Go Ahead Please!

A couple of days ago I received a phone call at work which was a totally new experience for me. The operator asked me if I could take a text call and had I taken such a call previously. She explained that the caller may either be deaf or have difficulties speaking.

Yes, I can take the call and No, I've never taken one before. She explained to me that the person calling was using a relay service by which they typed the message and the operator relayed that message to me. I would then tell her my reply and she would type it back to the caller and so on. To signify that I had finished each part of my reply and to indicate to the caller that it was their turn to respond I needed to say 'Go Ahead'. Obviously the modern equivalent of 'Over & Out'.

It was important that I spoke my replies as if I was talking direct to the caller, as the operator would type exactly what I said, but it was initially difficult not to answer the operator and refer to the caller in the 3rd person. But, I soon got the hang of it and the conversation started.

There were a few complications in that the caller was having trouble with their text phone and we got cut off a couple of times, and there was an issue with our product that had not been resolved but, I was able to help sort out for a fitter to call to see them the following day and to hold the conversation as if speaking to them direct.

It was quite an odd conversation initially but, after a little while getting used to the delays while my reply was sent to the caller and for them to type their response, it soon started to flow. I remembered to thank the caller for contacting us and to finish the call correctly as I would with anyone and when I put the phone down I was just amazed at technology - it had never really occurred to me that this service existed.

For more info take a look at the link.

http://www.textrelay.org/using_textphone.php