Communication is key!

Texting

We live in the time of instant communication; people and customers seem to want an instant response. The problem with that comes on the back of small business owners who are trapped between wanting to be available, and also having a life outside of their work. It can be hard but also liberating to cut this proverbial “cord”!

Have you ever received a customer text message at a time when you weren’t thinking about work (e.g. 7:00 PM)? All of a sudden, after-hours, your brain switches gears and this can affect a lot more than just that moment. Some things may include added stress, urge to respond, need to schedule/re-schedule, so on and so forth. The thought may even cross your mind that you may need to set some boundaries. (This is normal and healthy!!)

Think about our world before text messaging and instant response, your customer base will understand the need for responding via email by the next business day. Hold strong in your business model! Pro Tip – Add your response time in your signature to give email recipients an understanding of when to expect a response from you.

If you currently use text messaging, do you find it harder to enforce your business practices and policies? That’s completely normal, as we associate texting with our personal life with friends and loved ones. Email is a great tool, as a way to communicate business needs in a different professional medium while not having an instant “personal” connection to the text recipient.

Pro Tip- Create a separate email address @ your business which can strictly handle new inquiries, provide information, respond to scheduling requests, respond to business matters, administrative issues, etc. As an added bonus, I provide the handling of this and other correspondence as a service! In the day of instant communication, people are happy with a response of any kind and are happy to receive an email reply.

If you do choose to use text messaging in your business, here are some tips and stats courtesy of SmallBizTrends.com. However, given all these tips, you could switch to emailing the exact same information.

Texting Etiquette:

Texting is just like any other communication tool. If you keep that in mind, you can avoid some of the gaffes people make.

Introduce yourself properly and include an auto signature at the end of your message. If they don’t know who you are, there is a big chance they won’t read or respond to the message.
Personalize your message. This is just like the first recommendation. The more information you add about yourself the better.
Keep it short. Texting is designed for this very reason.
Keep it clear. Deliver your message without unnecessary information or anecdotes.
Spell check. Apply this to all written communication. But the negative impact can be greater in texting. After all, it is only a couple of sentences. The recipient might think, “If they can’t get this right…”
Be aware of the time of day. Don’t send the text at inappropriate times.