\u201cIt\u2019s a way for us to know if people are going to the effort of formally contacting us; they want legit advice, not just to get someone on the phone as quickly as possible.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople think they have a quick question, but the truth is there is very rarely a quick question in our space.\u201d<\/p>\n
Curtis isn\u2019t alone in wanting a heads-up before a phone call.<\/p>\n
It seems fewer people want to answer their phone any more; increasingly, voice messages warn callers not to leave a message and instead send a text.<\/p>\n
Which begs the question: is there now an unspoken phone etiquette?<\/p>\n
Dr Arianna Berardi-Wiltshire, a senior lecturer in linguistics at Massey University, certainly thinks so.<\/p>\n
But first she explains why.<\/p>\n
Changes in modern digital etiquette stemmed from technological change, she said.<\/p>\n
Language, in all its forms, was always changing, and people were adapting to that.<\/p>\n
\u201cPhones are very different devices than they used to be.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver time, the social norms around the language we use to communicate by phone have changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cPhones are not just for calls; people use them to communicate in other ways, by text, email, social media, and voice notes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Berardi-Wiltshire said because our phones were with us all the time, people were more conscious about how and when they contacted each other.<\/p>\n
Communicating by phone had become more \u201cpermission-based\u201d, she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore, calling someone was just a default, but today people see sending a text first as a more considerate option because it lets the person reply when it suits them.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s often understood that someone is busy right now; they might be driving or picking up their kids.\u201d<\/p>\n
Northland mortgage adviser Sarah Curtis says the only time she\u2019ll answer her phone is to her family or her kid\u2019s school.<\/p>\n
One NZ Kerikeri store manager, Dave Semb \u2013 Kerikeri\u2019s tech expert for 16 years \u2013 said changes in the way people use their phones had \u201cexploded\u201d over the past several years.<\/p>\n
A lot of people don\u2019t use voicemail any more, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom the beginning, [smartphones] weren\u2019t used as a life remote.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow your banking is on it, your fitness, sleep health, you can track your pets, turn on devices at home … so many things are included in your mobile.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not just a texting and phoning device any more.\u201d<\/p>\n
But even with apps like WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, Semb prefers voice calling.<\/p>\n
\u201cTexts are great for short things, but people miss the empathy or the tone in a text.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe I\u2019m still old school, but I prefer voice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Curtis said the only time she\u2019d answer her phone was to her family or her kid\u2019s school.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have been in business now over nine years and it\u2019s always been like that; I\u2019m just more okay with being vocal about it now.<\/p>\n
\u201cI always try to put myself into the client\u2019s shoes … I wouldn\u2019t want someone ringing me when I\u2019m in the middle of the supermarket asking personal questions.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of the initial conversations we have can take half an hour; we want clients to be in a space where they can think clearly and answer the questions we have for them … without having to worry about who is around to hear.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr Arianna Berardi-Wiltshire, a senior lecturer in linguistics at Massey University, says mobile phone etiquette has evolved as technology has changed.<\/p>\n