I remember verifying spelling of names, street names, offices, and others using made up phonetic alphabets. I used to say A for apple, B for banana, C for cool, D for dinosaur, E for elevator, F for flower and so on. I didn’t realize making up my own random phonetic alphabet could be annoying to listeners, until after I heard a trainee say “Is that Peter spelled P for pie, E for elephant, T for tree, E for another elephant, and R for rhinosaurus… hehehe”. This incident inspired me to share with you lists of more appropriate phonetic alphabets that can be used for spelling verification: the NATO phonetic alphabet and the Western Union phonetic alphabet.
NATO Phonetic Alphabet
A for Alpha
B for Bravo
C for Charlie
D for Delta
E for Echo
F for Foxtrot
G for Golf
H for Hotel
I for India
J for Juliet
K for Kilo
L for Lima
M for Mike
N for November
O for Oscar
P for Papa
Q for Quebec
R for Romeo
S for Sierra
T for Tango
U for Uniform
V for Victor
W for Whiskey
X for X-ray
Y for Yankee
Z for Zulu
Western Union Phonetic Alphabet
A for Adams
B for Boston
C for Chicago
D for Denver
E for Easy
F for Frank
G for George
H for Henry
I for Ida
J for John
K for King
L for Lincoln
M for Mary
N for New York
O for Ocean
P for Peter
Q for Queen
R for Roger
S for Sugar
T for Thomas
U for Union
V for Victor
W for William
X for X-ray
Y for Young
Z for Zero
Feel free to copy and print the lists for your use.
wow. this is really useful. haven’t been here in a while. i like the new layout.
Very helpful information. Hope to get more tips on how I can improve my calls.
This is awesome..!!!!!!! very helpfull.. often im getting frustrated by these people.. this will help me alot.
NATO phonetic alphabet is more popular. Used in distress calls.
May I suggest the phonetic alphabet for other languages, such as deutsch or German, e.g.,
A wie Anton, B wie Bertha , etc.
to Kiki above, they mention common mistakes of
call center agents, for example, pop out the
ending consonant sounds, d, t, etc. Then there is
the “th”. and the “of” as “ov”, and when to use
“z” for an “s”. These are tips that are taught in
training class for potential call center agents.
true, it is good if ms. joanna will write about
tips on how to improve a call center agent’s calls.
Awesome! Thank you very much!
im a call center agent so this is very helpful!!
thanks!