It’s okay to pick up the phone.

Sometime ago I found  online  a gorgeous  pair of high heeled spectator pumps but before I  clicked the purchase button I wanted details about  the colours  that  were available.

Turns out that the site had  all kinds of information  except what I wanted. The cost of the shoes was there, so too information on the height of the heel  and the discount I could get if  I  purchased  another  pair as a gift. 

But no information on the colours was available.  And then, as if to compound my frustration, when I sent off an email inquiry the  site promised to respond to me in 3 working days. I suppose that had  I called the store’s  number  which was splashed across the site, it  would have taken me  3 minutes to get the information I wanted.

I remember this  online shopping fiasco only because last week a colleague mentioned that  she wanted to make a fast decision about whether to proceed with organising  an event  but  needed the consent of  her committee members.  

“ I sent an email,” she said, “ but no one responded.”

Nowadays sending an email no longer  guarantees that  you’re going to get the quickest response. Here’s what you’re doing when you send one.  

You assume that everyone has a blackberry, is connected to the internet the same time as you are  or has the time or inclination  to open the email, digest the information  and respond.

That’s a tall order. 

Sometimes, as in my experience with the shoes, or in my colleague’s need for a quick time decision, high tech isn’t always the most efficient.  The dazzle and convenience of it sometimes  blinds us to the dowdy but perhaps speedier solutions. 

So tell me again, why don’t you just pick up the phone?