November 5, 2010

I'm concerned ... because I'm seeing it. I'm concerned that the access and convenience of e-mail and AEs with Blackberrys have replaced face-to-face calls. I observed it first-hand.

A rep genuinely thought what he called "a thorough e-mail" was as valuable as a real call. And, he explained, "I can knock out 30-40 of these a day."

That scares the hell out of me. And I hope I don't have to explain to you why.

Simple solution: Ask your reps when was the last time they sat down face-to-face with each of their top-20 clients. I certainly hope more than half of them were in the last 14-21 days.