Lets’ face it. The web gets more complicated every day. We want to be efficient and save money, but it takes a lot of work to get there. When you communicate with someone to ask a question or to initiate a task you need to articulate. Incomplete sentences and half statements only leave the receiver with a big question… “What”? All this does is prolong the conversation and nothing gets done. At least not immediately.
I spend half my time replying to emails with “Could you be more specific”. No one can perform a task or answer a question for you without specifics. Think before you type. That is the Key. Same goes for voice mail. Have you ever gotten a message from someone who didn’t bother to leave their number? Or their name? Not much you can do with that is there.
Time is a commodity. Whether you hire a lawyer or a web designer, the better you are at communicating what you want the quicker things get done. There are exceptions of course, but I find that most projects stall because of communication problems.
- First, don’t assume that the person you are communicating with knows what you are talking about.
- Second, don’t leave out important details like “What”, “Who”, “Where”, or “When”. Sometimes you might need to throw in a “Why”.
- Third, re-read your statements to see if they make sense.
This applies to both email and voice mail. The written and the audible pieces of communication that you send out. In most cases you may not be able to review a voice mail message, but if you keep you message clear and concise with only the important information chances are you will get a response.
Communication is vitally important in business and unfortunately I find that many small business entrepreneurs lack this ability. If lawyers charge by the minute don’t you think it would make sense to be understood in the least amount of time possible?
Just take the time to be clear.
