Turn reader calls into networking opportunities

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, June, 1998 by Barbara Love

Do you often find yourself overwhelmed by the day-to-day demands of your job? You can't seem to find the time to get through everything on your desk, yet you're expected to respond to reader and advertiser requests in a timely, friendly and informative manner. Instead of looking at reader or advertiser inquiries as an added burden, enlist the caller to help you with your tasks, says Rick Bush, editor in chief of Transmission and Distribution World.

Bush looks at each telephone exchange as an opportunity for mutual assistance. When someone calls looking for technical information, a copy of an article from a past issue or a vendor contact, Bush takes the time to help. But he also finds out more about the caller's company and the initiative that the caller is involved in. "I try to keep a dialog going until the caller is comfortable with me and our publication," says Bush. "The caller is often willing to share insights, materials or contacts for future articles." When the shoe is on the other foot and Bush is looking for information or resources for an article, he calls these people back and shares his insights with his sources. "Why not give this networking strategy a try?" Bush asks. "You might discover that your workload goes down, not up!"