Internet and Businesses Online > Security > When Adding Your Phone Number To Your Website Is A Big Mistake
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Article rating : 0.00, 0 votes. Author : Carole Nickerson
I had been listing my phone number on my website for a while, but when traffic took a surge, I knew that it just wasn't going to work. Being a staff of one, I soon found out that this would be more than I could handle.
That 'Foreign' Guy
I still feel so badly about this, but I couldn't understand a single word from a man who called me one day inquiring about either 'tampelaters" or "timpolters". He had a thick accent which I was completely unprepared for. I assumed he was talking about buying templates, but other than that I just don't know! The only thing I could do was say 'yes' repeatedly until he finally said in a somewhat normal cheerful tone, "A thankoyoua mamma" and that was that. He sounded content with our conversation, so I guess that's all I could hope for. This problem occurred a few times.
Advice Seekers
I don't know how many times people would call just to talk about their problems! They didn't want to buy anything, they just wanted advice on everything from, "How do I increase my pagerank?" to "Can you help me figure out this cgi code?"
Don't get me wrong, I enjoy helping people, but I can't sit for hours with one person on the phone trying to help them solve problems which could easily be resolved with a trip to Google.
God's Gift To Women
Oh my, I've had a few interesting calls from guys who just wanted to see if they could "have a date" (which is putting it mildly). One even offered to send me a Paypal payment. Yikes.
Telemarketers
I didn't mind these guys as much because they're pretty easy to handle. If they persist after repeatedly telling them "not interested", I simply tell them where to put their script and hang up the phone. I don't have time for their nonsense.
Pranksters
I guess kids still get their kicks pranking people on the phone. What's not funny is when you're alone in the house and someone is claiming they are standing in the bushes watching me as they talk on their cell phone. (My paranoia had been fueled by a documentary I saw on internet stalkers who become obsessed with people they meet online even by just looking at a photo - eek!)
Midnight Callers
Despite putting a notice on the site along with a clock showing the actual time in my area, I had a number of people call late at night. The lesson here being: Don't count on people reading a single word on your site, but do count on them bugging you because they can't seem to figure out that the FAQ section was created to specifically answer their questions.
In the end, I had a decision to make - get an extra phone line, or simply remove my phone number. I decided removing my number was the best choice because the majority of legitimate calls could have been easily addressed through the FAQ section and by email. This would also eliminate the problems I was experiencing with strange callers, people I simply couldn't understand, and other annoyances.
Maybe it was all just bad luck?
If you've published your phone number online for a while and haven't had any problems, then you likely have nothing to worry about. But if you are new to web business, especially if you are a woman, you might want to consider having a separate phone line or simply not publishing a phone number online at all.
Carole Nickerson has been a web developer and internet marketer since 1998. She now spends her days actively filling up her new blog with all she has learned. To find more articles like this including internet marketing humour visit: CaroleNickerson.com
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