As we all live in the ever changing world of technology, the use of the internet and related media has grown at an amazing rate. Most people have one of the various social media accounts such as Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin etc and use these within their daily business and personal lives. Many say the death of email is already evident?
With this in mind, email, however is still a highly used contact tool for company websites to have with a contact email address listed within the website. This is good right?
The effectiveness and the image that email may portray of you and your business can be a trap that we must all be aware of if not used correctly. If you have an email contact page or link, do you respond to these emails that people (potential clients) send you?
Since joining Small Fish Business Coaching, the number of email interactions personally used have increased from me, in addition to those I contact as a potential customer in my personal life. The worrying trend that is faced from personal experience is that many company’s (both small business and national brands) simply DO NOT respond to emails!
While this may be a personal frustration, the concern is the potential damage this is doing to the businesses who are guilty, espeically the small businesses who seek revenue growth.
Each contact who takes the time to write to you does so with the expectation of a response. They may be the next long term client worth thousands of dollars to you, they may be a great word of mouth referrer based on experience, or they may be a vocal opponent of your business based on the lack of response and the frustration they experience. Think about each contact as a face to face customer and give them the courtesy of a reply to help you grow your business.
With the money and time invested on a website, ensure you have the processes and systems to respond. You never know who that email contact may be and what potential impact they have on your business!
Is it just me, or is this a common theme out there in the community? I would love to hear your thoughts.
Best regards,
Tony Ozanne
Small Fish Business Coaching Canberra
www.smallfish.com.au/tonyozanne
