MediaVision Blog : Search Engine Marketing

Are you receiving email, after email, and more email? It can be an overwhelming task in the average employee’s working day. Haven’t you ever wished that you could just turn it off for the day? One of the problems with doing that is email is often your only avenue for communication with clients or even fellow colleagues. This is especially true for companies that have international branches that need to communicate with each other.

Well, that actually isn’t entirely correct. Humans were given the gift of speech and some clever guy called Alexander Graham Bell did invent the first telephone in 1876. By now, you would think we would have learnt how to use it constructively. This device acts as an alternative form of communicating with the world out there beyond your computer. However, for some strange reason, people seem to prefer sending a quick email to picking up the phone or getting up from their desk to talk to someone who is down the passage. Laziness is possibly the best explanation for this.

Why is it that we prefer email? Talking to someone, in person or over the phone, is usually a lot clearer as well as more productive and time-efficient. We all know the benefits of email though, namely that you have a record of your conversation, which can also act as a source of information that you can refer back to at times of confusion or forgetfulness.

In a recent article by Kevin Lawrence on SiteProNews.com, the writer discusses how busy email makes us all seem. He states that productivity levels drop significantly due to employees obsessively checking their inboxes, emailing when they should rather be discussing the topic, and copying in colleagues who aren’t necessarily involved. He also lists some very interesting statistics gathered from various studies. One study pinpoints the strange places that certain percentages of people check their mail, one of them being in the bathroom (I sure hope they were using cell phones and not performing a balancing act with their laptops). The writer also goes on to discuss some rather simple, yet effective strategies to implement when reorganising your email activities for a more efficient and productive environment.

By putting merely a few of these suggested strategies into action, you can add some valuable time to your day, which can then be used more profitably. While time is precious in the lives of today’s professionals, energy is also hard to come by. Using it wisely can make the difference between missing a deadline and simply making the effort to organise your email activities in a more efficient manner. The time gained can not only lead to increased productivity, but also to improved work performance, as you are able to focus on work and won’t be interrupted by a constant stream of emails to your in-box.