Sending a text message to a customer or colleague via WhatsApp or email is easy. It is an easy way to communicate, but not always the best. Pick up the phone more often to call. Why? We will tell you in this article.

More and more people are suffering from interest.

We all call less and less. We do it because we are busy and typing a message is often faster, or because we find it exciting or even scary. More and more people are suffering from interest. Research shows that an increasing part of the Dutch population no longer picks up the (mobile) phone—not to call themselves, but also not to answer when someone calls. This item from WNL discusses the subject.

What is of interest?

Calling can make us nervous. Some people feel insecure about how a conversation will go or are afraid that it will be awkward. For example, because you cannot see each other during the call. The fear of calling yourself or of answering the phone when you are called is called anxiety. About 15% of the Dutch population aged 31 and over suffers from it to a greater or lesser extent. And among young people, this percentage even rises to almost 40%, according to research by Motivaction. A growing problem.

Calling creates more connections.

However, it is smart to pick up the phone, according to research by 2 American psychologists. Hearing each other’s voices makes you feel more connected to your conversation partner. And because you hear each other’s intonation and hear when someone pauses in a sentence, you follow each other’s train of thought better. This makes it easier to connect with each other. That’s nice because it not only makes you happier but also more productive. You get an answer immediately and consultations are also faster. It doesn’t matter whether you call via your (mobile) phone, or video call via Microsoft Teams, for example, the important thing is that you hear each other. By the way, you don’t have to stop writing completely. A text message is still useful for making an appointment, confirming what you have discussed, or sending an attachment.

Why business calling is also smart.

So, calling. Business too. Because the less you pick up the phone, the more opportunities you miss. Janneke van Meenen is a calling activist. She had her own B2B call center for 20 years and now advocates for business calling with her company Van Meenen Callstories. She provides advice, provides training and workshops, is a coach,and wrote the book De Countdown about good business calling. Janneke: ‘What I have seen happening in recent years is that fewer and fewer companies are calling their leads and quotes. A shame. This is mainly due to the influx of younger generations into the labor market. They are less willing to call, but they also expect people to contact a company themselves if they are interested in something. While that is not always the case. If you sit back and the competitor happens to have called, you have lost the lead or customer. But companies that are difficult to reach by phone also miss opportunities. There are 2.5 million people in the Netherlands who are functionally illiterate. They have difficulty filling out an online form or sending an email, for example. They prefer to call.’

Why people are more likely to text.

In the American study, the psychologists asked several test subjects what they would expect from calling and emailing an old friend. Someone they had not seen or spoken to in a long time. All test subjects are expected to feel more connected in a telephone conversation. But they were also afraid that they would feel uncomfortable during the conversation. That is why they would rather send an email. Janneke recognizes this. Janneke: ‘Many people are very afraid of discomfort. They find it difficult that they have to respond to someone immediately. And that they cannot think about what they want to say. They feel as if they are being ambushed. But people are also afraid of disturbing someone. Because that can also happen when you call someone. Another reason not to pick up the phone.’ Yet that fear is often really unnecessary. The next step in the experiment was that people actually started calling or emailing an old friend. What turned out? Calling an old friend did not feel as uncomfortable as people thought beforehand.

This is how you get rid of your interest.

Being bothered by anxiety is very annoying. But fortunately, you can get rid of it. How? Mainly by just doing it. Janneke: ‘It may sound simple, but the best way to get rid of your anxiety is to just call. Usually, you will be rid of it after 3, 4 or 5 calls. Ask a colleague, friend,d or family member to sit next to you while you call if you find it really scary. That gives support. I advise companies to include calling in the onboarding. Or to organize training courses on calling. Because you can learn to call.’