MASS MAIL 02 MARCH 2006 - COMMUNICATION

FOUNDATION FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF AFRICA
"Participation Builds Unity"

"MADE IN AFRICA - FOR AFRICA"

FDA NEWSLETTER

MASS MAIL
02 MARCH 2006
COMMUNICATION - TELEPHONE NUMBERS
(All)

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The FOUNDATION FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF AFRICA proudly presents you with the following information that may add value to Africa's development. Please direct any correspondence to: info@isupportafrica.com

COMMUNICATION - TELEPHONE NUMBERS
A few weeks ago I wrote about communication and the issues associated with it - these include:

EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE
WEBSITE DESIGN AND WEB DEVELOPMENT
(http://www.foundation-development-africa.org/fda_newsletter/2006/31_january_2006.htm)
TELEPHONE NUMBERS
COMMON NAME and FAMILY NAME

TELEPHONE NUMBERS
This week I would like to start a campaign that will lead to the standardisation of how we list telephone numbers on our correspondence (including email 'signatures'), business cards and a host of other applications showcasing these vital connecting digits.

Recently a contact from Ghana tried to make contact with a new business contact in South Africa. The number dialed from Ghana was something like - 09 021 684 4489 (please note this is a fictitious number). This number, as dialed, constantly delivered an engaged signal. Our contact in Ghana then called me for assistance. I advised our Ghana contact to simply drop the '0' before the 21. The concerning part is that the contact in Ghana was just about to abandon the business deal due to the lack of communication - blaming infrastructure. How many other deals have been lost due to the same problem?

Most of us who regularly deal throughout the continent will identify with this issue. All too often we endeavor to call a number in a foreign country, and receive no response or an engaged signal and then blame the situation on the lack infrastructure. I am not insinuating that there is NO problem with telecommunication infrastructure - I am just trying to highlight the possibility of how the inclusion of one digit to the dialed number could cause great frustration.

When researching the way telephone numbers are written on business cards, we are faced with a zillion combinations - making it very difficult to select the right option. Surprisingly, some business-cards, circulated into the international market, fail to provide the full international codes required to connect.

Therefore, when writing a number we should follow certain basics. Our number in Northwold, Randburg, Johannesburg, South Africa is listed as follows:

+27 (0)11 793 4409

+ = The International Code Required when dialing from your Country.
27 = This code designates the country - South Africa
(0) = This digit is only required when dialing the number locally e.g. in South Africa - therefore listed in brackets
11 = This is the code for particular region or area - Johannesburg
793 = This is the code that further defines the region or area - Northwold and Randburg
4409 = This is our code or number.

A number in London, Great Briton (Our FDA PARTNER - The World Summits Organisation) would list their number as follows:

+44 (0)20 7253 5440

+ = The International Code when dialing from your Country
44 = This code designates the country - Britain
(0) = This digit is only required when dialing the number locally e.g. in Britain - therefore listed in brackets
20 = This is the code for particular region or area - London
7253 = This is the code that further defines the region or area
5440 = This is their code or number.

A mobile number (South Africa) would be written as follows:

+27 (0)84 333 7777

Please forward this email to all your contacts - in particular we need to get the message to printers and web designers who are constantly listing numbers.

Next week: NAMES - COMMON NAME and FAMILY NAME

Please visit and scrutinise our PRODUCTS AND SERVICES SERVING AFRICA - We are on our way to assemble the biggest database of products and service available to Africa - see:
http://www.fdapartners.net/products_services/index.htm
This section has now achieved recognition and is featured alongside our FDA FINANCE SECTION in the top spot when searching for "products services serving africa" on www.google.com, this from some 20,000,000 WebPages.

It may be in your interest to participate as a FDA PARTNER - see why:
http://www.fdapartners.net/com/why_participate.htm
We need you to support our efforts - please participate:
http://www.foundation-development-africa.org/fda_info/how_then_can_i_support_fda_africa.htm

Please add your name to a growing list of names proclaiming - "YES! I support Africa" - see:
http://www.isupportafrica.com/isagen/names/index.htm

Take care

COMMENTS RECEIVED

02 March 2006
Thanks Peter,
This education is most needed.
Sade Fasedemi
Account Manager - Africa Unit
IDC - Industrial Development Corporation
South Africa

02 March 2006
Hi Peter
May I suggest that the (0) be left out altogether.
The reason being, even if I dial +27114569852 from south africa I will get through to the number.
However if I mis-understand the convention and I dial +270114569852 I will not get through.
Kind regards
Sefale
Sefale MONTEI
Nedcor/Capital One Alliance
South Africa

02 March 2006
Hi Peter
Thanks for the ongoing very interesting info that you regularly generate.
Do you have a sleep disorder as I have no idea where you find the time for your research etc.
It was a good idea to talk about a convention for writing tel no's.
Keep up the good work.
Regards
John
John A Bredenkamp
PLATO Southern Africa
South Africa

02 March 2006
Hi Daddy
This is very interesting - a very, very valid point. Well done.
Michelle
Michelle METCALFE
GIP Group
South Africa

02 March 2006
Hi P.
Thanks for raising the correct format for international telecommunication as it forms a critical part of effective business communication.
Regards
Tonny Sauls
Chief Operations Manager
Gauteng Film Office
South Africa

02 March 2006
Hi Peter,
I'm glad to see that you are taking the real, practical issues that can get in the way of effective communication within Africa and between Africa and the world.
The international dialing issue can be vexing.
There is no consistency on phone number usage and I agree that the problems this presents can make Africa's telecom infrastructure appear worse than it is.
In North America (Canada and USA), we use a standard format for phone numbers that everyone here understands but that may cause confusion overseas.
Eg. +1 (403) 555-5555
+1 = the international code and the country code for USA/Canada "1"
(403) = the area code, and is almost always put in brackets but HAS to be used by everyone except intra-city calls.
And then the rest of the number....
It really is the usage of the extra (0) that can cause confusion here. So, I'm not sure what to do about the North American practice of putting the area code in brackets. Sometimes numbers are put on business cards as:
+ 1.403.555.5555
Or
+ 1-403-555-5555
But we do need a standard that everyone gets.
Lastly, another communication challenge is the verbal usage of telephone numbers. I don't know how many voicemail messages I've received where people rattle off a number so fast, without the expected pauses, that there is no way to accurately record the number and call them back. This is especially the case with international calls where the line isn't always clear and the recipient doesn't know ahead of time how many numbers are coming.
Say numbers clearly, pause between groups of numbers, and repeat once. This is as true for local calls as international ones.
Thanks for tackling the practical issues.
Chris Chris ROBERTS
Canadian Council on Africa
Canada

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