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February 7, 2020
What You Can Do About Gen Zs and Millennials Avoiding Phone Calls
The two latest generations entering the workforce are Millennials and Gen Zs, those that were comprehensively born between 1981 and 2012. Just as the Baby Boomers and Generation X shaped the workforce, a new group of employees brings on new challenges.
These two groups are notorious for avoiding phone calls and face to face conversation. Let’s take a look at the phone habits of these generations and what you, as a business owner, can do about it.
Growing Up Accessible
The internet boom happened right when this age group was learning how to communicate. This means that they not only grew up with instant messaging, emails, and text messaging as part of their childhood, but today, all these have become a critical part of their day.
Communicating via messaging (in whatever form that may be) has become second nature to this group. That’s because they’ve grown up with the idea that they always need to be accessible.
Today, they have countless apps and platforms requiring communication, and the messages can start to pile up, which means the pressure to be accessible can also build.
But the beauty in messaging that phone calls do not offer is that they do not require an instant response. Between texts, emails, and DMs, users can respond when they are reachable, not when it’s convenient for the person trying to contact them.
The Desire to Be Efficient
Fortunately for employers, this group of workers is productivity driven – more so than any other group that’s come before them. They’re incredible multitaskers and avoid disruptions at all costs.
They value it so much in fact, that 93% of Millennials claim that productivity is the key to happiness, according to a Microsoft study. This survey also found that this 92% of them maintain a to-do list. Put simply – they’re doing everything they can to be as productive and efficient as possible.
But with this efficient mindset comes the fact that they ignore phone calls. Why? Because taking a phone call is not always convenient.
Convenience is Key
Most Millennials and Gen Zs would agree that phone calls are disruptive and typically inefficient. Their thought process is – why spend three to four minutes on the phone when it takes less than thirty seconds to type out a text message? That way, not only are they taking up less of their own time, but they know they’re not inconveniencing the person they’re contacting.
Many of the older generations assume that all of this generation’s “screen time” has caused them to fear face-to-face communication or that they will feel social awkwardness.
However, one study found that 75% of these young professionals avoid phone calls because talking on the phone is time consuming and inconvenient – not because they fear conversation.
One of this generation’s biggest pet peeves is having a phone call for what could have been summed up in writing. Their preference is as follows:
- Avoid phone calls or meetings if its purpose can be documented via email/message.
- A meeting is only necessary if multiple people need to weigh in and conclusions need to be determined accordingly. Trying to do this over email or messenger can get messy.
Again – efficiency is always at the forefront of their mind. Plus, with the amount of multitasking they are responsible for, having documented communication of decisions helps keep everything traceable, what’s known as a “paper trail”.
What’s a Business Owner To Do?
Business owners who depend on phone conversations may feel like they’ll never be able to target younger generations due to their notorious avoidance. However, thanks to technology like Ninja Number, they can leverage the business texting feature to communicate with them.
Ninja Number keeps all of your personal and professional text conversations separate. Plus, it provides analytics and insights on your communication behavior – something that a smart phone simply can’t do on its own.
Also, you can transfer texts within the app right to your team members in the midst of a conversation without interruption or starting a new thread. Talk about seamless and convenient.
But the convenience doesn’t stop there. Let’s say a lead calls and leaves you a voicemail. Ninja Number is the only app that lets you reply back via text message to a transcribed voicemail. Not only can you instantly see what was said without picking up the phone, but you can shoot a quick response back at your convenience – a win-win for both parties.
Don’t let Millennials and Gen Zs intimidate or frustrate you from a communication perspective. There is a way to reach them – it just might not be over the phone. Contact Ninja Number today to learn more about business texting!
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