"It happens to everyone," I kept telling myself. "The world will not quit turning," I mumbled a time or two. "I guess I will have to call the customer." When I heard myself saying and thinking these things yesterday, it turned out to be an eye-opening experience. It really does happen to everyone, so when our email stopped working for a total of less than 24 hours at BPI Media Group yesterday, I did what I should be doing every day anyway--met with people face to face and picked up the phone.
Whether it's a technical issue with a smart phone, wifi not working properly or a problem with Google (yes, even they experience technical difficulties like yesterday), there are times when we are not connected to our offices and customers via email. At first, I was in a state of shock, as I always am when something like that happens, but then I realized...I have a lot of time. Time to see people and make phone calls. I attended a networking breakfast that I almost blew off because I thought I was going to be too busy yesterday morning. Then, I met a prospect for lunch and learned that there are some really great business opportunities we have to work together on executing marketing campaigns. I even met someone for coffee and gained a couple of valuable referrals from the meeting. (With all that eating, I'm surprised I wasn't waddling by day's end!)
Without the ball and chain of email and the anticipation of what the next email holds or "waiting" on something to come across, I was reminded of better ways to spend my time. Talking to those who trust BPI enough to work with us and meeting new people. When emails started pouring in very late in the day, I spent a little time catching up and sorting through and then turned it OFF. The kick in the pants that there's more than one way to reach a customer or prospect is a lesson worth sharing. Phone, mail, face to face and yes, even fax. If the message is important, we should mix up the ways we communicate with our customers and prospects. Keep it fresh and unexpected.
Until next time...Elizabeth
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