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Have you ever wondered why it takes so long to get an answer to an E-mail? Don't people and companies care about my business?
I asked myself, is it because I am accessing information from around the world? Or, is it the process of splitting and reassembling the data that is creating an overload? So, I tested the system by sending an E-mail to myself; click and send. Gee, it came right back to my inbox.
It's not the system that is slow. It is the people who are doing the replying. It is not uncommon to get a reply 2-3 weeks after sending an E-mail. What does that tell you about the person or the company? Would you want to work with a company that doesn't seem to care?
E-mail is one of the greatest benefits of the Internet. Either reply to inquiries in a timely manner or remove your E-mail address from your Web site, business cards, and the company letterhead. It will create the same result: you will lose a customer if your don't answer their E-mails.
In today's fast paced world we expect things to work quickly. Why does it take so long for some people to answer our E-mails? Professionalism is emphasized by prompt and accurate replies to E-mail correspondence. On the average it takes only a minute or two to hit the reply key and write a response. If you have thirty E-mails in the inbox it would only take a little over an hour to answer all of them.
What will be accomplished by answering E-mail promptly?
1. It will get you into the habit of keeping your business relations current and active.
2. Many E-mail requests are similar. If you track the requests of your customers you will gain a clearer picture of your customer base. And you will know where to target your effort.
3. Set up an automatic "signature" file at the end of your outgoing E-mails. This will allow you to target advertising automatically in all of your outgoing E-mail.
I can hear your objections "But, I don't have the time each day to read and answer a bunch of E-mails." All I can say is, if you want to build a business and make money you will make the time to answer the E-mails. If you want to keep the customer, make the reply within 48 hours.
Tips to Maximize Efficiency
1. Use an auto responder. It is an automatic program that will send out a response as soon as the E-mail is received. It may be a simple message informing the sender that their request has been received.
2. Prepare templates of Frequently Asked Questions. By tracking the types of requests you will find that many customer requests are similar. By putting together a list of these requests the template will enable an accurate and quick response. Plus, it will cut the response time to a few seconds.
3. Categorize the E-mails. Set up individual E-mail addresses to organize the requests. You can create a different E-mail address for each department. Examples:
info@yourbusiness.com
support@yourbusiness.com
billing@yourcompany.com
affiliates@yourbusiness.com
4. Setup the E-mail accounts to automatically sort and place each account into a separate folder. This will keep the correspondence organized and it will help you to stay focused in each department.
The invention of the Internet and E-mail is a blessing to mankind. Use it to increase your business, make more money, and keep your business relations active.
That's the way I see it.
Acey Gaspard
A Touch of Business.com
[ More Article by Acey Gaspard ] [ Entrepreneurial Tip of The Week ]
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