"Got it. Thanks. Please review. Received. Awesome. Approved. On vacation." Email and text messaging are incredibly useful for certain types of communications.

But what does a client, partner or colleague really feel about an estimate, presentation or relationship? Text messages and their relatives, emoticons and emoji, only go so far. Article in New Republic

Voice-to-voice can get to the heart of a situation and the nuances revealed by the spoken word. Say you are negotiating an estimate by phone. There may be an immediate "okay" on the other end, or a sudden silence. With voice you have the opportunity to break the silence and find out where things truly stand. A person's tone, pace and volume of voice can fill in the blanks where text just stares back at you.

When in doubt, make the call. You'll be surprised how much more you can learn, and how much better you might serve your client.

A while back, one of the phone companies ran a campaign that said, "A call can keep you closer." Ironically, that message rings through loud and clear today.

Miller McMillan can be reached at 310 770 4636.

He also welcomes email, text messages, prepaid carrier pigeons, UPS, USPS, FedEx, and in-person meetings.