In the year of our Lord 2013, I have realised that it is is vital to follow some basic principles when running a business. During my time working alongside our Armed Forces that included a gentleman who went by the nom-de-plume of ‘Velvet’ (so smooth – you can work out the rest), I was once told by a general that a good ADC or staff officer should always wear out his or her shoes. Why? Because nobody has ever complained about too much communication, particularly when it is personally delivered. At Cheshire and Co where we have embraced the technology available – and no estate agent nor indeed any business can afford not to use computers, emails and the like – we constantly remind ourselves that personal communication with our clients can never be replaced by a simple text or email. The latter are a wonder of the modern era but they are to be used for confirmation not affirmation. We all know the feeling of irritation when asking someone, ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’ (with the emphasis being on ‘tell’), when they reply, ‘Didn’t you get my email/text?’ Electronic communication should be used fully, but as an addition and never as a replacement for somone making the effort to speak to another individual, person to person.
