Bonjour ! Welcome back to your course.
In our last lesson, you learned the essential phrases for greeting a client professionally on the phone. You mastered how to answer with phrases like Société MédiaPro, bonjour. Je vous écoute. instead of the informal Allô ?, setting a professional tone from the very first second.
Today, we'll build directly on that foundation. Once you've greeted the caller, the next step is to understand who you are speaking with and why they are calling. Our learning outcome for this lesson is to ask for the caller's identity and reason for calling. This skill is crucial for controlling the conversation, providing personalized service, and directing the call to the right person or department.
1. Identifying the Caller: "Who is speaking?"
Sometimes a caller will introduce themselves right away, but often you will need to ask for their name. Doing this politely is key to maintaining a professional image.
Let's look at some resources that provide the exact phrases you need. The first is an article that gives clear do's and don'ts for professional phone calls.
Comment faire un bon accueil téléphonique ? (+ exemples ...
The article 'Comment faire un bon accueil téléphonique ?' from the HubSpot blog gives excellent advice on professional communication. We will focus on the parts about identifying the caller and the purpose of their call.
Please read two short sections from this article. First, find the heading 'Opter pour un vocabulaire adéquat'. Read the bullet point list and pay close attention to the suggested replacement for « C'est de la part ? ». Next, scroll down to the heading 'Bien identifier son interlocuteur au téléphone' and read that short paragraph. Note the very professional question suggested at the end.
As the article points out, informal phrases like C'est de la part ? are not ideal. While common, there are more polished alternatives.
Let's listen to how this is done in a real-life scenario.
N°1 : Appel téléphonique pour une demande de rendez-vous,
This video, 'Appel téléphonique pour une demande de rendez-vous', simulates a call to a dental office. The receptionist is very polite and professional.
Watch the clip from 00:19 to 00:27. Listen carefully to the exact phrase the receptionist uses to ask for the caller's name. It's an excellent, polite model.
Key Phrases for Asking for a Name
Based on these resources and standard professional practice, here are the best phrases to use. They are ordered from very common to very formal.
C'est de la part de qui, s'il vous plaît ?- Literally: "It's on behalf of whom, please?" This is a very common way to ask "Who's calling?". It's polite and widely used.
Qui est à l'appareil, s'il vous plaît ?- Literally: "Who is on the device, please?". This is another very standard and professional way to ask who is calling.
L'appareilmeans the phone.
- Literally: "Who is on the device, please?". This is another very standard and professional way to ask who is calling.
Pouvez-vous me donner votre nom, s'il vous plaît ?- "Can you give me your name, please?". This is direct, polite, and clear.
Puis-je vous demander votre nom, s'il vous plaît ?- "May I ask your name, please?". This is what you heard in the dental office video. It's very polite and formal.
Pourriez-vous me préciser votre nom et votre société, s'il vous plaît ?- "Could you please specify your name and your company?". This is extremely professional and useful when you expect to speak to other businesses (B2B).
Important: Always add s'il vous plaît (please) to make your question polite.
2. Understanding the Reason for the Call: "How can I help you?"
After you greet the caller, phrases like Je vous écoute or Comment puis-je vous aider ? often prompt the person to state their reason for calling. However, sometimes they might just give their name and wait. In that case, you need to explicitly ask why they are calling.
Let's return to our article to see the recommended phrases.
Comment faire un bon accueil téléphonique ? (+ exemples ...
We'll look at the HubSpot article again, this time focusing on how to ask about the purpose of the call.
Find the heading 'Déterminer l'objet de l'appel téléphonique'. Read this section and note the two main questions suggested. Also, pay attention to what phrases you should avoid, like « Quel est votre problème ? ».
The article gives you two excellent, professional options. Let's see one of them in another video example.
L'appel téléphonique professionnel - French Business Call - (B1/B2)
The video 'L'appel téléphonique professionnel' provides a quick overview of business calls. We'll focus on a short segment about handling incoming calls.
Watch the clip from 02:22 to 02:32. Listen for the two key questions suggested for understanding the caller's needs. One is de quelle société appelez-vous ? (what company are you calling from?) and the other is a key phrase for our lesson.
Key Phrases for Asking the Reason for a Call
Here are the most professional and effective phrases:
En quoi puis-je vous aider ?- "How can I help you?". This is a slight variation of
Comment puis-je vous aider?and is extremely common and polite.
- "How can I help you?". This is a slight variation of
Que puis-je faire pour vous ?- "What can I do for you?". This is another very polite and standard customer service phrase.
Quel est l'objet de votre appel ?- "What is the subject/purpose of your call?". This is very direct, formal, and efficient. It's perfect for a professional environment.
As a reminder, the phrases you learned in the last lesson, Je vous écoute and Comment puis-je vous aider ?, are often all you need to get the caller to explain their reason for calling.
Grammar Spotlight: Forming Polite Questions
You might have noticed that many of these professional questions use a specific grammar structure. For example: Puis-je... ?, Pouvez-vous... ?, Pourriez-vous... ?. This is called inversion, where the verb comes before the subject pronoun. It is a hallmark of formal, written, and polite spoken French.
This image gives a great summary of the three main ways to ask questions in French. In a professional call center, you will almost always use the Standard (Est-ce que...) or Formal (Inversion) structures.
Using inversion (Pouvez-vous...) or the conditional for politeness (Pourriez-vous...) makes your request sound much more professional than the informal Vous pouvez... ?. This aligns perfectly with your goal of building a strong, correct foundation in the language.
Test your understanding!
Imagine you work for the company "Spicy French". You answer the phone with the greeting you learned last lesson: Spicy French, bonjour. Je vous écoute. The caller replies: Bonjour, je m'appelle Madame Blanchard. and then says nothing more.
What is the most professional and logical question to ask next?
Quel est votre problème, Madame Blanchard ?C'est pourquoi ?Merci Madame Blanchard. Quel est l'objet de votre appel ?
Show answer
The best answer is 3. Merci Madame Blanchard. Quel est l'objet de votre appel ?
This response is polite (it thanks her and uses her name), and it uses a formal, professional question to ask for the reason of the call. Options 1 and 2 are too direct and can sound rude.
Conclusion
Excellent work today! You have now learned how to professionally and politely manage the crucial second step of a phone call. By confidently asking for the caller's name and reason for calling, you can efficiently guide the conversation.
Key Takeaways:
- To ask for the caller's identity, use polite phrases like:
Qui est à l'appareil, s'il vous plaît ?C'est de la part de qui, s'il vous plaît ?Puis-je vous demander votre nom, s'il vous plaît ?
- To ask for the reason for the call, use professional questions such as:
Quel est l'objet de votre appel ?En quoi puis-je vous aider ?Que puis-je faire pour vous ?
- Using formal question structures like inversion (e.g.,
Puis-je...) makes you sound more professional.
In our next lesson, we will address a very common situation: what to do when you need to put a caller on hold or transfer a call. You will learn the polite phrases to ensure the customer has a smooth experience even when they have to wait.
À bientôt