Has The World Lost Its Touch? | Travel Research Online

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Has The World Lost Its Touch?

Technology makes it easy to speed through (and around) sincerity. Be warned. I can tell when I am number 345 on your database even though you launch into your message with, “Hi Mike!”

Please don’t get me wrong. I have all the toys and I love playing with them. I am the first one to check my emails while exiting an airplane and sending the latest gizmo whammy by FTP up to my website. But, after reading this article again, I also think that I am going to sit right down and write somebody a letter, with a pen…on paper, and stick it in an envelope…and write from my heart…and lick the stamp myself.

I bet that it will take more time than I am used to taking, but I am also betting that I will feel good sticking it in a mailbox knowing that some live human being with a mail sack slung over their shoulder, will be delivering my message in person.

Wanna hear more?

As I question the balance between high-tech and high-touch, I am probably going to show my age. To end the guessing game right out of the blocks, I will give you a hint. On the year I was born, a gallon of gas cost .17 cents and the Dow Jones Average was a whopping 179. Average income was $2,959 and the price of a new car was $1,420. Perhaps a more poignant reference is the fact that I remember the days that in order to change a television station (there were six of them in the NYC area) you had to actually get off the couch and manually turn the dial. (Many of you have already categorized today’s message as fiction.)

But before you place me on the wrong side of the argument, I am one of the savvier techno geeks in the business. Sure, there are many who know more, but there are lots more out there who know and understand less.

Here is a question: When was the last time you had trouble reading a handwritten letter? I am betting that you cannot remember. Not that this adds or subtracts to the message in this article. I was just wondering if you even remember what the word penmanship means?

For years I have preached the importance of keeping things real. Living a reality-based life makes the most sense to me. And today reality is built on bits-and-bites and movement-and-change and ups-and-downs, in and outs, along with a few yins-and-yangs.

I am not suggesting that we live in yesterday’s world. Life today is fast and totally dependent upon technology. The scary part is that those in the know have bluntly stated that we have not seen anything yet. Now this, my friends, is a spooky thought.

How did we survive without email? Or the cell phone? Or autoresponders? Call forwarding? Voice mail? Beepers? The Internet? iPods? Cable TV? XM Radio? Smart Phones? Wireless Hot Spots? Game Boys? Or on-line dating services? All fun stuff. Did I forget to mention GPS? How did you find your way to your cousin’s house without it?

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Slowly but surely we have fallen into the technology trap. We may be getting our communications out faster but this is often at the expense of failing to communicate. Have we sacrificed meaning for speed? Thanks to the wonders of technology we may be multi-tasking ourselves right out of business. And this is not what we should be striving for.

So, in the interest of delivering a timely message, I want to caution you and ask you to slow down long enough to think about what you are accomplishing as far as technology is concerned. How is your comfort with bits-and-bites affecting your relationships with your customers and prospects? Are they embracing and cherishing the relationship? Or, are you simply screaming at your customer, “Hey, I’m talking to you. I am techno-savvy and way ahead of the curve!”

I am reminded of a very simple analogy. Most people give credit to dogs believing that a dog can actually tell when a human is frightened of it. I also believe this true. But what most people fail to realize is that people have developed over time the same built in capability when it comes to reading other people. I know when I am important to you and when I have your attention. I can tell when your words ring true and your efforts are sincere. I can tell when you and I are on the same page. I can tell.

So if people can tell, doesn’t it make sense to do what has to be done to show how much you really care? Think about it.


Mike Marchev

Mike Marchev freely shares his experiences, strategies and observations with travel professionals in an effort to keep them on top of their game. For a complimentary copy of his 12-Word Marketing Plan send him an email at mike@mikemarchev.com.

Mike Marchev’s next business building webinar is on Friday, October 26, 2018. It will focus on the 9 Selling Strategies you can implement at once at no cost with very little effort. Click Here for details.

Mike’s daily column is made possible by AmaWaterways.

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