Goodbye (NAGE)

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Sorry to disappoint, this isn't YAGE post.

What happened to ending a telephone conversation by saying "goodbye"? As many of you know, I do phone tech support at a university. The overwhelming majority of my callers just stop talking at the end of the conversation. Half of these people just stop talking and hang up. The other half just stop talking and then there's awkward silence--whereupon I feel compelled to ask them if they have any more questions. Most seem surprised to hear me ask that.

Is ending a conversation with "goodbye" passé? Am I just an old fuddy-duddy?

[Morrigoon]

Thank you! I get so annoyed by people who hang up w/out saying goodbye! So rude.

[alphabassettgrrl]

Really? People do that? Huh. I think it's rude. You're not a fuddy-duddy for wanting to know they're done with the conversation.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

For me, the social grace aspect is not a big concern. I'm not one who feels compelled to start every call with "Hello. How are you?" when I don't know the person on the other end of the line. I'm perfectly content with a simple "hi" or "hello" then tell me what you need. I answer dozens of calls a day and by the time my shift is over, I've had more than my fill of people asking me how I am when they don't actually care. (nor should they care)

It bugs me because I don't know if the conversation is really over. Sometimes I need to say something else and they wind up hanging up on me. Other times we just sit there like silent idiots. It's customary for the support provider (me) to wait for the caller to hang up first. So I need to hear them hang up before I end the call.

[Alex]

Very few work calls end with any kind of formal signoff. When you're done talking, stop.

I wish more personal phone calls would be the same.

[katiesue]

Maddies Dad does this - it makes her bonkers. She's always yelling at the phone "GOODBYE TO YOU TOO"

[Morrigoon]

I hate it because I end up speaking to someone who's already gone.

[Cadaverous Pallor]

The other half just stop talking and then there's awkward silence--whereupon I feel compelled to ask them if they have any more questions. Most seem surprised to hear me ask that.My interpretation of the awkward silence I get at the end of my courtesy calls is them waiting for me to say goodbye first. If I call someone with info, I should say goodbye first. In your situation, they called you, so they should be the ones to finish the conversation.

However, it's now standard practice for phone customer service persons to say "is there anything else I can help you with?", as you mention. If I were you I'd make that part of my standard script. I think people expect it, even if they don't sound like they do.



ETA - your thread title scared the hell out of me!

[Kevy Baby]

I have always wanted to adopt the telephone sign-off that Hollis Green (of Big Love) uses:

"Respectfully yours, Kevy Baby"




Sorry to disappoint, this isn't YAGE post.Damn

[RStar]

ETA - your thread title scared the hell out of me!

Kevy's new avatar scared the hell out of me! There was nothing there, then BUNNY! :D

I have noticed that more TV or movies have people just hanging up when one of the parties was done with what they have to say. I always think "what if the other person had more to say?". And I thought, how odd, I'm glad that doesn't happen in real life! It has never happened to me, and when I talk (or chat) with a service tech I always wish them a nice day. I know they deal with angry people half the time and maybe a little pleasantry can help.

[alphabassettgrrl]

I think it's a good thing for both parties to let the other know that they're done with the conversation.

[Betty]

Funny you would bring this up. I've caught myself doing this quite a bit and have tried to stop doing it with mixed results. I don't know when it started.

[cirquelover]

Mt Mom almost never says goodbye, she just hangs up. Then again she almost never says hello when she calls me just an " Oh, Jill" like she's surprised I answer my own phone?!

I personally think it's kind of rude not to say goodbye and if I'm calling somewhere to ask them a question I always thank them at the end.

SM, when I ask someone on a call line how there day is going, I'm actually curious or hoping to brighten their day a little. Sometimes I even ask them where they are located or how the weather is where they are.

[Alex]

Well, I'll amend my previous remarks and saying it is rude to hang up if it isn't obvious the talking is done now.

So for me it might be:

<ring>
<phone picks up>
Hey John, quick question. Do you know X?
Sure, answer is Y.
Thanks.
<phone hangs up>

So, in my opinion that had the indicators that talking is done. But I never said a verbal equivalent of "ok, we're going to hang up now. No, you go first! No, I went first last time, you hang up first this time. Ok, on three! 1, 2, 3 ... you didn't hang up!"

[SzczerbiakManiac]

If it's absolutely clear that the conversation is over, I can live with just hanging up. It's really the awkward silence that bugs the crap out of me. (Cutting someone off is just plain rude, I think everyone agrees with that.)

[Ghoulish Delight]

Err, Szczerbiak, can you account for your whereabouts on Sept 13 last year?

Man killed for not saying "Bye" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/cambridgeshire/8291631.stm)