You Are "Old School" If You Still Communicate Primarily Through Emails

[Travis Van Slooten]

I don't know if this is the right place to put this "commentary" so feel free to move it Linda if it's better placed somewhere else.

I was talking to my wife's cousin who is just 22 and fresh out of college. He's one of these kids who constantly has his nose buried in his phone. We got talking the other day about texting and stuff and what he told me just blew my mind. I'm only 40 but he made me feel about 65...lol.

I asked him if his generation uses email. He laughed at me and said that's like sending someone a letter. Nobody uses email but the "old" professors at college. He said everyone communicates through Facebook and Twitter. He said texting is his generations "email." He said outside of college, he never uses email - and neither do his friends.

He was blown away when I told him 90% of my communications are still through email. He laughed and basically called me an old man

This got me thinking about my own client base. I do find that my younger clients are easier and quicker to reach via text, while my older clients still use email primarily.

It makes me wonder what communications will be like even 10 years from now. Will there come a day where even your local plumber client prefers to be reached via Facebook or Twitter - or by text. I can't imagine a day where nobody really uses email anymore...but if this kid's generation isn't using email, then I suppose it will go the way of snail mail...and that just makes me feel really old

Travis Van Slooten

 

[Phil Rozek]

I'm with ya, Travis. That's a bunch of phooey. I'm a young guy and I use email. Hell, I spend a ton of time on the phone with clients - and yes, I mean talking on my iPhone

Email isn't going anywhere - at least not for business. For asking "Hey braa, were u @ that frat prty?", sure, maybe email isn't the conch shell of choice.

 

[Nick.SEOSpark]

But I'm sure he doesn't run a Local SEO Consultancy either? My point is that in the business world, email is essential. If have even 1 day of holiday, I'm guaranteed to have lots of pressing emails to attend to.

Also, he must use email as it's required for almost all registrations, including Facebook etc...- You can't activate any of those without an "activation link".

But on the serious point, as a personal usage, email is a bit "like writing a letter" and that is it's beauty. If you use email for personal now, it's like the modern equivalent of "writing a letter".

 

[Travis Van Slooten]

Thanks Phil. I'm glad to know I'm not as old as he made me feel...lol

Travis Van Slooten

I'm with ya, Travis. That's a bunch of phooey. I'm a young guy and I use email. Hell, I spend a ton of time on the phone with clients - and yes, I mean talking on my iPhone

Email isn't going anywhere - at least not for business. For asking "Hey braa, were u @ that frat prty?", sure, maybe email isn't the conch shell of choice.

 

[Linda Buquet]

Well Travis if that made you feel 'old school' then I feel REALLY old and totally smart phone retarded! You guys all probably are out and about a lot at meetings or whatever, so you likely do use your phone to some degree at least.

I am pretty much chained to my desk and seldom even leave the house - SOOOOO I never use my smart phone, hate it and can't even type on it. So I never text or anything at all. Until recently never texted at all and just learned how to text an image yesterday.

I just texted an image to my daughter yesterday and she texted back "Mom, I just fell off my chair. You learned how to text a pic? So proud of you!" LOL!

So ya, I have a hard time relating to the mobile world, because I just live on my a PC.

PLUS, you know me, I'm so verbose, I have to write a book to explain anything. Hate Twitter for limiting me to short blurbs too. But since I hate typing on phone I only do 3 word sentences. No way anyone, especially me, could communicate anything meaningful with clients via text. Email is a must!

 

[Travis Van Slooten]

I can totally relate! I'm tied to my computer as well....although I do have an iPhone that I use to text stuff all the time. I couldn't function if someone took my PC and email away!

I will say this, I do think there will be a dramatic change in how things are done (even in business) down the road. I look at my 8 year old daughter who is almost as proficient on my iPhone as I am. She can text, take pictures and text them, do Google searches on her tablet, etc. etc. When that generation is tomorrow's business leaders, who knows how business will be done. They keep saying desktops are dying dinosaurs so everything probably will be done via tablets and smartphones. I'll be retired by then so I'll be on the beach reading a book (and not an ebook either...lol).

Travis Van Slooten

Well Travis if that made you feel 'old school' then I feel REALLY old and totally smart phone retarded! You guys all probably are out and about a lot at meetings or whatever, so you likely do use your phone to some degree at least.

I am pretty much chained to my desk and seldom even leave the house - SOOOOO I never use my smart phone, hate it and can't even type on it. So I never text or anything at all. Until recently never texted at all and just learned how to text an image yesterday.

I just texted an image to my daughter yesterday and she texted back "Mom, I just fell off my chair. You learned how to text a pic? So proud of you!" LOL!

So ya, I have a hard time relating to the mobile world, because I just live on my a PC.

PLUS, you know me, I'm so verbose, I have to write a book to explain anything. Hate Twitter for limiting me to short blurbs too. But since I hate typing on phone I only do 3 word sentences. No way anyone, especially me, could communicate anything meaningful with clients via text. Email is a must!

 

[Nick Rink]

Funnily enough I can still remember writing actual letters ... you know, with ink ... on paper

Some of my clients connect through email, others prefer text or DM's on Twitter. I can't see email for business disappearing anytime soon even if there are now many more ways to communicate.

 

[Laustin1878]

It's interesting how the younger generation is communicating, and i'm not that far away from them in my mid 30's. I echo the others and I don't see email going away anytime soon. For business anyway. It's a paper trail for the corporate world. CC 15 people to CYOA kinda thing. It's a great communication tool and amazing how it has evolved. The evolution of technology on a whole is unreal.

Travis, my 2 1/2 year old is able to unlock my wife's iPhone and look through her picture gallery and play music. Thankfully she isn't sending text messages or making phone calls yet but an 8 year old being almost as proficient as an adult is pretty remarkable.

Long live the email! haha

 

[Jo Shaer]

My mobile is my office when I am out and I am lost without it but I only make quick and simple replies that way. My kids snigger at my one finger typing skills when I am taken away from a keyboard.

And you can bet your life that, if we do start doing too many business messages via text, our Data Protection laws will start making us put disclaimers on the bottom!