Let me finish!

[makasha21]

I used to work with a woman who would say "Good morning, thank you for calling Dewey Cheatem and Howe, this is Mary Elizabeth, how may I help you today?"

I work with a woman right now who answers the phone this way, but she has a very nasal-y voice on top of it!  Her greeting on the phone isn't half as annoying, though, as hearing her screech "Hi, honneeeeeeyyyyy!" to her fiance every day when she calls him or he calls her. They are planning their wedding. I know ALL the details.

Kasha

[Cupcake Fiend]

BTW, Mischeif, do you get hung up on, too?  I get that ALL THE TIME answering phones @ work.  You can't say, 'Sorry, I dialed the wrong number.

Of course I get hung up on!

And as for the spiel when I answer the phone, that is how the big boss wants the phones answered.  And what the BB wants, he gets.

[goblue2539]

  You can't say, 'Sorry, I dialed the wrong number.

I actually say thank you to the people who do tell me that!  My co-workers laugh at me, but I really appreciate not getting the dial tone.

[Sleepingmediocre]

I agree that it's rude to interrupt you, but can I say how much I HATE it when someone spends 30 seconds answering the phone? I used to work with a woman who would say "Good morning, thank you for calling Dewey Cheatem and Howe, this is Mary Elizabeth, how may I help you today?" and I'd think "by the time she gets all of that out, they've forgotten why they called!"

POD, Caranfin!  I spent a winter being holiday help for the Gap years ago, and got chewed out by my supervisor for "answering the phone wrong" by saying "Gap, this is Sleepingmediocre."  She told me that the next time the phone rang, she'd show me how to do it RIGHT.  So, when the phone rang, she picked it up and said "Thanks for calling the Gap at Westgate Mall.  This is Cassie.  We're delighted you called today.  We have many fantastic items on sale right now, including X, Y and Z, and we offer store-to-store shipping..."  Then she stared at the phone in her hand and wailed, "They hung up!"

Frankly, I was surprised the poor caller lasted as long as he or she did.

[snowball's chance]

  You can't say, 'Sorry, I dialed the wrong number.

I actually say thank you to the people who do tell me that!  My co-workers laugh at me, but I really appreciate not getting the dial tone.

I know, it's so rude.  Plus, I *do* have Caller ID!!!  I am tempted to call *them* back and hang up.

My biggest pet peeve is, and I work for a government agency, and a lot of people get refrerred to our dept in error.  When I politely explain "You don't want my dept., you want X Dept." I always get . . . my favorite phrase "THEY TOLD ME TO CALL YOU."  Who's they?

edited for badd spilling

[goblue2539]

My biggest pet peeve is, and I work for a government agency, and a lot of people get refreed to our dept in error.  When I politely explain "You don't want my dept., you want X Dept." I always get . . . my favorite phrase "THEY TOLD ME TO CALL YOU."  Who's they?

The infamous "They" who apparently know everything.  They told me.....  They say...... They promised.....  If I ever get my hands on They.... Look out!

[alohomora]

I used to work in a customer service role that handled the phone calls of the uber-angry customers.  Several times a day, I would get calls from people asking to speak directly to the CEO....of a major, Fortune 500 company...because no one would credit their late fee and they felt that the CEO needed to know that personally. 

My answer was always something along the lines of "The CEO entrusts those of us in this group to speak on his behalf."  This was the standard line that our management group asked us to give.  Anyway, I had one guy say "Well, you need to tell the CEO to be a man and not have little girls answering the phone and dealing with problems for him.  Here's my number...give him that and tell him if he wants to have a man-to-man talk, to give me a call.  If I don't here from him in 24 hours, I'll be closing my account.  Thanks sweetie."  Then he hung up.

I'm fairly certain I noted his account to say something like "Customer called to speak with CEO. Advised him that's not possible. Customer said he may close account."  Arrogant jerk.     

[snowball's chance]

My answer was always something along the lines of "The CEO entrusts those of us in this group to speak on his behalf."  This was the standard line that our management group asked us to give.  Anyway, I had one guy say "Well, you need to tell the CEO to be a man and not have little girls answering the phone and dealing with problems for him.  Here's my number...give him that and tell him if he wants to have a man-to-man talk, to give me a call.  If I don't here from him in 24 hours, I'll be closing my account.  Thanks sweetie."  Then he hung up.

Arrgghh!!!  What a jerk.  When I started at this job I was 21 and have always looked young for my age.  One day a guy showed up (as it turned out later, on the wrong day) for an appt w/ someone.  The person in my office was AWOL, and I didn't know what to do.  He asked if there was an adult he could talk to.

[alohomora]

Arrgghh!!!  What a jerk.  When I started at this job I was 21 and have always looked young for our age.  One day a guy showed up (as it turned out later, on the wrong day) for an appt w/ someone.  The person in my office was AWOL, and I didn't know what to do.  He asked if there was an adult he could talk to.
[/quote]

Ugh.  People that say things like that drive me nuts. Especially when it's their mistake that caused the problem in the first place.   

[snowball's chance]

Arrgghh!!!  What a jerk.  When I started at this job I was 21 and have always looked young for our age.  One day a guy showed up (as it turned out later, on the wrong day) for an appt w/ someone.  The person in my office was AWOL, and I didn't know what to do.  He asked if there was an adult he could talk to.

Ugh.  People that say things like that drive me nuts. Especially when it's their mistake that caused the problem in the first place.   
[/quote]
yeah, the word i'd like to call him is not acceptable on this board