It’s been nearly three months (my, how time does fly when you’re havin’ fun) since I first announced I would be experimenting with Open Office Hours, and I thought I’d report on how it’s going.

Here’s how it works: Once a week, on Thursday between 10am and 11am (Pacific time), I have my phone turned on and will answer whoever calls me (the number is 909-240-7647).

This is the only way to get free advice from me by phone. It’s first-come, first-served, I don’t make appointments during this time, and I will talk to whoever calls for as long as they need.

Of course, you are free to call that number anytime, but the chances are almost zero that I’ll answer if it’s not Open Office Hour (unless I recognize your number and feel like talking and have time, which is pretty much the Trifecta of Impossibility). And I pretty much don’t return phone messages, ever. Well, unless you’re someone I have an existing relationship with. Then, maybe. Or I might just send you an email.

What I was afraid of

Basically, it felt like a big risk to say I’d be taking calls from random anybodies during a specific period of time.

Also, I thought I might get negative reactions from people who thought that I should be a) answering my phone all the time (or at least during some kind of “business hours”), b) doing more Open Office Hours, or c) setting up free phone calls with them on their schedule because that’s “good customer service.”

It boiled down to a fear that I wasn’t going to be doing enough, serving enough people, meeting enough of their needs.

What really happened

I forgot that the only people who would really be drawn to calling me would automatically be cool. You are My Right People! Everyone who has called has been nice, not at all demanding, and genuinely grateful for my help.

Callers: You have been awesome. You have not only thanked me, but you’ve publicly tweeted your thanks and recommended my Open Office Hours to others. What more could I ask for?

A few examples

For anyone who’s wondering about the kinds of things that are great to ask me, here’s a sampling.

Caller’s question: How hard is it, really, to upgrade WordPress?
My answer: See that link at the top of your Dashboard? Just click it. (I did explain about backing up, and stayed on the phone with her while she did the upgrade, and that conversation inspired my post about How to Upgrade WordPress).

Caller’s question: How do I find out who’s visiting my site and where they’re coming from?
My answer: Google Analytics is awesome and free, but if that’s too scary, you can install WordPress.com Stats (yes, WordPress self-hosted blogs can use this plugin, I should really post about this) and see your statistics right from your dashboard.

Caller’s question: Would you ever do a webinar tutorial on Google Docs?
My answer: Sure, if there’s enough interest. I can see how the whole Google Docs thing could be a bit intimidating for newcomers. In fact, that’s a really good idea. If I start up a free class series, that will definitely be on the list. (If anyone is interested, be sure to leave a comment or send me an email — otherwise I’ll never know!)

And there have been more. And it’s been fun. And I’ve been really glad to give my help, and my callers have been excited and grateful to get it.

So I’m calling the experiment an official success, and I’m going to be doing Open Office Hours for the forseeable future. (I didn’t do them on Thanksgiving, and this year both Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve are Thursdays, so really there are only two more weeks of Open Office Hours in 2009! Whoa!)

Talk to you some Thursday soon…