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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

No I don't want to ring you, that's why I emailed

113 replies

Misty8 · 23/08/2018 16:43

Anyone else find it annoying when a company provides their email address in the 'contact us' section, but when you email them for information they write back and say " if you could please call us on this number we can discuss". But if I wanted to call you, I would have Hmm

Some examples:
When planning my wedding I sent a few very basic questions to multiple suppliers, just to compare & help decide- ie what's the cost, are you available on this date, do you travel to this venue?

Or when I was looking for a gym in the area I sent off mails to all the gyms just asking how much for annual/monthly membership, any off peak deals?

Or researching creches/montessoris and asking how much per child, do you have spaces, what hours is the creche open?

AIBU to think they should just write back with the answers?

OP posts:
Pengggwn · 23/08/2018 17:45

I think it's fairly reasonable for a company to ask you to call them, particularly if they are busy. People can fire off 50 copies of the same email very easily. Calling means you have to invest time, so you're more likely to be a serious prospect by the time the person on the other end (who is trying to make a living) invests time.

Strugglingtodomybest · 23/08/2018 17:49

Yanbu, I hate talking on the phone.

WaxOnFeckOff · 23/08/2018 17:50

With me it's usually a complaint or a simple enquiry. If it's an enquiry, I just want a simple answer without doing 10 minutes of DP, explaining 8 times to 8 different foreign call handlers and if it's a complaint, I want a written record. I really couldn't give a toss about whether it gives the company opportunities to sell. If they don't want to deal with an written enquiry then they shouldn't have the option available to use.

LeftRightCentre · 23/08/2018 17:50

YANBU. I also don't engage with companies that do this.

Lauren83 · 23/08/2018 17:50

I myself prefer emailing companies as don't like talking on the phone, but I work in a job that deals with online private medical enquiries and we email asking them to call or if we can call them at a convenient time as like PP said the email thread often goes on forever and ever and as people have lots of questions and it can go on weeks sometimes, we will happily answer them of course but it's sometimes better to have a phone call to answer them and I think you can talk them through their options better that way

Nikephorus · 23/08/2018 17:50

Yes and even more so when you say on your Email that you want a written response and then get a phone call.
This ^^!!!!!!! I won't answer their call because I hate phones (autism) so then they leave a sodding voicemail asking me to call!!!! If I can't email you, you won't get my business. End of.

Shambu · 23/08/2018 17:53

like PP said the email thread often goes on forever and ever and as people have lots of questions and it can go on weeks sometimes

Exactly.

I don't understand people who can't talk on the phone. With this kind of thing it's so much quicker.

WhatAnAbsolutePenis · 23/08/2018 17:54

OP I'm so with you on this.

I was looking for a local osteopath today and found one that sounded good. I could email and enquire or book or anything. I provided a telephone number and that was it.
I was neither in the mood or in the right place for a chat and I don't plan to be either so they have lost my service and I went to a different osteopath instead.
She replied to my email an hour later and I'm taking my time to respond because I don't know the answer to her question - which was "when would you like to be seen".

tildaMa · 23/08/2018 17:56

I think it's fairly reasonable for a company to ask you to call them, particularly if they are busy. People can fire off 50 copies of the same email very easily. Calling means you have to invest time, so you're more likely to be a serious prospect by the time the person on the other end (who is trying to make a living) invests time.

Well I'm busy as well.
If you can't invest time to answer my email I already spent time writing you're unreasonable to expect I will be spending money with you if I can avoid it.

Pengggwn · 23/08/2018 18:01

tildaMa

I don't see it like that. The company has to make a decision about what works best for them as a business. If staff are constantly emailing potential customers but this isn't helping the bottom line, why wouldn't a good manager say get on the phone? Yes, by doing so they might lose your business, but if the strategy is clearly more profitable overall, I doubt they care that much.

You don't have any sort of right to demand someone engages with you in a particular format.

FullMetalRabbit · 23/08/2018 18:04

I get email enquiries and always write back and try and include all the relevant information anyone might need - add in extra details that they may not have thought of

invariably I don't even get a response - even if it was just a "thanks, we'll have a think about it" it would be nice

YANBU OP

Mitzimaybe · 23/08/2018 18:05

I have had instances where something was agreed on the phone and later they flat out lied and denied that they promised to do x or that I informed them of y. Much prefer email as you have it in black & white what each side has agreed to and can refer back to it later.

