We can all agree that “things aren’t what they use to be,” but that doesn’t have to have a negative connotation to it. There are many “old school” businesspersons who would rather drive or fly across the county to meet with a client, because that’s just “how you are supposed to do it.” The thing is, they aren’t crazy, many people still believe that there in a strong benefit to face to face communication, one that emails and telephones has diminished. This however, is where he cloud has made its mark. Technology has come to a point where face to face can still happen, even when you are 3000 miles away. Why should you even care? Check out these figures.
In a study by Cisco, they found that business leaders are virtually unanimous in agreeing that in person (or face to face) communication is more effective and leads to success.
- 75% of Business Leaders Believe In-Person Collaboration is Critical
- 54% Agree that Gauging Engagement and Focus is Critical to Communications
- 82% felt they were Better Understood After In-Person Encounters
What makes people more likely to meet in person? I know some days I can’t be bothered to move from my desk, but certain things arise that feel like they just need to be handled face to face, not over the phone or in an email. The top three motivations for in-person interactions are:
- Resolving Major Problems More Efficiently
- Generating Long Term Relations
- Resolving a Problem Quickly or Creating an Opportunity Quickly
“Four out of Six of the most important attributes of building a relationship cannot be achieved without the power of in-person, which requires a rich communication environment.” Let’s look at those six keys to successful communication.
- Engagement and Focus on Shared Content
- Tone of Voice
- Facial Expressions
- Words Someone is Using
- Subconscious Body Language
- Conscious Movements or Gestures
73% of business leaders believe that in person communication is the most impactful, yet over 60% of communication is done in a non-real-time fashion. This is where the Cloud, especially video conferencing and web-meeting services could turn the tables. 53% of decision makers who use telepresence to replicate in-person experiences strongly agree that video enables richer and more productive relationships with colleagues, clients, and suppliers. 45% strongly agree it saves time, and 35% strongly agree is saves money. Telepresence also opens the doors in other ways, by allowing easier global meet-ups, faster R&D do to anytime face to face brainstorming, and no geography restriction when hiring new talent.
Cloud video services fill the gap left by traditional web meeting software, and offer additional benefits.
- Instant In-person Collaboration
- Easy to Deploy and Manage
- Scalable to Meet your needs as your Business Grows
- Fast Return on Investment