Etiquette: When to Use Phone vs. Email?

QUOTE (stone @ Nov 13 2006, 01:33 PM)

Most email is not really mission critical -- often someone will ask me -- or I will ask them -- if they received the email that was sent/received, and if it was not received then the troubleshooting process begins. Usually the email address is wrong, though sometimes it may end up in the spam filter I suppose, but in any case, the email it just resent. Which brings me to my next RANT! Maybe I am too old -- but I don't get it with some of the ways people use email. I think email is great for notices and information -- e.g. 50% off today at XYZ Store, or the weekly flyer that Social Wave puts out -- but I think email is cumbersome for topics that require back and forth communication. A cell phone conversation can cover in minutes what in email could easily take six (or more) emails to cover the same ground. AND -- what with the time lag -- this email exchange could span several days! I just don't get it... -- Dana

Actually, I can understand why people would do that. For a lot of people, email has taken over as the primary mode of communication and it might just be more comfortable to message that way. I'm usually this way because I find email less distracting than the telephone.

Email is something that I can do while I'm working on a website or programming if I hit a roadblock and want to switch away for a few minutes. Picking up the phone would just take me out of my frame of mind and I'll lose more time. Also, I get a lot of email. It's eaiser for me to answer or write 10 emails in a row rather than write 5 emails, make 2 calls, and write about three emails.

However, it bugs me when people use their email as an instant messenger. Given the volume of email I handle, it gums up my inbox and messes up my organization when I have to go back and read six or seven emails to put fragments of a conversation into one thread of thought.

Note: This topic was split off from the original topic of:
Recent Surge in Spam Traffic - Oct 2006

I was stuck at the airport once. My friend who was going to pick me up had emailed my mom telling her that she could not get me.

I waited and waited, then called my friend and she said, "didn't your mom get my email?"

I think I ended up taking a bus or BART home.

There is a time and place for email.

Ha ha! That's funny Julie. I think there's a time to use every mode of communication available to you... email, phone, smoke signals, carrier pigeons, etc. That might have been one of those times.

I've found that, since I've had less energy because of being sick the past couple of years, e-mail has become my preferred mode of communication with most people, even for back and forth stuff. Sure, I like a good chat on the phone with friends to touch base (Julie knows that first-hand), but e-mail is more convenient for most conversations, since it allows me to set my own schedule a bit more and put a little more thought into what I'm saying without draining so much energy. I can choose to answer right away, or wait a day, depending on the time-sensitivity of the matter at hand and how peppy I'm feeling.

We took a straw poll at one of the support groups I belong to and found that those of us with little energy preferred e-mail to phone. It's easier for us to manage our communication that way. It's something to keep in mind if you have a friend who's sick.

Also, I have to say that I MUCH prefer e-mail when there's an exchange of data going on. It gives me the opportunity to file stuff on my computer, instead of dealing with endless scraps of paper floating all over my desk, which are in danger of being misplaced or lost forever.

I know that in the workplace, email is essential especially if you need a "paper" trail. Sometimes you just need things in writing.