Abstract

In a merchandising business wherein telephone subscribers' responses are solicited by various commercial advertisements via the television and/or radio media, merchandising agents receive such telephone responses in order to accept requests for goods and services and to expedite deliveries and billings. A telephone system is disclosed wherein a portion of a direct dialled number associated with an advertised product is forwarded to an information server. The information server provides information about the product, such information being displayable at a data display terminal adjacent a merchandising agent's position. In the case where a group of merchandising agents is accessed via an automatic call distributing feature in the telephone system, the voice call and the data information appear at a selected merchandising agent's position at about the same time, thereby informing the agent as to the particular item of interest and its attributes in association with the voice call.