First, thank you all so much for the positive feedback on our most recent series of Points, Five Characteristics of a Rainmaker Today (and in the Future). We always appreciate your feedback!

In today’s Point, “Selling: Going Retro,” our aim, as always, is to give you practical info you can use right now. We’re also aiming to get your attention with what might be a surprise selling tactic.

Earlier this year, we talked about how difficult it is to actually get in front of potential clients. Alan Pizzitola, friend, client and president of the Birmingham-based Business Interiors, said to me recently that nowadays, we are dealing with the “invisible customer.” Too often, we don’t even see—let alone know—the customer we’re selling to (and relying upon).

The culprit, to narrow it down for the sake of simplicity, is technology. Nobody talks to each other these days. We isolate ourselves with some type of device (phone, computer, etc.) for hours each day. We communicate with short, impersonal notes—even when the person we need to talk to is right in the next office or cubicle. We think we’re saving time and money—but, really, at what cost? Because, believe me, there is a cost.

Everybody’s email inbox is full—so full, in fact, that perhaps another tactic is in order. This is especially important when you’re trying to sell something. So we are going to take the art of selling back in time. Back before email, instant messaging, tweeting, SEO processes and any of the other social media tools we’re incorporating into our business days.

Today’s retro selling tool? The U.S. Postal Service. Yep, the USPS.

Think about it. In a time when people get 40 to 100 emails each day, we’re suggesting you give them something they ain’t getting—a real letter. Getting a message in the mail has become something of a novelty today. So the next time you want to get noticed, send ‘em a letter. A well-crafted, personal letter could be your next great secret sales tool.

People are overloaded with communications tools. The easiest way to get lost in the shuffle? Send ‘em an email. That email will disappear faster than a leftover meal in the office break room. Next time you want to really get noticed—go retro. Send a letter, a postcard, a photo or a newspaper clipping (how’s that for really retro?) via snail mail. This special effort will get you noticed.

In order to reduce the number of emails we send out (and that you get in your inbox), effective July 1, we will email our Point of the Week (POTW) messages on the first and third Mondays of each month. So look for the POTW to arrive twice monthly. This might not exactly model the name, Point of the Week, but our goal remains the same: to help you Do What You Do Better.