Don't keep me hanging on the telephone!

Don't get me wrong without email I think that it would be nigh on impossible to function effectively in business. Email goes along way to allowing you to do that. In the service industry, communication is the bedrock of the client relationship. Get the communication right and you have a happy client and potentially a future client. Get the communication wrong and you can say goodbye to any future work from that client.

The phone is now perceived to be the ugly sister of the communicaton world. A throwback to the old way of doing things pre computer. Having said that you ignore the phone at your peril. Everyone's first impulse is to rush to send an e mail. Quick, simple and you can move on to something else. In phoning you have to hope that the person is in, wants to speak to you and we haven't even gone into the dreaded callcentre - the bane of everybody's life or leaving a message. Having said that the email is not the panacea. You cannot inoculate yourself against how someone interprets that e mail and that is the enormous problem with it. You do not get that with the phone. If you have to make sure someone understands something or you want to ensure that the correct emphasis is put on the communication then the phone is still the go to method of communication. An email is great but sometimes it is good to talk!

It is for this reason that you ignore that phone call at your peril. On the basis that e mail is the preferred method of communication - if anyone makes a phone call it is likely to be important. Make sure that if you cannot take the call then ensure that it is returned as soon as possible. And if you have to leave a message when you call back, make sure that you tell them that "it is important that they phone you back" and that should ensure a swift response.

Need to go. The phone's ringing...................................