CALLER ID: ACCESS VS. PRIVACY

Before you have time to tell Domino's Pizza what you want delivered, Domino's can tell who you are.

This is possible through Caller Identification, a service Southwestern Bell provides that gives a visual display of telephone numbers on the receiving end.

Is it an extension of Big Brother or a tool to conduct business more efficiently? Dan Lynn, who owns the Domino's Pizza franchise in Cape Girardeau, says Caller ID puts him in touch with the needs of his customers and helps him anticipate trends.

"We've had it for a few months now and the customers seem to like it," Lynn said. Lynn, who lives in Cape Girardeau, plans to use the same service at the two Domino's stores he owns in St. Louis.

He said he wanted to test the system in his hometown before using it in St. Louis.

"We've got it tied into our computer system so that we can tell who is ordering, what they ordered last and how often they called," Lynn said. "It helps us with inventory and marketing our product."

Craig Felzien, community relations manager for Southwestern Bell, said the Caller ID service has been available in Southeast Missouri for more than a year. Felzien said the service is used for different purposes.

"It kind of depends on where a person is at with the privacy issue," Felzien said. "Some people think it's neat that a company would want to know what they like and to be able to call them by their name. Others would rather not let that information out until they're ready to give it."

In that case a caller has the means to block information by dialing * 67, or, with a rotary phone the digits 1167 before making the call. No arrangements have to be made with the telephone company prior to blocking a call. Blocking is not possible when calls are made from a pay phone.

"In some parts of the country you have to pay to block your number, but we didn't feel that was right," Felzien said. "The customer should have the option of whether or not they want that information out."

Some pizza delivery companies use an alternate system to store information. Rick McLaughlin, manager of Godfather's Pizza, said his store is considering going to a computer program system that stores the number, name and address of anyone who has called for a previous order.

"There are some glitches in the system, though," McLaughlin said. "If you're calling up a number of someone who moved away from the address in your system and you say the wrong name, people get mad at you. It's a touchy kind of thing when you're dealing with information about people."

Pizza companies that deliver aren't the only ones using Caller ID or computer tracking systems.

Real estate companies and businesses that want to compile information on the customers they are serving are also finding the service useful.

When Caller ID is used in the home, it becomes a screening device. "The same way you wouldn't open your door to someone you don't know, people feel they would like to know who is calling them," Felzien said. "This becomes an important tool when you're dealing with harassing phone calls."

Caller ID is an option that costs $6.50 a month for residential customers. There is a one-time service connection charge of $7.75. For business customers the rates are $8.50 a month per line, plus a one-time service connection of $14.50. The display unit is sold separately.