In today’s tech-driven world, speed is everything. Business leaders are making an effort to speed up the processes of their companies by encouraging people to conduct face-to-face meetings because they can demonstrate their ideas more elaborately. Never underestimate the power of human interaction and face-to-face communication because you can accomplish much more when talking to people in person.
It is true that you can communicate with your colleagues much more conveniently via digital platforms by using your Spectrum internet, but getting the tasks done does not motivate the employees. Real leadership is about encouraging and motivating the employees to bring innovation to the company so that when the company expands, their accomplishments are highlighted as well.
If you want to manage your business successfully, you have to build strong relationships with your employees as well as your clients, which is only possible, if you are able to meet them in person. Networking is an important aspect of the business world as it helps expand your knowledge and gives you an opportunity of attracting more customers to your brand.
As technology has advanced to another level, people seem to have lost their interest in face-to-face meetings because they think that they are more time consuming and irrelevant. This misconception amongst the people has raised a question regarding the importance of face-to-face meetings. So, are face-to-face meetings really that important? Let’s find out below:
Communication Is Not Just About Words
Communication is a human connection, which is the key to personal and professional growth. According to research conducted by Professor Mehrabian, the communication comprises of three core elements which include body language (55%), the tone of voice (38%) and actual words (7%). These statistics illustrate the fact that physical meetings where all the participants are present are indeed necessary.
Recipients might lose attention when you are communicating with them over digital media like Skype, WhatsApp or Facebook. Moreover, they might not be able to understand some points which might cost you additional time and effort. On the other hand, with face-to-face meetings, you can see the body language of the person you are talking to and by that, you can easily judge if he/she has understood what you are trying to say or not.
Try to maintain a polite tone of voice so that people do not hesitate in asking questions. In addition to this, the way you speak to your colleagues and clients says a lot about your personality. With your speaking style, you can either attract people towards you or repel them from you.
Connecting and Building Strong Relationships
Although you can connect with your potential clients and colleagues through various communication channels like Skype, social media, WhatsApp etc., you will not be able to establish a strong bond with them. Long-term relationships are not built over digital platforms. They require time and effort.
When you meet people in person, you have the opportunity to influence them emotionally as well as strategically. You can turn them into your loyal customers by encouraging them to use your products and services. Furthermore, with face-to-face meetings, you develop a sense of trust and belonging with your subordinates, which strengthens your bond with them.
In physical meetings, you are able to brainstorm several ideas and you can come up with innovative strategies for your company so that it can grow and flourish in the market. Face-to-face meetings enable you to set practical goals for your business and you can easily make people understand your point of view.
Efficiency and Effectiveness
When you conduct face-to-face meetings, there is no room for misunderstandings. You can easily elaborate your presentation in order to make people understand. Moreover, you can conveniently carry out a question-answer session so that there is no confusion in the assigned tasks.
Physical meetings can take place every week with prior notice so that the participants are well prepared for the meeting in advance. People are less likely to multi-task in meetings because they have to remain attentive throughout the session. The motivation level of the employees tends to increase when they are able to talk to their supervisors directly. This results in more productivity and better time and resource utilization.
How to Get the Most Out of Physical Meetings?
Although physical meetings have great potential for value, you still have to make sure that by the end of the session, people do not feel like they wasted their precious time by attending the meeting. Therefore, to get the most out of your face-to-face meetings, practice the below-mentioned points:
- Beforehand Preparation
A day or two before the meeting, circulate the documents that contain facts and figures regarding the performance of the company. This will help you save time in the meeting and you can directly start with the discussion.
- Appropriate Set-Up
Select the set-up of the meetings according to the type of session you are going to hold. If you want to keep the meeting short and precise, remove the chairs because people are more attentive and action-oriented when they are standing.
On the other hand, if you want to conduct a detailed session, ensure that comfortable seats are available so that people can easily listen to your presentation without worrying about other aspects.
- Be Selective
Before calling your colleagues for a meeting, weigh the objectives of the meeting against the time that it will take to conduct that meeting. Make sure that the meeting is beneficial and that productive time does not go to waste because time is money.
- Set Expectations
Know the things that you have to accomplish in the meeting and communicate the time of the meeting to your employees so that they are well informed about the meeting.
- Listen
Actively listen to what others have to say because they might have important feedback regarding the goals and objectives of the company. Moreover, by listening attentively, you will be able to ask intelligent questions regarding the presentation.
Conclusion
Follow the aforementioned tips and make notes in face-to-face meetings so that you remember the key points. Conduct physical meetings on a regular basis and you are on your way to build strong long-lasting relationships with your clients as well as colleagues.