How to Get Better Results with Voicemail and Email

By Chakisse Newton, President, Cardinal Consulting, LLC

 
When you think of inspiring action through powerful communications, do you think of email and voicemail?

You can use those tools to influence and clearly communicate with others if you use these simple techniques:

1. Identify Your Intent: Before you call or type, identify the purpose of your communication. Do you want to inform, request information, inspire action or achieve a different objective?

2. Express Your Intention Immediately: Get to the point. Then, only provide the necessary background information for your recipient to take action.

1. For Email, your subject line and the first line of your email body should address your intent. "Please Review," "Feedback Requested," making a direct request or using headings that request specific action are most helpful to your reader.

2. For Voicemail, after you identify yourself (and, if necessary, who referred you), begin your voicemail with "I'm calling because" or "I'm calling to" so the listener understands your purpose in the first few seconds.

3. Use "You-Focused" Language: Use the word "you" more than "I." Mention how your request or information is beneficial and you'll increase your influence. Even routine communications like changes to an expense report form have clear benefits like getting faster reimbursement for corporate travel.

4. Name Next Steps: Explicitly state what, if anything, needs to be done. Make sure next steps stand out and provide any necessary information to enable quick action. If you have a long voicemail or email, reiterate those steps at the end.

5. Streamline Your Structure: Like good speeches, voicemail and email can also have a clear opening, body and conclusion. If you review what you need to say instead of "winging it," you'll be more concise and effective.

6. Format for Functionality: With email, use bullet points, bold formatting and headlines to emphasize key information and make it easy for the reader to follow your points. In voicemail, if you have multiple points, tell the listener how many points you have then enumerate them so the listener can follow.

Daily voicemail and email are so commonplace that it's easy to take them for granted. But if you'll use these six techniques, you will stand out from the crowd, increase your effectiveness and make it easy for people to interact with you. Everyone will appreciate the results.
 

 © 2009 Chakisse Newton. All Rights Reserved.