I work in a call center selling insurance to people who are 50 and older. Now, don't get me wrong, old people are fine. Many of them are funny and enjoyable to talk to.
What drives me nuts is that they CANNOT hear!!! How many times do I have to repeat myself before you realize that maybe if you turned down the Price Is Right, that you might be able to hear me?
Since I did a list on bathroom etiquette, I thought that phone etiquette might come in handy too.
1. Even if you think that you are being quiet, if you are going to the bathroom while on the phone, the person on the other end can hear you. Maybe not the actual act, but we can sure hear the flushing of the toilet. PLEASE wait until we are done before you go to use the facilities or better yet, go before you call.
2. Find a relatively quiet place to make your call. Having the TV blasting in the background or music blaring will not only make it more difficult for you to hear me, but I have watched enough Maury Povich in my time and don't want to know who is who's baby's daddy.
3. Animals, babies and phones DO NOT mix!!! If your dogs are barking, birds are chirping or babies are crying. Don't freaking call me. Not only is it annoying to hear a yapping dog in the background, but it literally hurts my ears. Put the dog in the other room. Call back if the baby won't stop crying. But for the love, sharp, loud, high pitched noises makes me want to go through the phone and throttle you. If you live near a busy road or someone is running anything with a motor, please stay inside. You won't be able to hear me and it will annoy me.
4. If you have to make any type of bodily function noise like cough, sneeze, hack, blow your nose etc, please, please,please put the phone down. I will be happy to wait for you. Sneezing isn't too bad, but when you have a phlemy smokers cough, if you go into a coughing spasm and keep the phone to your ear, I will be on the other end trying to keep my lunch down. It is bad enough when you are in the same room, but over the phone it is amplified about 5x. Not a good sound to hear.
5. If you called me, you are on my time. I am not on yours. If you get another call coming in and you tell me to hold so that you can answer it, I may just hang up. If your cell phone rings and you need to answer it, put the other phone down. I don't want to hear your other conversation and I especially don't want to think that you are talking to me and making me feel like I need to respond. I talk enough during the day, I don't need to waste more words.
6. If I need information from you to give you whatever price or information that you want from me, get the information and call me back. Don't tell me to hold on, set the phone down to search for that lost information. Usually, you will make me wait longer on the phone while you are trying to find the information that you would have to sit on hold to get back to me. Plus, you will feel rushed and most of the time, won't find the info anyway until you are off the phone.
7. You are elderly, I understand that. Just because you live alone, doesn't mean that I want to listen to you ramble on about your dog, grandkids, garden, death of a loved one etc,etc,etc. Let me do my job, give you what you need and then get off of the phone. If you are lonely, join a Senior Center. Don't whine to me about how many meds you take and how hard it is to afford it.
8. NEWSFLASH!!! EVERYONE LIVES ON A FIXED INCOME.... including me. Don't whine for 5 minutes about the price. It isn't going to change because I feel sorry for you. I don't have a magic wand that will cut the price in half. If you live in Florida and are looking for insurance, don't complain about the price. Be happy that you can buy it somewhere other than the High Risk Pool.
9. I don't want to have to repeat myself. If you keep interrupting me, it is going to take longer to get the answers that you want. I have to follow guidelines that require that I stop talking when you start. I also have guidelines that I have to ask a question from start to finish. You interrupt? I start all over.
10. Being a jerk doesn't make me want to help you. If you are nice, I will go out of my way to help you however I can. If you call and start bitching at me about things that I don't have any control over or complaining about something. It isn't going to make me feel sympathetic and I am going to do what my job requires, but nothing more. It is amazing how many people think that by being rude or demanding that they will get more than if they are polite but adamant. Sorry Charlie, turn that frown upside down and I will be MUCH more willing to help you. Piss me off and you might get an "accidental" disconnect.
Even if you are not elderly, these tips apply to you as well. | 
