Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What is Talk2One?
A. The Talk2One service has been developed not only to enable those that are marginalized to keep in touch with the community, but to decrease “churn” for social service agencies dealing with large numbers of hard-to-serve clients. Using a central voice mail system to keep connected to groups or individuals is clearly the one way to interact with all clients rather than relying on home phones, the internet or printed material as everyone can access a phone. We reverse the role of responsibility, you leave a message on the Talk2One system and it is now the responsibility of the member to collect the message, your job is done.
Q. What do you provide?
A. Members receive a personalized voice mail box accessible from any phone that cannot be cut off. Every month members are entitled to 60 minutes of free talk time anywhere in North America and they have access to community information and support services on demand. This means that agencies who use this service know that their messages are sent to a secure voice mail box that is used exclusively by their clients. This removes the onerous and time filled exercise of leaving messages with a neighbour or sensitive messages on the family phone to pass onto the client or the expense to send letters for simple, yet time sensitive matters.
Q. My client already has a phone. Should they be signed up to this service?
A. Many clients have a phone but are not always able to afford the voice mail costs that go with it or they can’t keep up the payments. Talk2One ensures you can leave a voice mail message for an individual with one call. The Talk2One service also provides agencies with a practical method of providing access to social-based information that can help people make informed decisions particularly those with reading difficulties.
Q. What are our obligations?
A. Case workers are responsible for handing out the registration forms for new member to fill in and faxing them back to Talk2One. Agencies that so choose may provide information over the system that clients may need to make informed decisions that affect their lives. The content of the information provided should be timely, accurate and actionable in language that will be plain and jargon free.
Q. Who decides on who gets this service?
A. You decide! If you feel your client can use these free services to help them in their plan for self-reliance. The client must be on some form of social assistance such as OW or ODSP however exceptions can be made for those at risk, working poor, seniors and others needing social support.
Q. How secure is the system?
A. All information including names, addresses, education levels, age range, gender, and other personal details are used strictly to administer the system and produce reports on trends and usage. This information is not used to identify individual members and cannot be used by any outside party except authorized social agencies or research organizations and complies with the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
Q. How will it help me?
A. Managing and communicating with a large client base is a time consuming process. Reaching individuals by phone is inefficient and in many instances the client has no phone or the service is intermittent. The Talk2One service lets you deliver messages and information of a repetitive nature to your client base and places the onus of responsibility on people to pick up their messages on a regular basis.
Q. How can I have my client sign up for this free service?
A. It’s easy! Have the client fill in the registration form and fax it to us on our toll free fax line. From there you will need to keep the original for your records and we look after the data entry. The cards are activated once the PIN is changed and a greeting is recorded which only takes a minute.
