I was thinking about it last night. There would be one thing worse than an Amandalanche at my place. That would be a Deborah/Debralanche.

We have five of those. FIVE. Imagine the confusion if a customer calls and asks for Debra/Deborah.

"Which one?"

"I don't know. She didn't give me her extension."

One call center I worked in required us to give our last name at the beginning of the call. Many people didn't care for that, but we had to do it. I can see why. This was a larger call center than the one I work in now, and if we have multiple people with the same name in our call center, imagine what it was like there!

The last name can be an option, but it isn't the only option. Some kind of unique identifier, like your extension, is a great option if you don't feel comfortable giving your last name. Even the first initial of your last name can work. But make it easier for your customers to get back in touch with you if they have to.

Better yet, offer to get back in touch with the customer yourself. And don't forget to follow through with a callback cause, well, that opens up another can of worms.