Yesterday I had a question about an event I’m scheduled to attend, so I emailed the info@ address on the Web site to ask my question.

Much to my surprise, the response was almost immediate.

So I excitedly clicked open the email only to read:

<The answer to your question> is on our Web site,

Sincerely,

info@conferencewhosenameiwonttellyou.com

What?  Is that it?  Their Web site is huge and hard to navigate.  Why not give me the direct link?

So I wrote back, “Where can I find it on the Web site?  Can  you send me a direct link?”

Quick reply (kudos!) and this time with the direct link, followed my a P.S. “Access to this area of our web site requires a password.”

Mercifully, the info@ responder did include the password I needed to find out the info.

Oh, and did I tell you, I was trying to make a purchase? I wanted to pay to add something to my registration.

I eventually got what I needed but it required twice as many emails and too much of a headache.

In the time it took to reply to my original email, the direct link to could have been included too.  And a thank you might have been nice 🙂

So, here’s the lesson: when people email you, are you giving them all the information or are you leaving their question partially answered?

As I was preparing this post, I received an email from someone in our church wanting to automate their giving.  I could have replied back and said, “It’s under Online Giving” from our home page.

Instead, I replied back, gave them the direct link to the page, some quick instructions on how to complete the form and thanked them for honoring God with their finances.

Lesson learned.

Nelson

© Nelson Searcy. All Rights Reserved.

About Nelson Searcy

Nelson Searcy is an experienced church growth strategist, pastor, church planter and coach, consulting with churches around the world. As founder of Church Leader Insights and the Renegade Pastors Network, he has personally trained more than 3,500 church leaders in over 45 denominations through live events, seminars and monthly coaching. Nelson is also the Founding and Lead Pastor of The Journey Church, with locations across New York City and in Boca Raton, FL. Nelson and his church routinely appear on lists such as “The 50 Most Influential Churches” and “The 25 Most Innovative Leaders.” He is the author of over 100 church growth resources and 18+ books, including The Renegade Pastor: Abandoning Average in Your Life, Ministry and The Difference Maker: Using Your Everyday Life for Eternal Impact, and At the Cross with the People Who Were There. He and his wife, Kelley, have one son, Alexander.