TO: ALL WOOD COUNTY ARES MEMBERS (OFFICIAL)
ALL ARES AND NON-ARES AMATEURS ANYWHERE (INFORMATION)
FROM: KEN HARRIS WA8LLM ARRL DISTRICT 3
EMERGENCY COORDINATOR WOOD COUNTY EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS INC.
WOOD COUNTY ARES BULLETIN NR 20.14 DATE: April 5, 2020
TELEPHONE ETIQUETTE
"Don't hang up, this call is important", "We've tried several times to reach you about cars extended warranty", "We can reduce your credit card interest". Does any of these sound familiar? These are not the way to make a telephone call. The person, or machine, on the other end of the line will soon hear dial tone.
When making a telephone call you should first identify yourself, and call the person who answers by name, if you know who they are. You should make a comment about the subject you want to talk about. The person who gets called may, or may not, know who is calling, and may have to try and figure it out.
If making a telephone call, and you get an answering machine, do not just hang up. Leave a short voicemail message. Speak slowly and clearly especially when you state your name, the subject you want to talk about, and your callback telephone number. When leaving a telephone number for a callback, say the number a couple times so the person listening to the voice mail does not have to keep replaying the message to get it. Listen to a voicemail you have received in its entirety before returning the phone call. You may learn that it is not even necessary to call back. These are just a few ideas on Telephone Etiquette that may make your telephone conversation more enjoyable. You may have some of your own.
Ken Harris WA8LLM
WCEC
Wood County WV