Why are we afraid of talking on the phone and what does this mean for customer service?

Colleagues, 

I'm having a frustrating day and wonder if anyone else struggles with phone calls? I am finding fewer and fewer individuals will answer phone calls, and hardly anyone will answer a call from an unfamiliar phone number.  

I'm curious at what this looks like from a student support / customer service experience.  How do your early alert plans for retention, which may involve calling a student who is at risk, conducted with students not answering phone calls? 

Students often need to seek support services through referalls from our WIOA core partners. What does this look like since so many individuals won't talk on the  phone? 

Finally, is having an actual conversation on the phone a new 'soft skill' we should be incorproating into our classroom? 

I look forward to a spirited discussion on this topic. 

Thank you, 
Kathy Tracey

Comments

Colleagues, 

I invite you to consider the information in the article, Phone call anxiety: why so many of us have it, and how to get over it. As you review the information, consider the impact of individuals who prefer not to have phone conversations on retention initiatives.

From the article....

Talking on the phone can be daunting because we’re limited to just the sounds of our voices. In the absence of all other social cues – including gestures, body language and eye contact – we can often feel self-conscious of the sound of our own voices and our choice of words.

Thanks to technology, we can often go days, weeks or even months without directly speaking to others on the phone. One study found anxious people prefer texting over phone calls, rating it a superior medium for expressive and intimate contact.

Some people opt for texting because it gives them time to think about the wording of their messages, providing the opportunity to be informal. In some cases, they develop a different personality separate and in contrast to their real-life, more reticent, self.