I recently discovered a remarkable device on my desk. It's similar to a cell phone, only much larger and attached to the wall by a wire. (This may explain why, unique among my desktop objects, I have never misplaced it.) I've used it several times lately to communicate with people without the need for email. Someone even told me a joke while we were talking and we both had a good laugh.
People should reach for this handy item more often, if for no other reason than a sense of frustration while surveying the current landscape of electronic communication. It seems as if staying current with the myriad of electronic message sources could become a full time job. Perhaps, if a picture is worth a thousand words it may be that a conversation is worth about six emails.
I have been writing this blog for about three years. It's tied to my facebook page and I send out about 600 emails when I update it. It's RSS, facebook, and Twitter friendly and I enjoy the nexus it provides and the feedback I get. A year ago I felt up to date social media wise, but lately that universe is getting incomprehensible. Does anyone besides me feel that way?
In this renewed spirit of "person to person" communication I have gone around the next logical corner (as opposed to around the bend) and printed some Graphateria note cards. I tell people all the time that printed material works because it cuts through the electronic clutter and arrives "in person". If this advice is good enough for my customers why not for myself?
At any rate, our shop has some new services to offer, and some new accounts. I think they deserve a thank you note...or at least a call. Email can be so, you know, virtual.
Hugh Butler
Your Friend in the Printing Business
