Contacts and channels
When the contact person changes
The silent cause of half the cases that stall.
It is the cause nobody suspects and it explains a huge share of dead cases: the person you write to left that company months ago. Their email may still be active, may bounce, or may be read by someone with no idea what it is about.
How to recognise it
| Sign | What it usually means |
|---|---|
| It suddenly bounces after months working | They left and the account was closed |
| It is delivered but never opened | Their mailbox is alive and nobody reads it |
| Someone else replies asking what it is about | Somebody inherited the mailbox without context |
| They reply from a different address | They have already changed and did not tell you |
Important
The second row is the worst because it produces no error. The system says delivered, you assume it arrived, and the case waits for someone who no longer exists at that company.
What to do when it happens
- 1
Fix it on the record, not just on that send
Fix it only there and the next case fails identically.
- 2
Ask who replaced them rather than sending blind
A one-minute call to their switchboard resolves months of silence.
- 3
Keep both contacts if they coexist
Many companies have one for paperwork and another for invoicing.
How to catch it earlier
Watch out
When someone tells you they are leaving and gives you their replacement's details, update it that same day. It is the only moment you hold the right detail without hunting, and it vanishes the moment that mailbox closes.
Worth knowing
If a contact has opened nothing in a year, it is not a contact: it is an address. Treat it as such before launching an important request at it.
›Can I have several contacts per company?
Yes, and you should: it halves this problem.
›Is history lost when the person changes?
No. History belongs to the company and the case.
›What if nobody at that company replies?
The main phone number. It is slow, and still faster than three months of silence.
A real case
The situation
A company has had no reply from a supplier in four months and assumes they are uncooperative.
What you do
- Checks the log: delivered but never opened
- Phones the switchboard and gets the replacement
What you get
The supplier delivers in two days; the person they were writing to had left in the spring.
The situation
The contact changes and notices keep going to their address.
What you do
- Updates the contact on the files
What you get
The notice reaches somebody who exists.
The situation
The new contact does not know what had been delivered.
What you do
- Shows them the file's status
What you get
They catch up without phoning anyone.
The situation
A new file is opened for the new person.
What you do
- Continues the existing one, changing the contact
What you get
No history is lost.
The situation
Nobody knows who replaces the previous contact.
What you do
- Asks the company before chasing
What you get
The request reaches somebody who can act.
The situation
The old contact keeps receiving information.
What you do
- Revokes their access on updating
What you get
Information stops going to somebody it should not.
This article answers
- the contact person no longer works there
- change of contact at a supplier
- notices going to someone who left
- updating a company's contact