Virtual Meetings vs. Face-to-Face

How can your brand leverage face-to-face meetings to get more out of a client, employee and prospect interactions? Strategic Event Design can help you make the transition plan to your next face to face company meeting.

It is true that the time, travel and the difficulty level of a face-to-face meeting is much higher than simply sitting down with a computer, or even a phone, and tuning in. But, if you have an important client to call on or a contract to negotiate and efficient communication is a top priority, a face-to-face meeting might be worth your while.

Experience:

With technology, many industry insiders thought that the face-to-face meeting would go the way of the dinosaurs, but a few years into the age of video conferencing and it is clear that the face-to-face meeting is here to stay. Understandably, when comparing a virtual meeting to a face-to-face encounter, the latter provides a much richer experience. When sharing time and space, there is opportunity for a hand-shake, a shared lunch and small talk and all of these seemingly small activities add up to building trust. If you are looking to establish and build-upon a relationship, a face-to-face meeting can’t be beat.

Physical interpersonal communication also allows for more creativity and back and forth exchange, which fosters brainstorming and sharing new ideas. While virtual meetings are good at sharing information across a wide range, quick observations and small comments are oftentimes lost.

Time:

Virtual meetings should be kept relatively short because there are a number of distractions that accompany a virtual meeting. Most often, only one side is aware of a distraction at a time, and while technology is advancing and the internet crashes less frequently, there will remain emails and reminders that pop up, phones that ring and other factors that limit the attention of a person in a virtual meeting. In contrast, a face-to-face meeting could easily last a few hours.

Difficulty:

Face-to-face meetings are much more difficult than virtual meetings. Take into account the travel costs for a team to prepare for, then execute and return from a business trip, and the travel logistics may out way the benefits. While there are a number of advantages for virtual meetings as people become more accustomed to the format; there is also greater reach and efficiency. Keep in mind that video conferencing is much more favorable to phone conferencing, while body language may be lost; participants can at least see each other’s faces.

If you want your message to be heard consider a face-to-face meeting. Let Strategic Event Design help you develop a communication strategy that resonates with your brand and meet with success at your next meeting.