Phone calls in a second language are hard. Let us make them.
Phone calls in a second language are harder than almost anything else you do in English. In a shop you can point, smile and watch the other person’s face. On the phone there is only a fast voice, a bad line and a question you did not quite catch.
We can make the call for you. Write to us in simple English and tell us who to ring and what you need. A real person makes the call in English, then sends you the answer as a text message you can read slowly.
The problem
Why the phone is harder than talking in person
People talk fast
Staff answer the phone all day and they say the same sentences at speed. Asking them to repeat it once is fine. Asking three times feels terrible, so you say yes and hang up without really knowing what was agreed.
Accents and bad lines
You learned clear classroom English. The person on the phone has a strong accent, a noisy workshop behind them and a mobile that keeps cutting out. Even confident speakers lose words in that, and one missed word can change the whole answer.
No hands, no face
Face to face you can point at the thing, show a photo or write a number down. On the phone all of that is gone. Everything has to fit into words, quickly, with no time to think.
Spelling out loud
Your name, your street, your email address. Spelling them letter by letter over the phone is slow and stressful in any language, and one wrong letter means the booking confirmation you were waiting for never reaches you.
The fix
How we make it easier
You write, we talk
Writing gives you time to find the right words, check them and fix mistakes. Send us your request in simple English. It does not need to be perfect. It only needs to say who to ring and what you want to know.
A clear answer in writing
We text you what they said in plain words. Read it as slowly as you like, read it twice, or paste it into a translation app. The times, prices and names are written down, not half heard.
The whole call, if you want it
You can ask for a recording and a written transcript of the call. We tell the business it is being recorded. It is useful when the details matter and you want to go over them again later.
An example
What it looks like
You tell us
Hello. Please call Greenway Driving School. I want lessons in a manual car. Please ask the price for one lesson, and if they have a teacher on Saturday. My English on the phone is not good. Thank you.
We text you back
We rang Greenway Driving School for you. Yes, they teach in a manual car. They have an instructor on Saturdays, with times free from 9 am. The price they gave us for one lesson is in our next message. To book, they need your full name and your learner permit number.
An example only, with made-up names, to show the kind of answer you get.
Three steps
How it works
- 1
Tell us who to call
The business or person, and what you want to ask, book or find out. Thirty seconds on the form below.
- 2
We ring them
A real person makes the call and says they are ringing on your behalf. No answer? We try again until there is one.
- 3
We text you the result
What they said, in plain words, sent to your mobile. The recording and a written transcript too, if you asked for them.
Good to know
We are not interpreters. We make the call in English and we write back in English. If you need an interpreter, the Australian Government runs the Translating and Interpreting Service, known as TIS National. We also can’t ring banks, Centrelink, the ATO or anyone who must confirm your identity, and we don’t handle medical or legal matters.
Free while we’re getting started
Who do you want us to ring?
Give us the who and the what. We make the call, keep trying if nobody answers, and text you what they said.
- A real person makes the call, not a robot
- We say we’re ringing on your behalf
- No answer? We try again, and again
- The answer lands on your phone as a text
Leave it with us.
We’ll make the call and text you what they said. Now go and do something better with your day.
Questions people ask
Does my English need to be good?
No. Simple words are enough. Tell us who to ring, the phone number if you have it, and what you want to ask. You can write your request in a translation app first and paste it in.
Do you speak my language?
No. We only make calls in English and reply in English. What we change is the hard part: you get to read and write at your own speed, while we do the fast talking and listening on the phone.
Do you pretend to be me?
No. We say we are calling on your behalf and give your first name. If the business needs something only you can give, like a signature or an ID number, we tell you exactly what they asked for.