Tips That Will Improve Your Phone Calls

Raise your hand if you don’t enjoy making phone calls to prospective students. When I ask that question during a workshop or conference session I’m leading, 70-75% of the audience reaches for the sky.

The most common reason? Hardly anyone answers their phone so it feels like a waste of time for the person making calls.

Good news! That particular problem is easily fixable, just keep reading.

Let’s start by discussing the latest data. According to my Top Tier Higher Ed research, 39.1% of traditional students are okay with a phone call from a college once per month during their search. Believe it or not, another 19.7% are actually fine with a call each week.

Only 33.1% of students said they never wanted a call at any point during their search.

For non-traditional students, the overwhelming majority are comfortable receiving a phone call, however hardly anyone wants it as the first point of contact. Email remains the preferred first communication. 

Students also tell us in surveys that oftentimes a phone call feels a lot more personal than any email or text message they receive from a college. That’s because many believe a call takes more time and effort, which signals your school has a greater interest.

At this point you might be saying, “So then why don’t they answer the phone?”

Just like you and me, most students don’t answer calls from phone numbers they don’t recognize. And if by chance they do have your number saved in their phone, or see your school’s name on their caller ID, when you randomly call them without a heads up, a lot of students (who aren’t used to having conversations on the phone) get anxious or worried that one of the following things will happen if they pick up:

• You’re just “checking in” to see how things are going and want to know if they have any questions, which puts them on the spot.

• You’re going to vomit information and “sell” how great your school is.

• You’re going to tell them they made some kind of mistake on their application or give them bad news about something else.

• You’re going to tell them you want them to apply or submit their deposit to which they don’t know how to respond and many get uncomfortable.

  
  

Tip number and my biggest piece of advice is – stop cold calling.

Instead, schedule your call ahead of time, and explain why you want to have a call. Scheduling can be via a short email or a text message.

When it comes to the why behind your call, students say it needs to be something that is important, or to deliver some unexpected good news. Otherwise just put it in an email or a text.

A good example of something that’s “phone call worthy” would be a conversation with a newly admitted student and their parent(s) to start the financial aid conversation, talk about key next steps, and offer some tips and advice.

Reiterating something I said earlier, it’s important to keep in mind that even if a student is open to a phone call, most aren’t used to navigating that type of conversation, which creates anxiety.

Here are a few additional tips to improve the quality of your conversation:

1. Calls should be short and very casual. The majority of your calls can be completed in 10 minutes or less if you’re direct and get right to the point, which by the way is what most students prefer. Your tone should be casual and relaxed, not robotic and intimidating.

2. Be prepared to lead (but not dominate) the conversation. Because of student’s anxiety, most will need you to guide them during the call. Be prepared to ask some direct questions to get information back that then allows you to give additional relevant information that keeps a back and forth conversation going. It should always feel like you’re speaking with the other person, not at them.

3. Be empathetic, authentic, and confident. We can all tell when someone is doing something because it’s their job or because they truly want to understand us and/or help with something. Without authenticity and empathy, getting the student (or parent) to engage becomes a lot harder. Same thing goes for your confidence. If you sound unsure of yourself or timid, your chances of having a successful call decrease significantly.

4. Your pace matters. Slow down, pronounce things clearly, and take pauses between thoughts or before you answer a question. It doesn’t have to sound perfect and rehearsed. Again, it just needs to be authentic and helpful.

5. At the end, clearly explain and confirm the next step. Every conversation should end with a next step – one thing, not multiple things. Make sure you clearly define it, and it’s also good practice to have the student repeat it back to you.

   
   

If you get a student’s voicemail (because it’s actually set up or the mailbox isn’t full), don’t leave a two minute plus message. Short, to the point, and tell them how they can get back in contact with you. Then, shortly after the voicemail, send a very short text message or email alerting the student to your voicemail.

Love them or hate them, phone calls still need to be a core part of your student recruitment communications strategy as we close out 2025 and begin 2026.

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