It’s an old bit of advice that smiling while you’re talking on the phone is one way to improve your phone demeanor. But how many people actually follow that advice? New evidence may convince you to try it. Now scientists say that the people on the other end of the phone line really can tell whether or not you’re smiling.

The challenge in leaving an effective voice-mail message is this: Leave a too-long message, and it could annoy recipients. Too short, and recipients may not understand the reason for your call. Follow these tips from Career Rocketeer when you need to leave a message that gets attention:

It’s easy to have your good mood shattered by a nasty customer, an out-of-the-blue criticism or a computer system that refuses to cooperate. Think of angry customers as a creativity test. Satisfy them without letting their discontent bring you down. Four tips:

Making a “cold call” can shake the nerves of even a seasoned pro. Engaging with a person you’ve never met is even more challenging if you land in the individual’s voice mail. On his blog, Never Eat Alone author Keith Ferrazzi suggests “warm calling” instead. His four rules for making a warm connection in a 15-second voice mail message:

Why is “small” big? Small companies can better win the trust and confidence of recession-weary customers. No matter what the size of your company, here’s how you can imitate what small companies do well:

Turn to the wisdom of crowds, rather than calling the help line, next time you encounter tech glitches on your Smartphone: BlackBerry.com’s forums break down problems by model.

“Could I ask you to repeat your name one more time?” Admins who hate asking that question may fear that they come across as incompetent or unprofessional. The truth, though, is that they just want to get it right. Here are top tips from other admins on handling on-the-phone situations.

You don't need a BlackBerry or a Smartphone to stay in touch with your e-mail, even when you’re away from your desk. Thanks to three free services, you can monitor updates from important people (i.e., the boss) when you’ve been waylaid, stuck in a long meeting or dashing around on errands.