Using technology to solve problems?

I just received a call from a friendly woman from Aliant offering me some sort of feature that would let me put my home phone, high-speed Internet and cell phone all on one bill for $99 a month.

Now here’s the thing: I do have a cell phone, and I do have high-speed Internet, but they’re not attached to the number she phoned, they’re part of the business, and are attached to the business’ telephone line. And this “combined and all on one bill” feature is residential only.

Isn’t the promise of technology that people who call us to sell us things should already know what they’ve sold us before, and what we might be interested in, so that the calls are helpful and targetted rather than random and annoying?

I have only to assume that Aliant can figure out which phone lines run where, and who they’re billed to; why not use that information to make outcalling telemarketer’s smarter, rather than forcing them to reveal their ignorance, as my caller today did when she said “oh, so you don’t have high speed Internet on this bill?”

Free tip for Aliant: if you use technology in your own business, people will be impressed, and will look to you for their technology needs, and your whole company will profit.