Submitted by Patrick Smith on Thu, 01 Jul 2010 13:39

We all know the well-worn cliché of someone getting out of the bath to answer their phone, dripping water as they go, but just as they get there the phone rings off. But are phone calls in real-life as intrusive as that? With so many other forms of communication (not least SMS) is it rude to just call out of the blue?

Phones are intentionally disruptive, the loud ringing is designed to get your attention and force a reaction – preferably you answering the call. It is this disruption that can be seen as unwelcome.

Yet with mobiles, due to the fact that they are so personal and generally speaking so close to you (in your pocket or within arm’s reach), it can seem even more disruptive. Of course, that means that any form of mobile communication can be seen as disruptive and therefore unwelcome. As Jay Seaton, CMO at Airwide Solutions says, “We all know the feeling when a number you do not recognise rings your phone - and for most people the same feeling happens when you receive an unsolicited text or IM”

Yet it’s not always the call that’s rude, after all we have our phones with us for a reason. “I don't think it's rude to just call - it is rude to call and try and discuss irrelevant information,” says Karen Durham-Diggins the Founder kdd PR.

For me though, an unprompted call can often be a welcome distraction. It can force a break from the monotony and can help to fire up creativity – and as I work from home a lot of the time it can help me to feel connected in a way that only a voice call can. As Andy Munarriz, CEO of HulloMail describes it, “The positive side of the calls can be the spontaneity of conversation it's nice to hear a friendly voice particularly if you are having a challenging day.”

And of course the voice can convey extra meaning that text alone cannot. HulloMail has tried to capture that with its ‘Hullos’. If you don’t want to actually call someone, but you do want to convey the kind of meaning that only voice can then send a Hullo – like a voice SMS.

“The ‘Hullo’ feature of our free HulloMail app lets you send instant voice messages to your contacts, at no cost,” explains Andy Munarriz. “It has been compared to the voice equivalent of texting or instant messaging …however it’s much more than that. It’s not intrusive, you can convey sarcasm, love – emotions – and people hear it.”

Andy highlighted the power of the Hullo by playing me a message sent to an Italian friend of his after the draw to New Zealand in the World Cup. The message was basically laughing, but you could also hear the warmth in the voices that you couldn’t have necessarily have got from a “LOL”.

Yet with all the different messaging solutions available we very quickly learn how and when to use them to the best effect. We soon know who to call and when and who we should just send a text to. I’ve got lots of friends with young kids and I eventually learnt that a call between 6pm and 8pm is not likely to be answered as, depending on the ages of the children, it’s bedtime. To be honest calls a lot later than that are also likely to be unanswered as the parents slump into the sofa with a bottle of wine. But I’ve learnt to send a text and ask when they’re free. Alternatively, I know my mum only turns her mobile on when she wants to use it so a text to her is a bit wasted.

Also what happens is that a new communications channel tends not to decrease usage of the others, but increase the general communication. When text messaging took off we didn’t stop calling people and as new methods, such as Hullos, come on the scene we haven’t stopped sending text messages.

What we do have to do of course, is get each communication right, or at least do our best. “As a rule I would warn against using the mobile as a way of reaching people [you] are not already familiar with,” says Jay Seaton. “Just as we advocate permission based text messaging for mobile marketing campaigns we should also do the same for business to business communication methods.”

But finally, a word of warning from Karen Durham-Diggins if you’re using Skype, “Remember what you look like if your video is on - or if you have an office at home - who is wandering around in their pants to bring you coffee!”

We’ll post a few more views on this general theme over the next few days / weeks.