As many as 41 percent of respondents prefer voice calling, and email is in second place, with 30 percent. No other form of communication earned more than eight percent of the vote.

“I think people are often surprised that voice remains so dominant as the primary form of communication,” said Kush Parikh, president of Hiya. “But to us, it makes a lot of sense because voice is the largest network in the world with more than five billion mobile users globally, so more people are able to communicate via voice than other channels. Voice is real-time, so people can get their questions answered and connect immediately instead of having to wait for people to respond to texts and emails, and voice is convenient; it’s not as big of a commitment as video calls and is often the fastest, easiest way for people to connect.”

As for their reasons, respondents point out that they resolve customers’ issues faster (41 percent), schedule meetings more efficiently (35 percent), and close sales better (29 percent) through phone calls.

The industries which prefer voice-to-voice communication are insurance (41 percent), retail services (35 percent), healthcare (33 percent), and financial services (31 percent).

Although video calls flourished during the coronavirus pandemic, they are avoided whenever possible because no one wants to worry about how they present themselves to the other party. A conversation where you rely on voice only and nothing else is seen leaves more space and is less tiring, that is, less worrisome. In this scenario, you can resolve whatever necessary faster and easier.