Take notes if the message is complicated • Use your listening and questioning skills to help the caller articulate the message clearly • Read the message back to the caller to ensure that the information you have recorded is correct

28. Record and promptly pass on messages or information You should also: • Make sure that you have correctly spelt the name of the caller • Record the time and date of the call • Record the name of the person that the message is intended for • Ask the caller for a contact telephone number (and write it down) • Ask the caller what time it is convenient to return the call • Record a brief outline of the purpose of the call

29. Providing information When providing information to a caller, relay it clearly and slowly. Allow the caller time to understand or write down the information. If you do not have the information, make all attempts to find it. If you must leave the telephone, explain to the caller why and give the caller the option of waiting or being called back.

30. Passing on messages and information When you have received a message or information for a particular person in your organisation, you must pass it on as soon as possible. Make sure that you are giving the information to the appropriate person. Messages should only be passed to the person who the message was intended for. If a message has been received for a person who is not at work at the time of receiving the call, you do not need to call that person at home if it is their day off, but ensure that they are given the message as early as possible on their next day at work.

31. Inform customer of any problems and relevant action being taken and Perform follow-up action Occasionally there will be a problem with the ability to meet the requirements of a customer. For example: a product that they have asked about is out of stock; the person that they wish to speak to is not in the salon that day or no longer works in the organisation; or you are unable to process a request because the issue is not within your limitations. When this happens there are steps that you must follow to ensure that our customer can make an informed decision about what to do next. Informing customers about problems and the action being taken to rectify the issue is a way of exceeding their expectations and in this way you will encourage repeat and loyal customers.

32. Value and treat with respect and sensitivity customers and colleagues from different cultural groups In simple terms, cultural awareness is about realising that not all people are the same. It is about knowing that different people have different values, different behaviours, and sometimes fundamentally different approaches to life. So why do we need to be ‘culturally aware’? Perhaps the most important reason we all need to be culturally aware is because awareness and knowledge is a first step to understanding. Watching a game of football is much more rewarding if you know the rules of the game! A friendship where you know and understand the other person is more satisfying than a superficial first meeting with a stranger. It’s the same with cultural awareness - the more we know and understand, the more we gain from our relationships with people from all cultures. Wherever you live and work in Australia today you will be in constant contact with people from a huge range of cultural backgrounds. In any industry this includes both co-workers and customers.

33. Different Types of Customers The one thing that every business has in common is the reason for its existence - customers! And everybody working in the business must provide the best possible service to those customers. This is why the Tourism and Hospitality Industry emphasises customer service. Think about the customers that come to your establishment: • Where do they come from? Are they from your local area or region or do they come from interstate or overseas? • Are they individuals, couples, families or groups? • Do they come by car, bus, train or by air? • Are your customers from a particular age or social group? • What are the different needs of your customers - limited time, foreign language interpretation, special individual or group facilities? • Do you have ‘industry’ customers, ie. those people that book your services such as travel agents or tour operators?

34. Different Types of Customers All of your customers expect you to be sensitive to and respectful of their needs. These needs could be based on: • age • family status • culture • country of origin • type of group they are travelling with, etc. • As a person providing a customer service industry your role is to meet the needs of the many different customers you serve.

35. Consider cultural differences in all verbal and non-verbal communication Misunderstandings and conflict arise between customers and workers or between workers and colleagues, for many different reasons - often just because people are different. Wouldn’t it be a boring world if we were all the same! Let’s look at conflicts that can arise as a result of a lack of cross-cultural understanding between people from different cultural backgrounds. Difficulties can occur because of poor communication, a lack of patience or because people make judgements based on their own cultural values. English translations or the use of slang and colloquialisms can be stressful to people from other cultures. So can speaking too quickly or at too low or too high a volume, not listening actively, not asking questions, using offensive body language and gestures, and/or inappropriate humour.

36. Consider cultural differences in all verbal and non-verbal communication For example: • did you know that ‘taco’ means ‘idiot’ in the Japanese language? • in the Philippines it is perfectly good manners to close a conversation by saying, “You go now”, and that ‘See you later’ can sometimes be misinterpreted literally by people from other cultures • you might serve quite a few meals to Chinese people before you realise that they thank restaurant waiters by unobtrusively tapping the table with their fingers. How easy it would be to jump to the conclusion that Chinese restaurant goers never acknowledge good service and therefore to think the Chinese are rude people • in most Asian countries it is considered polite and respectful not to look a person in the eye during conversation; such a mannerism in Australia usually implies a guilty conscience • in Eastern Europe and Middle Eastern countries, hugging and kissing on the cheeks among men is a common occurrence; this may be totally inappropriate in Australia in some cultures

37. Consider cultural differences in all verbal and non-verbal communication You may come into contact with customers or colleagues from non-English speaking backgrounds. They may not speak English at all or not speak it very well. In cases where language barriers exist, attempt to communicate through the use of gestures or simple words in the other person’s language. Some areas to which this would apply include: • greeting and farewelling customers • giving simple directions • giving simple instructions • answering simple enquiries • preparing for service • serving customers • describing products and services

38. Use gestures or simple words to communicate where language barriers exist and obtain assistance from colleagues or supervisors When we are unable to verbally communicate with a customer, several alternatives are available: we can use pictures, diagrams and body language. Body language/ non verbal communication- we can gesture with our arms reassure people with a smile/nod and we can indicate acceptance or understanding by nodding • precaution: lack of universality of body language- we must not use too many gestures without understanding of the customer’s cultural influences as to avoid offence.