RaspberryRipple1963 · 23/08/2018 18:05

IME they do it because it's easier for them to do the 'hard sell' over the phone than it is by email.

WaxOnFeckOff · 23/08/2018 18:05

You don't have any sort of right to demand someone engages with you in a particular format.

Bit ironic that as that is exactly what the companies are doing, even though they have helpfully given you the options to do otherwise. I don't tend to contact by email for new business things anyway, it is usually mostly about a service or product I've already purchased.

Pengggwn · 23/08/2018 18:07

WaxOnFeckOff

Not really "demanding", are they? They are offering a service over the phone, not over email.

WaxOnFeckOff · 23/08/2018 18:08

Yep, it's 50/50 whether you'll get someone helpful that made the call worthwhile or just a pile of lies and shite.

They could equally have a blanket email with the answers to most enquiries and useful information and then just add anything particular to it to reply so it's not necessarily more work than a call.

littlepeas · 23/08/2018 18:09

I hate this too! I have appalling mobile phone signal at home and rarely answer my landline (usually a nonsense call for person who used to have our number....) and am also quite phone phobic/find it easier to express myself in writing (or, weirdly, in person - really hate the phone), so strongly prefer email communication. I recently sent a long email to a physiotherapist who does physio-led pilates - I explained my situation in the email and asked lots of questions - their response was to email me back asking for my phone number so they could call me to discuss!! Argh!!

WaxOnFeckOff · 23/08/2018 18:10

Peng, the OPs point was that they offered email or enquiry point as an option and then messaged saying they need her to call. so yes, if she wants the answer then she either has to call or email back again saying No. So yes, it is as much a demand as not.

WaxOnFeckOff · 23/08/2018 18:13

Also, presumably in most cases we have not given permission for the company to call/market by telephone so they are breaching when calling after they have not been given permission or been explicitly told not to. They get round this by asking the customer to call and pretending that's so it is at the customers convenience. Utter bollocks.

Original poster
Misty8 · 23/08/2018 18:20

Agree 100% with anyone who said in a lot of cases they're trying to upsell/bamboozle you.

However also agree that in many cases it makes sense to call- if it's a complicated enquiry that would lead to a long email thread, or if you're looking for technical support with a web chat that's fine with me.

shambu as I said I'm talking about basic questions about pricing and availability.

pengggwn I'm prepared to invest time if your price is within my range and if I know you're available to provide the service. Without answering either of these questions first I shouldn't have to invest time

OP posts:
Pengggwn · 23/08/2018 18:22

WaxOnFeckOff

I'm not sure they did. They provided their email so she could contact them. There is no offer of a written quote or similar. They are quite within their rights to prefer a phone call.

Glumglowworm · 23/08/2018 18:22

I work in customer service and we only tell customers they have to call if it’s something specific to their account. General info we’ll happily provide by email. Or if they log into our website they can send a secure message and we’ll happily discuss their account that way.

It’s not to try to upsell or bamboozle (we’re not allowed to sell anything and bamboozling isn’t in our interests either). It’s so we can go through security questions and sanity check for instance that if you’re a 70 year old female you don’t sound like a 20 year old man.

And yes as PP said, we get loads of vague, nonsensical emails which can go back and forth for ages until we actual work out what someone means. If I’m unsure, having to answer multiple questions that might be what they mean, means I have to send far more info, most of which is irrelevant and far more likely to bamboozle someone than a phone call! I can also check their understanding easily on a call and if they say yes but sound unsure I will ask if they’d like me to go over any of it again.

I’m only speaking about one company. I’m sure some companies do it for negative reasons, but not all!

LannieDuck · 23/08/2018 18:23

You don't have any sort of right to demand someone engages with you in a particular format.

Except that that's exactly what these businesses are trying to do. They provide both an e-mail and phone number, but when you try and email, they ask you to call. So they are effectively demanding that their clients engage with them in a particular format.

OP, I agree with you.

Pengggwn · 23/08/2018 18:23

Misty8

Not saying this to be rude, but that's you, isn't it? Your decision. They also get to make a decision: whether the prospect of winning the business of people like you out-values the risk of email engagement with any sales prospect. If not, they simply do not have to do it.

Pengggwn · 23/08/2018 18:24

LannieDuck

But they aren't demanding she engages with them at all. They are saying, if you are interested in our service, give us a call.

I don't see the coercion here. The OP is free not to call.