Our teenagers gave up on phone calls long ago, and now it seems the business world is catching up. While I was doing some research for a training project recently, I had a VP of Sales tell me, “I want my people to stop hiding behind e-mail, pick up the phone and call our customers”. Disclaimer before I continue: I get that there are situations where e-mail is not appropriate (like when a message arrives in your inbox and looks like the sequel to War and Peace). Then I talked to his inside sales folks and the consensus was, “Nobody answers their phone anymore and the only way I can get them to respond is by e-mail”. This reminded of the Platinum Rule of customer service: “Treat others the way they want to be treated.” Do your employees ask customers and prospects, “If a situation arises or something changes, do you prefer that I call or e-mail?”. If not, you might have them start. It’s a great way to start building relationships. Posted by John Hall