I Love These Automated Phone Calls

Tuesday, October 07, 2008

These. Not all automated phone calls.

Just these:

The local public library drops a voice-mail on me whenever a book I’ve ordered arrives for pickup. It’s a good system (could be improved).

I browse the online catalogue for a book I’d like to read, and place a Hold on that book, nominating the pick-up location of my choice. When the book arrives at that location, the library uses automation to lodge a voice mail.

I have asked for this phone call. It is automated, and it is a part of the system that I love – that I don’t need to travel across Toronto to locate and pick up a book. I browse the catalogue online, and the book is delivered, if not to my door, to the door of the library most convenient to me. That may not be the closest library to where I live; it may be a branch close to where I’m working this month, at a client site.

The phone rings and I hear “Hello; the library“ and I get to hang up the ‘phone. Sure I’ve had to tear off my yellow rubber gloves and interrupt the dish-washing, but I want to know that a book has arrived. And it is easy to get off this list. I do it myself. Either stop ordering books, or go online and flip a switch on the notification page.

That’s it.

Those are all the automated phone calls I love.

I chose them all myself.

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