Thursday, January 20, 2011

Sometimes, you just gotta pick up that phone

Today I was presented with a potential advertising opportunity to sell my book. I checked it out, seemed like it might be something I should try & so I do - try, that is. I was all the way at the check out credit card in hand when I keep getting an error page. Tried again ... & again - then gave up when my phone rang.

I called the company & left a voice mail & then emailed as well (OK, so my mistake I shouldn't have done that). I receive a curt email reply which doesn't really answer the question. I email back & yet again receive a half-assed answer. So now I refer to my voice mail & still no return phone call.

This went on several more times during the day & I just gave up & emailed the guy to say this was too hard but could have been made much easier had he returned my call.

This guy spent a fair amount of money for his ad to let a very large list of subscribers know about his offer. When someone tries to buy from you they're THIS close (picture a thumb & forefinger just about touching) & you let them get away? Not very smart.

Most every small business owner I've had the pleasure of dealing with would have known better. He should have picked up the phone & taken my order himself, or he could have simply returned my call & answered my question a day sooner. We're all busy, you don't have to send me a long email telling me how busy you are & how many meetings you've been in today. By the time he wrote all that, he could have just called!! Now, he's lost all credibility, some revenue & any opportunity for referrals or repeat business.

So, here's the lesson: just pick up the phone (you know, that shiny device that you take pictures with!!) & sort it out. I don't care how techie you are - there's nothing better than a two-way discussion to "meet" someone, make a connection, finalize a sale, or sort through an issue.

A 5 minute call is all it takes.