Photo credit: plenty.r.
We’ve all done it. Professional or personally we’ve hidden behind an email or text as opposed to picking up the phone and actually speaking to someone. As Verizon will tell you, I am as guilty as anyone at this, which is somewhat hypocritical considering I manage a small call center. Whether the communication is positive or negative, you’ll never get the same effect from an electronic communication as you will from that phone call. There’s no questioning an exclamation point over the telephone, but in an email…is the person yelling? Are they excited? Or are they just that person who uses exclamation points way too much? The tone and inflection aren’t there, and you leave too much room for interpretation.
A lot of this boils down to convenience. Of course there are appropriate times for electronic communication – that’s why it exists. But in a business setting, when there’s an issue that needs to be settled, you would probably much prefer to speak with someone on the phone and get it all taken care of in a timely fashion as opposed to the electronic back and forth. Who knows how long that response will take.
This infographic below gives some insight as to Why the Call Center Won’t Go Away.
Infographic courtesy of zendesk.