Because Communication Technology Has Given Us So Many Options, How We Deliver Our Messages Is Another Strategic Choice.
By Thomas J. Roach
Demosthenes, considered the greatest orator in ancient Greece, said the most important choices we make when communicating are “delivery, delivery and delivery.” As it turns out, his oft-quoted hyperbole is more prophetic than profound.
For Demosthenes delivery meant standing before a listener or an audience, projecting one’s voice and clearly articulating words. He honed his speaking skills by going to the seashore, putting pebbles in his mouth and amplifying his voice over the roar of the waves.
Delivery wasn’t a strategic choice; it was a skill. Strategic communication, on the other hand, involved developing logical arguments, setting them in the most effective order and selecting words to convey the right tone. Now, because communication technology has given us so many options, how we deliver our messages is another strategic choice.
Talking Evolution
The ways in which we talk to one another have evolved as much as what we talk about. Housing workers in office buildings is becoming less necessary, but there was a time when the office itself was a game-changing communication innovation.
People who interacted professionally were put together in one building where they could hold meetings and move from desk to desk to make plans, resolve problems and identify as members of a team.
Business outside the office was conducted by traveling across country by rail or on horseback. Then letters with postage stamps and mass-produced newspapers provided delivery services from city to city and to mass audiences.
Many of the more recent communication innovations were developed to enhance and replicate the social construct of the office. Some of us might remember memos – pieces of paper that were picked up from your outbox and delivered to someone’s inbox the same day.
Interoffice phone systems using only three or four digits made it possible to speak to coworkers instantly. In the 21st century business environment email provided the detail and permeance of the memo and the immediacy of the phone call, and programs like Zoom and Skype made meetings possible for workers who never have met and will never meet in person.
Newer Technology
It isn’t always better. The old and new communication options are all with us, and it is a mistake to think that the newer methods replace the older ones. Sometimes we still need to travel to other locations or walk down the hall to speak to colleagues in person. We still mail documents that need to be signed and sent back, and we all make phone calls when we need an immediate response.
It is a strategic mistake to think that communication options are equal and interchangeable. Each delivery method has its strengths and weaknesses.
Email is good for making an announcement to many coworkers at once, or for asking and answering a single question, but it is inappropriate for messages that require compassion and too slow for a back-and-forth conversation.
Layoffs and changes in job responsibilities should be communicated in person from manager to subordinate, and a series of questions and answers that would take days over email can be exchanged in minutes on the phone.
Also, with so many message delivery systems available, message recipients often consider the channel we choose as a revealing element of our communication. Sometimes sending an email instead of making a phone call or making a phone call instead of making a personal visit can damage a relationship and obscure the message.
Trying to conduct all business through one communication channel is foolish. Delivery channels are strategic choices. Mark Twain once advised writers to “use the right word, not its second cousin.” We should be just as careful when choosing the delivery channel, because sometimes what we say is less significant than how we say it.
Thomas J. Roach Ph.D., has 30 years experience in communication as a journalist, media coordinator, communication director and consultant. He has taught at Purdue University Northwest since 1987, and is the author of “An Interviewing Rhetoric.” He can be reached at [email protected].