Hotline | Helpline | Integrity Line

The place where you report a concern – what do you call it?  The most common name I see is hotline.  I’ve always felt that using the word hot emits a sense of urgency, importance, almost like calling 911.  This will catch blatant illegal conduct, but might discourage less urgent matters such as ethical questions or mere concerns.  Which brings us to the name helpline.

Helpline seems more approachable.  Like a person at the counter waiting to answer your question.  It’s like a pleasant customer service person.  But if things are bad, you don’t run to the customer service counter.  You run to the person with a badge.  If there’s no hotline, it’s like not having someone with a badge.

Which brings me to the name integrity line.  I saw this recently with Providence hospital.  This name captures the urgent and important, but also allows the not so urgent.

All of this fails to mention the web part of the reporting system.  I’ll leave that for another day.

Helpline/Hotline Posters

You know those legal notices posted in your breakroom – nobody reads them.  They’re too full of legalese and small print all mashed together.  What purpose do they really serve.

Here’s an example of a poster that grabs your attention.  It’s not a legal poster, but it shows the possibility of what can be done.  The creative guys over at HunterGatherer designed it.  Notice how everything is aligned on one line.  The font is nice and big.  You can quickly read all of the information.  Follow these principles and your hotline/helpline poster will be much more effective.