Is there just too much
communication today?
Industry News • 12th August 2020
Have you ever tried to contact someone to catch up or discuss a proposal?
Ever tried to get in touch with someone who you’ve never spoken to before?
Or ever tried to speak to a new prospect and found it almost impossible?
It is not just in business that this happens. It is the doctors where you ring because you’re unwell, the receptionist asks what’s wrong with you (because they are medically qualified???), and then you book an appointment for the doctor to call you to have a chat and see if it’s actually worth them seeing you!!! So doctors, businesses, retail outlets, websites, car manufacturers… you name it, they are increasingly hard to actually speak to.
So what’s the big deal with actually speaking to someone, or meeting face to face you might ask?
With the increasing amounts of technology allowing us to communicate globally in seconds, why is it more difficult to get in touch with someone and have a conversation?
I know I am not alone in this but here’s a thought…
When you meet someone, or talk on the phone you get a huge amount of additional information that you simply cannot get through e-mail, Whatsapp, Facebook DM or the myriad of other channels. You can detect if someone is happy or sad, excited or bored, alert or tired. You can see and show empathy, you can pause without feeling like you are being ignored, it is a two way focused communication, rather than sending a message, then waiting for minutes or hours for a response.
My niece and nephew are well used to this, as is anyone under 24, and they call it ‘chatting’. But you simply can’t beat the old fashioned version of this which is called a ‘meeting’ or a ‘telephone call’.
So am I a grumpy old man?
Some would agree, but the facts are that when you focus your communication in a 1-2-1 situation you get better responses, you get the full attention of the person without other interruptions and you get better, more thought through outcomes. Isn’t that the point of communication, better and more thought through outcomes?
At PHd we always try and use the phone and face to face meetings, that way we get faster and better results for our clients. We even use pads and pens (and iPads occasionally) to sketch out a clients needs so we all understand what is required and how it can be achieved. This is followed up with a simple document telling everyone what the outcomes were and who will do what by when…
Sound refreshing?
Why not give us a call and experience the results of our approach.
Peter Howard, Managing Director