Etiquette Guide for Phone Information
A polite telephone manner gives a caller a positive impression of you. It also shows respect for others, even to telemarketers who may be annoying but who are just doing their jobs. Unfortunately, fraudulent callers can take advantage of polite telephone mannerisms to gather information conducive to identity theft and other unscrupulous purposes. This has changed the rules of etiquette used when you are being asked for information over the telephone, but you can still protect yourself while being polite.
Other People Are Reading
-
Screening
-
A caller should always be willing to identify himself early in the call. Ask for his name and the company he represents (if applicable) to screen the call and make sure it is legitimate. If he does not do this himself right at the start of the call, be suspicious and do not give him any information, especially if he is not willing to give you his name and the company name, location and phone number.
Identification
-
Give identifying information when asked if you are the caller, and state the purpose of your call. This is good etiquette as it shows your legitimacy and puts the person on the other end of the line at ease.
-
Information
-
Do not provide sensitive information to an unknown caller. This includes information such as your Social Security number, credit card numbers and other financial information. Scammers might play on your sense of good manners, but it is not rude to refuse to give this out. Ask for a return phone number so that you can investigate the caller and call her back if you are interesting in whatever she is offering. Look up the number to see if other individuals have reported fraudulent activity attached to it.
Time Frame
-
Do not call others too early in the morning or too late at night. Privacy Rights Clearinghouse explains that federal telemarketing laws prohibit calls before 8 a.m. and after 9 p.m., so you can use this as a personal guideline. Keep the other person's location in mind if they are in a different time zone.
It is not poor etiquette to refuse to answer calls that come outside of appropriate hours. Let them go to your answering machine, and inform the caller of the hours during which you prefer to be contacted when you return the call.
Duration
-
Keep calls short and to the point, which shows respect for the caller and his time. Some polite conversation is acceptable, but get to the purpose of your call as quickly as possible.
You should expect the same courtesy from people who call you. Notify the other person if you are in the middle of something or cannot talk at that moment for some reason. You do not have to specify your reason. Etiquette simply dictates explaining that it is not a good time. You can say something like, "I want to give this call my full attention and I can't do that right now." Ask if you can call back or request that the caller contact you at a specific time.
Ending
-
Many people get drawn into telemarketing offers simply because they think it's bad etiquette to hang up on a caller. This is true in some circumstances, but a caller is "entering" your home and taking up your time, and you have the right to draw boundaries. Try to end the call politely by stating that you are not interested. The Pacific Tel phone company states it's not worth getting angry and getting into a verbal dispute if the caller persists. Simply say, "I told you that I am not interested, and I need to end this call." Then hang up.
Errors
-
Acknowledge the error if you accidentally dial a wrong number. Don't just hang up. Tell the person what happened and apologize before you end the call.
-
References
Resources
- Photo Credit telephone 1 image by Aussiebloke from Fotolia.com