39. Use gestures or simple words to communicate where language barriers exist and obtain assistance from colleagues or supervisors We can draw pictures and diagrams that give directions and explain thoughts, as well as a range of graphic signals that aid understanding. We must use a range of gestures that are clear, concise, directive, courteous and culturally sensitive. Signs with a corresponding diagram can include toilet, first aid, phone, toilets, disabled and no smoking. Gestures that are universally understood include applause, stop and bill please. Despite lack of artistic ability when communicating, our customers are likely to be appreciative and relieved that they’re not the only ones having trouble communicating. • Body language says a lot more than a spoken word • First impressions are lasting • Positive signals: smiling, nodding, relaxed body posture, appropriate eye contact, appropriate hygiene and manner of dress. • Negative signals: rigid posture, crossed arms, blank stare, cold stare, frown/scowl, yawn, being fidgety or pointing at someone.

40. Facial expressions and eye movement Next to speech, the face is the richest source of information. The face can adopt 250,000 different expressions! It rarely sends a single message at a time, instead sending a series or a blend of messages. For example, when you meet a customer or friend whom you have not seen recently, your facial expression may show anxiety, recognition, hesitation and pleasure in rapid succession. It has been suggested that there are six basic facial expressions - surprise, fear, disgust, anger, happiness and sadness. Because we have greater control of the muscles in the lower part of our face and, therefore, can more voluntarily manipulate facial expressions in this section of the face, we involuntarily use our eyes for a great deal of communication. For example, when an individual is excited, aroused or disturbed, the pupils of the eyes involuntarily dilate. Our eyes can 'give us away' more easily than other parts of our face. In addition, research shows that people's eyes generally approach what they like and avoid what they do not like. They usually maintain more eye gaze and mutual eye gaze with people whose approval they want and with people they like. However, as we often find with non-verbal communication, cultural differences must be considered. For example, in some Asian cultures it is impolite to look directly at a superior even if you would like their approval.

41. Body movement Most of the communicative movement of the limbs is unintentional but it serves to illustrate, emphasise or punctuate speech and to show emotion. The way that we sit, walk or stand reveals whether we are timid, defensive or aggressive. At an interview, for example, the posture may be rigid and formal, but when at home and entertaining, we will probably be more relaxed and informal.

42. Touch Touch is the first non-verbal experience we have in life and through it we learn to relate to people and objects. It is critical to our sense of well-being. Each person will respond to touch in a personal way and that response will be based on values affected by age, sex, role, cultural norms, background and the situation itself. Australians of Anglo-Celtic background are sometimes reluctant to touch publicly, and especially reluctant to touch strangers. In fact, apologies are made when someone is touched by mistake. Touching is seen as acceptable in courtship, in greetings, especially in handshakes and sometimes women may kiss each other or men may kiss women to indicate friendship or intimacy. In some European cultures men may kiss other men as a sign of friendship or kinship. Touching is an important human activity. However, we need to be aware of the cultural implications of a touch (forbidden between men and women in some cultures) and, in the workplace, of the implications of touch that can lead to sexual harassment issues.

43. Demonstrate a courteous and helpful manner at all times Lines of communication involve how employees communicate with each other, management, and other departments within the organisation. It determines who makes the final decisions and who takes the role of “boss” if that person is unavailable. Lines of communication may be horizontal, vertical or open.

44. Vertical Communication Vertical communication is indirect communication between an employee and management either upward or downward. It involves following a formal process of only going to the “next level up” to raise issues, concerns or suggestions or the “next level down” to deliver instructions and decisions about policy, processes, issues, concerns, and suggestions made.

45. Horizontal Communication Horizontal communication is direct communication between individual staff members and may include senior operators, trainees and salon assistants. This includes full time, part time and casual employees. This is often used in conjunction with vertical communication and relies on team members informing each other of changes in policy, processes and decisions about issues, concerns and suggestions.

46. Open Communication Open communication means that all team members are encouraged to discuss issues with all staff openly, they do not have to follow a formal protocol to have their ideas, opinions, suggestions and concerns heard. Often a company that has an open communication policy will have regular meetings to discuss a variety of issues and encourage team members to participate in decision making processes.

47. Workplace Communication Standards Your workplace may have communication standards included in their policies and procedures that you must follow. These standards may include: • Lines of communication • Modes of greeting and farewell (colleagues and clients) • Personal conduct when communicating (with colleagues and clients) You should make yourself aware of your workplace communication standards by reading your workplace policies and procedures. If you have any questions about your workplace communication standards you should ask your employer or a senior member of staff.

48. Helpful Attitude As a member of a team, you should always display a positive and helpful attitude whenever possible. Here are some tips for displaying a helpful attitude: • Smile! When you smile you send a message to your body that you feel good and your attitude creates a positive impression. • Be approachable. Avoid negative body language such as crossing your arms, hands in your pockets and leaning on counters • Avoid clustering. Customers and colleagues tend not to interrupt two or more staffers involved in a conversation. Your colleagues and customers will need your help and you should be sure that you are available to them. • Be attentive. Pay attention to what is happening around you. You should be able to step in when a colleague or customer needs assistance.

49. Seeking assistance If you are unsure how to carry out an allocated task you must seek assistance from your colleagues to ensure that mistakes are not made. You can do this by: • Approaching the team member that you intend to ask for help • Politely excuse yourself for interrupting if the person is talking with a customer or another staff member • Ask your teammate for assistance • Listen intently to your teammate’s response and watch carefully how they have do things • When the task is complete thank your teammate for their help.

50. Identify and avoid signs of potential workplace conflict wherever possible Conflict is something that you will occasionally encounter in the workplace. Conflict involves direct or indirect confrontation between groups or individuals, usually arising after a ‘trigger’ incident which sets off a reaction. It is important to identify signs of conflict in the workplace, how to avoid conflict and understand resolution procedures.