13 replies
Hey Warriors,

I hope this message sees you well and full of happiness and prosperity.

A few emails came to my attention as well as a close colleague asking me for advice on a customer service dispute/situation.

And it got me thinking...

"Just Give Him A Break."

Here's the story.

As we all know in this business, emails can slip through and it can be simply that the "email gremlins" eat the email before it hits the inbox.

You've seen it...

I've seen it...

That's life...

It is "electronic" email (not real mail...of which I'm told 10% of snail mail never makes it anyway...but I digress).

But I have received a few emails recently from people absolutely WRITING IN ALL CAPS AS IF THAT"S GOING TO INCREASE THE CHANCES I READ THEIR EMAIL...

I always read customer emails when I get them :rolleyes:

But in all seriousness, I've noticed a lot of really inconsiderate behavior and I'm calling out to all those...both business people and newbies alike to just chill out.

This business isn't hard and none of us are too busy to take 30 seconds and reply to an email that someone sends us (or reply to a support ticket, blog comment, etc).

While I might sound naive and I DEFINITELY don't want anyone's sympathy...I just want to point out that people are people...

"gurus" (I swear I hate that word) are people and put their pants on one leg at a time...

Just like you...

Just like me...

I hate that I have to say this...but people don't live on their computers and "gurus" make mistakes too and stuff slips.

Just "give him a break" (or her).

Life is just too short to be worrying about emails.

Please take this to heart and add a healthy dose of "give him the benefit of the doubt" instead of seeking to crucify someone as a scammer...it could honestly be just a mistake (and 99% most likely is).

Thanks and have a wonderful evening!

Cheers,

Brad
#give him a break
  • Profile picture of the author misterkailo
    Yea, I miss a few emails here and there, and people would write in all caps.
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  • Profile picture of the author Charlotte Jay
    I couldn't agree more Brad. America has become a nation of instant gratification in the digital age. We forget that we're human beings sometimes and things do indeed take time. So I'm right there with you saying "give them a break."
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    • Profile picture of the author Brad Spencer
      Originally Posted by Charlotte Jay View Post

      I couldn't agree more Brad. America has become a nation of instant gratification in the digital age. We forget that we're human beings sometimes and things do indeed take time. So I'm right there with you saying "give them a break."
      Yea that's basically my point.

      It seems really childish and odd that people rant about how "evil gurus are" and yet they can't write a coherent email asking for something.

      I hate to say it...and I'll probably be villified a bit for this...but sometimes people bring their own misery and bad experience with a product on themselves because they come into a 10 buck product expecting it to solve everything.

      Products are aids to an end goal...never a solution.

      That is wise advice that was given to me way back in the day and I really do believe it.

      Anyhow, thanks for posting.

      Cheers,

      Brad
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  • Profile picture of the author Jake Gray
    Brad,

    I agree 110%.

    Cut em' some slack.

    If someone is a scammer, it's quite obvious.

    In outlook, emails still get misplaced, for me atleast... :rolleyes:
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    • Profile picture of the author Brad Spencer
      Originally Posted by Jake Gray View Post

      Brad,

      I agree 110%.

      Cut em' some slack.

      If someone is a scammer, it's quite obvious.

      In outlook, emails still get misplaced, for me atleast... :rolleyes:
      It's said that we even need to be discussing this.

      And I hate to say it...but like why is it that people feel like they can stop your day because their download link is misplaced or they didn't check their email?

      I mean I dont' want to sound mean...and I take this stuff probably way too seriously...but like for real...why is it people feel like they are "owed" so much from things?

      Really...just boggles the mind. I own 3 businesses and my customers rarely call to complain. In fact, most of the time when they call they call us to tell us how much they loved their food (I own a deli in Orlando, FL)

      Anyhow, thanks for replying.

      Cheers,

      Brad
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  • Profile picture of the author ladywriter
    But you didn't reply to my 3 emails! It's been fifteen minutes already!
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  • Profile picture of the author Bruce99
    I guess I am on the other end of the stick. I think that two way links still have some value (as you know who you are linking to) but I have not always had a lot of luck in getting answers, even when I sent an email with new subject links three or four times. You would think that a simple yes or no would not hurt, as you say no one knows if these emails go missing so I often keep trying.

    I do this because it will value both of us, and its a request not spam. I dont automate the process at all, so this rudeness is just costing me time. AND in particular when I have sent emails to sites that say to put their link up then inform them, and they ignore me and I have to eventually take their link down, that is frustrating as ...

    So as you can see, I know people are busy, but I agree, replying is just common courtesy.
    Signature

    just a dog guy.

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  • Profile picture of the author J Bold
    Brad are you in the Guru club? I had no idea!



    Ha ha, just joking around a bit. Thanks, man.
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    • Profile picture of the author Brad Spencer
      Originally Posted by redicelander View Post

      Brad are you in the Guru club? I had no idea!



      Ha ha, just joking around a bit. Thanks, man.
      Haha on my blog I say I'm not a guru...specifically in my header.

      I can't stand that word b/c it puts up a barrier between people and the teacher.

      Cheers,

      Brad
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      • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
        Originally Posted by Bruce99 View Post

        I guess I am on the other end of the stick. I think that two way links still have some value (as you know who you are linking to) but I have not always had a lot of luck in getting answers, even when I sent an email with new subject links three or four times. You would think that a simple yes or no would not hurt, as you say no one knows if these emails go missing so I often keep trying.
        Bruce, you may be doing things right when requesting a link exchange, but there are a lot more that don't. If all your subject line says is "Links", I'd delete it without looking because I've had thousands in the past. For a long time, I could tell which spider program they used to find my site by the unchanged boilerplate email.

        Originally Posted by Bruce99 View Post

        I do this because it will value both of us, and its a request not spam. I dont automate the process at all, so this rudeness is just costing me time. AND in particular when I have sent emails to sites that say to put their link up then inform them, and they ignore me and I have to eventually take their link down, that is frustrating as ...
        Often it isn't rudeness. Often it's sites that have been abandoned but still exist. Frustrating? Yes. Deliberate rudeness? No.

        Originally Posted by Bruce99 View Post

        So as you can see, I know people are busy, but I agree, replying is just common courtesy.
        It can also be a good way to get on a spam list that gets sold around the web. Bruce, you are (understandably) looking at this in the context of one individual doing things the right way. Flip the scope around and look through the site owner's side of things.

        You have a busy, popular site. You get dozens, maybe hundreds or thousands of link requests - some legitimate, most not. Do you spend hours (or hire someone to spend hours) replying to every single one, just to be polite?

        Or do you go by the "if it walks like a duck and sounds like a duck, odds are it's a duck" theory and blow them off?
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  • Profile picture of the author Quasha
    The big and most important talk would be .....Man...Just give him a break then......:p
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