Please stop pointless phone calls! Vent

amother

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 11:02 am

No, not everything needs to be a long schmooze session, particularly things that need to be in writing. And especially with clients who change their minds about what they want 500 times and then get upset when you go with what they told you because they have since decided they want something different, but didn’t bother to communicate.

Clients and school administrators: please send an email with your questions instead of demanding that people spend hours on the phone with you so you can ask the same five questions 37 different ways. 🤬🤬🤬

Thanks for listening to my vent.

watergirl

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 11:15 am

"I know we all have very busy schedules. To make the most efficient use of our time during these busy workdays, communication is best accomplished via email, particularly regarding any changes or specific requests so we can be sure to accommodate. We can touch base on a 30-min Zoom on Monday at 3:00.

amother

Feverfew

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 11:28 am

Omg yes. Hate phone calls! Clients ask questions that require research to answer so my answer ends up being that I’ll email my answers to them after the call. Couldn’t they have just emailed their questions? I’m sure in some industries questions can be answered on the spot but mine requires legal research for each individual circumstance.

I’ve changed the way I interact with clients so that we only correspond by email for the most part, and I don’t give them my phone number in my signature. If they ask for my phone number, I schedule a zoom session with them.

amother

Slateblue

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 11:35 am

amother Feverfew wrote:

I’m an attorney and always prefer a quick phone call. I’ve been getting lots of clients who don’t like their attorneys bc they won’t ever speak to client. Clients pay a lot and they deserve to be handheld a bit.

amother

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 11:39 am

amother Feverfew wrote:

Yes!! Thank you for validating me! I absolutely hate it when people are like, "oh, let's hop on a call!" NO. If you have questions, send them to me in writing--especially if you are the type to change your mind about what you want and then get upset that I didn't read your mind to know you changed your preference.

Another thing I hate is when I get emails from people who need an answer from our billing department, but the billing department didn't get back to them within 1 hour (literally) from when they reached out, so they email ME with "well I emailed Genendel from billing and she didn't respond, so I'm asking you the same question" (that I have told them repeatedly I don't have the info for, because I am not in billing). Inevitably I reply and loop in the person they actually need to speak to from billing, saying "Genendel can best advise and will respond to you when she is able." "Genendel" is usually very prompt and will get back to people within 2-3 hours when possible, and if she needs more time, she responds saying that.

At least the people who do this second thing have more or less stopped calling to waste my time (and leave LONG rambling voicemail messages) since I just stopped answering their calls. I would email them saying I received their message/saw they called, and they should please email me their questions. After several times of this they finally seem to realize that calling isn't going to get them what they want.

I'm not against phone calls or meetings when actually necessary. But "I'd rather shmooze with you for 20 minutes before getting to the point of my call," even when I ask point-blank, "how can I help you?" when they could ask their actual question in a 2-line email, is really aggravating to me. (I feel the same way about pointless meetings.)

amother

Feverfew

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 11:49 am

amother Slateblue wrote:

I’m not in the legal field and clients are getting a bargain in terms of pricing. I do need to do legal research but am not an attorney. It’s complex and hard to explain without giving my identity away.

If clients don’t like my mode of communication, they can feel free to find other service providers. This is the boundary that works for me.

amother

Carnation

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 11:58 am

amother Slateblue wrote:

Most attorneys charge you for that phone call - lot of money

amother

Slateblue

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 11:59 am

amother Feverfew wrote:

You do legal research but you’re not an attorney ? I hope you don’t advise clients based on that research …

amother

Slateblue

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 12:00 pm

amother Carnation wrote:

Most attorneys charge you for that phone call - lot of money

Clients don’t care if they get the right service

singleagain

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 2:09 pm

" I survived another meeting that should have been an email "

amother

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 2:15 pm

singleagain wrote:

" I survived another meeting that should have been an email "

Yup. A colleague got me a mug that says that on it. Love it!

Also, "I survived another phone call that should have been an email."

amother

Steel

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 2:19 pm

amother Carnation wrote:

Most attorneys charge you for that phone call - lot of money

Exactly. I actually emailing my attorney (over phone calls) for that reason (it’s cheaper)

amother

Magenta

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 3:36 pm

amother OP wrote:

Agree with you and not only for work related issues. I prefer text or email all the time.

amother

Lightcoral

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 3:57 pm

Maybe if you charged extra for them it would bother you less

amother

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 4:40 pm

amother Lightcoral wrote:

Maybe if you charged extra for them it would bother you less

Wish we could but most clients aren’t paying out of pocket. And honestly a lot of the people who drive me crazy are staff or schools that we contract with. And our billing department would not approve that. But I definitely like the idea.

amother

Hibiscus

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 6:32 pm

amother Magenta wrote:

Agree with you and not only for work related issues. I prefer text or email all the time.

Me too. I hate working with a client who is 'too frum' to text (and only has email for emergencies and rarely checks it)

YounginBP

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 7:06 pm

singleagain wrote:

" I survived another meeting that should have been an email "

" a meeting without food should've been an email "

amother

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 10:55 pm

amother Hibiscus wrote:

Me too. I hate working with a client who is 'too frum' to text (and only has email for emergencies and rarely checks it)

OMG YES THIS.

amother

Mon, Aug 28 2023, 10:55 pm

YounginBP wrote:

" a meeting without food should've been an email "

Ooh I like this one!