If you’ve ever played the iconic Australian schoolyard game of handball, you’ll remember that the aim of the game is to intercept the ball on your quadrant/half, then to get it back out as soon as possible.

Here’s a demonstrative video from a former Australian Prime Minister.

When I imagine the customer journey my clients would undertake with me, it’s very email-centric, and I need emails replied to. so here’s the tip, it’s so easy.

I envisage the customer journey as a game of handball. I get the ball (the client, the booking, the email, the question) and I hit it right back to them. I want all the balls out of my court and back in my court quickly by doing this one thing:

End the email on a question.

Don’t end on a thank you, or your name, or how you’ve been featured on a magazine website.

End on a question. Let the final beat of your song require a response. If the last thing your client reads is a question it opens a loop in their mind, leaves that mental loop open, and they’ll want to, dare I say need to, close it by hitting reply and answering.

Do you think that would increase the number of emails you get a reply to?