Comments on: Caller ID Rather Not Talk to You

By: kevinlar61

kevinlar61 — Thu, 27 May 2010 19:59:53 +0000

I mostly agree with you Emily, but I think caller ID does have its place. I have an unnamed relative who invariably will keep you on the phone for 45 minutes no matter how many times you hint or say that you’re just running out or cooking dinner. I’ll only pick up up the phone for that person when I truly have the time.

By: Kim Shimer

Kim Shimer — Thu, 27 May 2010 15:58:40 +0000

I feel honored that generally you answer the phone when I call…
And I really wish I had caller ID at work. I never know whose call I’m ignoring. Someone trying to sell me ad space, or Oprah calling to book one of my authors on her show.

By: Cblooz

Cblooz — Thu, 27 May 2010 15:50:57 +0000

I’m in the camp that Called ID is a good thing. Yes it helps us distinguish from the tele marketers (one if which called us every night for 2 straight weeks) from our family and friends.

As a general rule we always answer the calls from those who are closest to us but there are times when we are literally running out the door or in the middle of something (arguments or other extra curricular activities) that we feel it can wait until later-of course if you get the same person calling right back then its usually time to pick up.

The problem with just saying can I call you back is that invariably the person will say “this will only take a minute…”

By: Elizabeth @ Life in Pencil

Elizabeth @ Life in Pencil — Thu, 27 May 2010 13:55:49 +0000

I agree with you 100%, Emily. I don’t have a landline — just a cell phone — and I, too, am guilty of screening calls for all the same reasons. But you’re right: my callers deserve me picking up and at least saying, “Hey, this isn’t a good time to talk right now, can I call you back later?” It’s hard to imagine a world before caller ID, isn’t it? My dad, who worked his entire career in professional sales long before caller ID, says he got very good at answering the phone and “rolling with the punches.” “You never knew who was on the other end of the line,” he says.

By: jennifer

jennifer — Thu, 27 May 2010 13:46:14 +0000

Hey, I just called you and you didn’t pick up! (kidding)
In the great arms race between telephone owners and telemarketers, the invention of Caller ID was a huge advantage for the former. I imagine that telemarketers now mostly target the elderly, who are the least likely to have the latest gadgets, and are sadly also the most likely to be taken in by frauds and fakes.