Today I received the following automated email response from a vendor:
Hello and thank you for your message. Your message has reached my inbox; however, in order for me to stay focused and serve you better, I only check my e-mail once a day.
Due to the high volume of email messages at this time I need to let you know that an immediate response to your message may not be possible. A reply will be sent within a few days if necessary.
If your message is urgent, please call me at
The idea – answering emails only once a day – is great, but you don’t need to tell your customers that! He should have said something more like this:
“Thank you for your message. I just wanted to let you know that I have received your email. Your message is important to me, and I will take time to read it carefully and respond in detail within the next 24-48 hours.
If your message is urgent, please call me at…….. If you
Hi Crystal,
I do like your response better. I am still concerned with sales and service professionals only answering their email once per day. In sales, our primary responsibility is to serve the customer. I don’t see how waiting all day, or sometimes to the next day is serving anyone but ourselves. Maybe we can agree to twice a day during working days minimum and never on the weekend!
I get a kick out of people that complain they get a million and phone calls and emails every day and just possible can’t get to all of them.
Check out http://www.yada3times.blogspot.com The writer refers to Colleen Francis techniques for voice mail. Check out the last line. That sums it all up!
Great post Colleen. I’ve gotten those messages too and it immediately told me this is was not a person or company I want to work with. The world is far too impersonal. If you can’t get the appropriate attention and interest there are plenty of other fish in the sea.
We unconsciously send those messages in every point of contact we make from the very first contact throughout our relationship. Thank you for reminding all of us about the importance of making it personal. We all want to be respected as a person and treated with kindness and dignity. It really isn’t too much to ask it’s really a matter of focus.
If the focus is on you then you might think sending out a rude email like that is perfectly acceptable. If your focus is on the client you’ll immediately think about how you’d feel if you got a message like that.
[…] Colleen Francis shares a rude email she got from a business with her readers where the sender basically lets her know they don’t have time to respond to her email because they’re too important. YIPES! […]