Pick up the phone!

This past Saturday morning I was driving back from an event in Cheyenne, WY. I borrowed my husband's car, a 2009 VW Jetta TDI, and I enjoyed being able to listen to OUTQ radio and The Focus Group (One of my favorite radio shows). His car has Sirius radio, so it was a treat.

They were talking about communicating with customers (or donors in my case) in the 21st century. The focus was on email and the vast amount we all seem to get. They were kind enough to take my call. I suggested picking up the phone.

I admitted that I learned this lesson out of pure laziness. I found myself responding in length via email to a donor and thought "why don't I just call them?!?!". So I did. The result catapulted my relationship with the donor to a completely stronger level. And it continues to do that.

I got so used to email, to non-human contact. I realized that every morning I have a dozen or so emails and no voice mails. I realized that I had never even spoken with Ms. Jones!

My experience is that when I call a donor, a potential donor, or a potential partner, that relationship grows in a way that no email will allow. We can chuckle, I can hear the tone of their voice, I can sense their excitement (or their concern).

So try it! Many of you probably already do. If not, skip the next email and give them a call.

If you are interested in The Focus Group, their website is http://http://focusgroupradio.com/

I highly recommend the Saturday morning show.

Thanks for reading!