I work at a call center where we take orders for a lot of different catalog companies. About last Christmas we also started taking orders for sales type companies. Usually at the begining of those calls we ask for a first name so we can call the person by their name which is apparently supposed to be more personal and make them feel at ease. I just couldn't do this though because the entire time I'd worked there we were NEVER supposed to call anyone anything but ma'am or sir. So it just felt rude to do it. A lot of people were having success with their sales though so I thought one day OK, I'm gonna just try it! So I got the call and I said:
"May I have your first name please?"
"Chief", he told me.
Odd name, I thought, but didn't think anything of it because I've had odder names than that and it's most likely a nickname. So throughout the call I Chiefed him to death.
CHIEF this and
CHIEF that. Here a
CHIEF there a
CHIEF everywhere a
CHIEF CHIEF. How about this
CHIEF? Is that right
CHIEF You don't say
CHIEF!!! He decided to place the order.
"Is Chief the first name on the credit card?" I ask as I start to get his billing information?
There was a moment of silence and then he laughed... "It's
KEITH, he said to me. My name is Keith." and then he laughed and laughed and it took forever to get his info because everytime he tried to talk he laughed hysterically. I told him I was soooo sorry and he laughed and told me it was ok. Then he laughed some more, heh.
HE COULDA TOLD ME AT THE BEGINING THAT I'D HEARD HIM WRONG, lol
I haven't called someone by their name since then
