By Emily Senger
Card from Oblation Papers & Press
Dan Clark is a networker, but he isn’t a note writer.
The 26-year-old says networking plays an important role in his job as a commercial analyst at a Calgary utilities company. But his style of networking seldom, if ever, involves anything written by hand.
“I can’t say I’ve ever used a handwritten note,” Clark says. “Honestly, I think I would just feel a little uncomfortable providing a client or a co-worker, especially a male co-worker, a handwritten note.”
Though Clark frequently shows gratitude by taking a colleague out for lunch, for a coffee or for a beer after work, handwritten notes just aren’t part of the business environment he works in, and Clark isn’t alone. In a digital world, the demise of the handwritten thank you note is widespread, especially among men, according to author and networking expert Thom Singer.
Singer says non-note writers are missing out on an opportunity to set themselves apart from the business crowd.
“In business, when you first meet somebody, or you want to thank a potential client for their time, or you want to thank somebody that has sent you a referral or a piece of business, you also want to know that you stand out,” Singer says. “I get 250 emails a day. I don’t get very many handwritten notes. When you do get a handwritten note, you know that the person took the extra time to acknowledge you.”
Every Friday afternoon, Singer sits at his desk, looks over his appointments and engagements from the previous week, and writes out 10 thank-you notes. By the end of the year, he has sent 520 handwritten notes. The odds he’ll get a thank you back aren’t all that good.
“I put a box under my desk to see how many I get, and last year I got about 38,” Singer says.
Singer says men are more likely than women to make excuses for not writing thank yous. Poor handwriting, reliance on email and a lack of time are frequently cited, he says.
While Clark and many others like him avoid the handwritten note, Clark’s girlfriend Megan Marshall, 26, is in the pro thank-you note camp. As a community investment professional, she finds handwritten notes are a good way to build relationships, a very important part of her job.
“Often, the business world can be very impersonal, so using handwritten notes gives the opportunity to connect in a more personal way,” Marshall says. “They’re often not expected.”
Marshall says she’s aware of the thank-you note gender divide. She thinks some of her male colleagues might feel uncomfortable sending thank-you notes. And she knows it’s not part of her boyfriend’s networking style.
“He’s pretty good at networking, but he does it in his own way,” Marshall says. “I haven’t tried to convince him. I don’t think he’s missing out on a huge opportunity, but it might add value if he used it to accompany what he already does.”
Clark’s lack of note writing doesn’t seem to be holding him back, though. About a year ago, he was looking for a career change, so he ramped up his networking efforts. A networking lunch with a manager at another company turned into a tip about a job posting. Clark applied. The manager followed with a phone call. Clark got an interview. Then he got the job. How did he follow up?
“I followed up with a thank-you email,” Clark says, laughing. “But once I landed the job here, I did take the guy out for lunch.”
Category: Work
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I think that hand-writing notes does prove that you took more effort and investment, but then again, it is much easier for me to type out a letter, print it, and then drop it off in person. Same effect, its still appreciated and makes impact.