Although my personal phone and business phone are on the Do Not Call list, occasionally, my business phone will receive a call from a telemarketer probably because that number is located on the internet. This month I received a call from someone who wanted to fund my business. This is what their voice mail said:

"Good afternoon. This is xxx with xxx. Hey, I'm giving you a call. It looks like we received your file from a broker in New York in regards to funding for your business. It looks like we actually have an approval for your business. Um, first of the year we had some under writing guideline change. So, we're actually able to approve more money and better terms in 2024. You know, we can probably save you some money. You know I can certainly help you with that."

He then provided his call back number. I have never been looking for funding for my business. There is no one in New York that has my file. When we examine his language, we can tell this guy is fishing hoping someone will call him back.

Twice the caller said it "looks like." This means the caller is unsure. Did you or did you not receive my file from a broker in New York? Do you or do you not have approval for my business?

Twice the caller used the word "actually." The word "actually" always means a person is comparing two thoughts. "We actually have an approval." He may be comparing, "We have an approval" with "You thought we didn't have an approval." More than likely, he is comparing, "We have an approval" with "We don't have an approval." The second time he used the word "actually" he said, "So, we're actually able to approve more money." He may be comparing in the past they could only approve a certain amount and now they can approve more. It is also possible he is comparing, "We can approve more money" with "We cannot approve more money." The statement sounds better without the word "actually."

Using the interjection "um" allows him to pause to think about what to say. He only did it once which means it is not a strong indicator of deception.

The use of the word "so" means he is explaining his actions. Generally speaking, people should only be telling us things and not explaining things. Instead of using the word "so," he could have said, "This allows us to approve more money." That is more of a statement than an explanation.

Twice he said, "you know." He wants me to take for granted he can help me.

Lastly, his use of the word "probably" means he is not certain he can save me some money.

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