Love phones, hate phone calls

I quite like my phone. But I hate using it for phone calls. It is a good device for taking photos, recording videos, and recording parts of podcasts by sticking my Shure mic in for an interview. I also use it to listen to music and podcasts. Phone calls? What a disturbance!
We look at changing trends in using phones.

Transcript

Love phones, hate phone calls

“You have reached the voicemail of Alan Anstead. Please don’t leave a message, as I won’t listen to it or reply”.  I quite like my phone. In case you are interested, an iPhone 14 Pro model. But I hate using it for phone calls. To me, it is a good device for taking photos, recording videos using Final Cut Camera, and recording parts of podcasts by sticking my Shure mic in for an interview. I also use it to listen to music and podcasts. Phone calls? What a disturbance!

Due partially to this view but primarily because of my work, my phone is switched to be permanently silent. I will use the phone when out and about to catch up on the news. Or use travel apps and such like. Very, very occasionally, I will use it to make a phone call.

For some people reading this, attached to their phones during the working day, my description is a bit alternative and may come across as rather arrogant. Why shouldn’t people/clients be able to contact me whenever they want? However, as a freelance PR practitioner who wants to control their working life, that is not how I operate. I prefer messaging to calls. By looking up the numbers, I found that most of my incoming calls were sales or spam calls. I was therefore interested to read research by USwitch that showed that Gen Z thinks the same way as this, erh, 60+ year-old. 

The research found that a quarter of 18 - 34-year-olds never pick up calls. Avoiding scam calls is the most common reason for not answering the phone. The study showed that we only spend five and a half minutes on phone calls daily across all age demographics. Yes, the younger generation has moved away from using voice calls and prefer text or instant messaging. Two-thirds prefer to receive a message than a call. However, arranging a phone call beforehand is fine. They don’t mind a good old chat!

What does this mean generally for PR practitioners? Phone calls are a communications approach in which permission should be agreed upon before the call occurs. Phone calls can be viewed as intrusive. Good sales teams worked that out years ago. Yes, it is two-way communication, but it resonates about power over another person. Seek agreement first before making a call, by sending a message. This applies equally to internal comms. Checking up on whether a colleague is working from home by a phone call is so anti-productivity. My calendar is filled every week with colourful entries blocking off the different work I do. This includes many Teams calls (arranged in advance by message/email). Phone calls disrupt this productivity.

There are still some differences between the age demographics. 37% of 18 - 34-year-olds prefer voice messages over a call. However, only 1% of 35 - 54-year-olds like voice messages. I’m in that latter category!

It is easy to pick up the phone and call someone. But is it an effective form of communication in today’s world? No, in my view. It's time to ditch ‘cold call’ phone calls and embrace messaging.

[Image: freestocks on Unsplash}