The 'Fine Dining' experience - apply it to your business

I'm bowled over by the excellent Michel Roux's Service on BBC 2. Michel has picked a group of young people wishing to go into the hospitality industry, and train them up to become excellent employees - and the offer of scholarships to two participants, to enable them to study further.

The first point that struck me was that the young people had little experience of receiving good service; how could they anticipate how to provide good service. As Mary Portas is exploring, High Streets don't offer a good customer service, and a number of food chains also don't focus on this side of the business.

I have experienced working with one of Michel's teams recently, in my capacity as an entertainment provider. I was struck by how hard everyone worked; how they anticipated what was required by the clients BEFORE the event as well as during, and how they welcomed us into the team: giving us positive feedback throughout the evening. We all felt very privileged to be part of the team! I will be blogging on this programme again!

So what does this programme offer business owners that aren't in the Hospitality industry? A smile; what you say (for example Good morning, not hiya!!) and an engaging body language are all ways of making a huge impact; a 'Magical Moment' for the client. Executive Voice offers individual and team training in using the voice and body language; to engage your employees with clients.
Call us on 0844 576 3015 for more details

Voicebox Transplant - which voice would you choose?

I read an incredible article today about a woman in California, who has had a voicebox (larynx) transplant.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12253257

A previous article on the BBC website described how this surgery is able to transform people's lives that previously were not able to speak after particular surgery.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7912621.stm The interesting point about this is that with a transplanted larynx, the patient has a 'new' voice. Before, the patient might have had a high pitched voice, but after surgery, it could be lower, or with a different timbre.

For fun, I have created a survey asking for your favourite voices and if you had the choice of changing voice, what would you request! Answer online below.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/7TNYB9W

For more details of Executive Voice go to our website

Smile, Speak, Serve

Last night I watched the wonderful Mary Portas in her new crusade to improve customer service within the Retail Industry. Everyone has experienced poor customer service when shopping, and it is very frustrating at times. I have stopped shopping at certain shops due to the shop assistants' attitude.

However, poor customer service is not exclusively found within the retail industry and it is something we ALL need to be aware of, since the majority of use work within the service industry, or if we are selling a product, there are still customers that require service for delivery of the products. Mary is quite right in saying that good customer service elevates a business to a new level.

I like Mary's somewhat cheesy take on customer care: "Smile, Speak, Serve", but it can be applied to any business situation.

Smile: When you smile you become more approachable; you voice alters becoming less tense. This is something that can be applied on the telephone as well as face to face.

Speak: Engage the customer; acknowledge they are there; welcome them. Answering the telephone the first thing one says could be "Good morning" - you'd be amazed at how many businesses don't answer the phone like this.

Serve: "How can I help you?" is the easiest thing to say, whether you are face to face or on the phone.

The programme didn't touch body language or intentions. Unfortunately some people are trained to say particular things (scripted cold calls for example, rarely sound authentic), and they can sound insincere or their body language is saying something else.

It is a very interesting programme and certainly I'm hooked! I look forward to the next programme which I will be blogging about.

For more information on how to speak on the phone, buy our CD "Make an Impact on the Telephone"

Remedies for coughs

Coughs are potentially a disaster when you are wishing to speak in all areas of business. It is awful if you are on the phone and have a coughing fit; presentations and public speaking engagements could be embarrassing if you start coughing, and as for meetings: you cause a disturbance in the meeting and aren't able to listen effectively. We have also heard radio and TV presenters suffer with coughing fits that result in an awkward pause.

Coughs are mainly a protective reflex to remove foreign ­bodies, mucus or irritants such as dust from the respiratory tract, explains Alyn Morice, professor of respiratory ­medicine at the University of Hull, and one of the country’s leading experts. ‘But persistent coughs can also be caused by viruses and ­infections,’ he says. He recommends that if you have a persistent cough for eight weeks or more, you should visit your GP.

This blog doesn't cover symptoms of coughs; coughs that almost become a nervous reaction or medical remedies. However, it is important to consider the physical outcomes that could affect your effectiveness to speak. These include:

• Having a husky voice.
• Having a sore throat
• Tiredness due to not sleeping
• Having a voice that becomes very quiet
• Other symptoms such as achy abdominal muscles due to coughing.
• Generally feeling poorly with other flu like symptoms

When we cough, we put a lot of pressure on our larynx and over time this swells up - causing a husky voice. If we have an infection in our larynx, it can swell up and mucus can surround this area. These all result in the voice becoming more husky, and even difficulty speaking.

It is really important to take care of your voice when you have a cough; Paul O'Grady mentioned on his radio programme last weekend that he had 'Panto Voice'. He had suffered 'flu during the run and returned to work whilst he was still ill: he didn't want to let down his fans. As a result, he had a cough, sore throat and very husky voice. There are plenty of casualties in the theatre and opera world where individuals have returned to performing when they are still suffering from coughs - resulting in long term damage.

Obviously most areas of business work do not require such usage - unless you are training or doing extensive speaking, but it is important to take care of your voice if you have a cough.

• Try to avoid dry environments, dusty environments and those that irritate your throat so that you cough.
• Remember to drink a lot of fluids (not alcohol), since it is easy to become dehydrated.
• Gargle with a salt water solution 3 times a day, to cleanse your throat and manage any infection.
• Go to a pharmacist who will recommend the correct cough mixture for your cough.
• We recommend you take a night cough mixture at night, which will allow you to sleep better.
• At night, use 2 or more pillows to keep your head up higher. We have found this helps with night coughs.
• Steam your throat with a bowl of very hot water with eucalyptus oil in (take care); breathe this in with a tea towel over your head. Repeat twice a day.
• Avoid using your voice where possible; text, use emails and letters and write notes!
• If the cough symptoms persist for 8 weeks or more, go to your GP.

For more information on Executive Voice go to http://www.executivevoice.co.uk

Be prepared in the cold period

I don't wish to sound like a Government health warning, but this time of year with the common cold, flu like symptoms and in the worst cases, Swine Flu, could play havoc for your voice and communication effectiveness. When you feel unwell it is always a challenge to speak clearly and with charisma - or energy. Sneezing, coughing, having a sore throat and having catarrh also make it more difficult to speak confidently.

With these symptoms, it is easy for the body to get dehydrated, which can potentially cause harm or even damage to the vocal folds - and your voice. It is especially important at this time of year to drink plenty of water throughout the day. Central heating is on which dehydrates the body, and this, with cold/flu symptoms is potentially very harmful to the voice.

In the next few days I will focus on different cold symptoms, and how best to cope with these when working.

If you have any questions, or would like to bring up a specific issue, call me on 0844 576 3015 or contact me

My new year's resolutions

I have recently read a couple of blogs where they suggest you write down your aims for 2011; they become public and writing them down makes it easier to remember them. Of course, situations and opportunities change - and these aims aren't written in stone. For example, last year, we decided, mid-year, to rebrand our other business, which meant we didn't focus on one of our targets, however, I believe that long term the re-branding will result in increased results.

So here are my targets for 2011 - for Executive Voice.

1. Create and broadcast video messages every week.
2. Podcast on audioboo each week. See how this can link to itunes??
3. Keep blogging
4. Increase traffic to the blog
5. Ask for reader questions to get material to answer queries
6. Do some tele/video classes
7. Collaborate with other professionals on joint projects
8. Write a book
9. Do some more work on radio/TV
10. Market the CDs
11. Write articles
12. Write in publications
13. Change to Wordpress (for the website)
14. Incorporate blog into the website

I'll let you know how things are going!