Do you have an allergic reaction to the phone? Get over it.

I published my second book—Pick Up the Damn Phone!—in 2013. I was alarmed that people had stopped talking to each other. I was perplexed by their over-dependence on technology for practically everything—even to the extreme of texting someone “I love you.” Yep, that’s for real and sent me over the top. I think such personal communication should happen in person, and so should important business communications. That’s how you build and maintain the kind of relationships that help salespeople close deals.

The subtitle of my book says it all: “How People, Not Technology, Seal the Deal.”

Digital communication works wonders for many aspects of our lives—making dinner reservations, scheduling appointments, ordering products or meals online, booking travel, confirming meetings, etc. It saves a huge amount of time and helps us avoid miscommunications. How many tedious emails have you received, knowing you didn’t need to be copied? How distracting and annoying were those emails? How many of those long email threads could have been resolved with a single phone call?

I recall picking up the phone one Friday afternoon and reaching three people on the first try. Not to cold call, but to clarify details from an online conversation. Each person told me they were so glad I’d called. We resolved everything in less than five minutes and built a better relationship for it.

Amanda Mull admits to this in her Atlantic article, “Talk to People on the Telephone.” She writes:

“Phone calls force you to contend with the messy reality of living in a world where other people might need your attention without warning you through a calendar invite two weeks in advance. Phone calls don’t let you ignore a message for four days, confident in its innocuousness.”

Read Mull’s provocative and challenging post here, and let me know what you think. For more on how to balance digital technology with real-world relationship-building, get your copy of Pick Up the Damn Phone!: How People, Not Technology, Seal the Deal. It’s seven years “new” now, but the content is just as relevant (if not more so) today.

Want to know how to get qualified sales leads in your pipe? Send your question to joanne@nomorecoldcalling.com, and I’ll schedule a 15-minute call with you.

(Featured image attribution: Negative Space)