Why face-to-face networking is more important than ever for generating sales
Meeting in person at business networking is vital for generating sales
If you haven’t fully discovered the benefits of face-to-face networking yet - this post is for you. Emma Wilson of marketing specialist, EMARI explains why businesses looking for sales need to look closely at business networking.
Digital marketing is an incredibly powerful tool, yet the saturation of messages and digital fatigue mean that the need for face-to-face networking is greater than ever. Here are the reasons why you should be using face-to-face networking to generate sales:
People are talking about you
They’re talking about your products and services, their customer experience with you and your competitors.
They’re talking about you on social media; over dinner with friends; at the sports club on Sunday afternoon and at their next networking event.
Word of mouth is becoming an ever more important part of the decision-making process which means you need the right people in your network.
Neilson research suggests a whopping 92% of people trust a recommendation from someone they know and 72% trust a recommendation from someone they don’t know.
Emma Wilson, EMARI
Online communication should thus be on top of, not instead of, face to face time for 3 main reasons:
#1 You get Honest Feedback
You can wait hours, days, even weeks for someone to reply to an email or voicemail. When you meet face to face, for better or worse you get an immediate response. You can have a real discussion where people can ask questions and get into the nitty gritty details more quickly.
#2 People buy from people
Have you ever written something in an email to have someone misinterpret your meaning and over-react? It’s an everyday occurrence on social media!
Body language is key to communicating with people and building relationships. Never under-estimate the power of a smile and a firm handshake - we give off thousands of other unconscious signals through our body language that other people can ‘read’ instantly and instinctively. The reality is people will always believe what they see far more than what they read or hear.
#3 You just had to be there!
It’s been scientifically proven that face-to-face communication creates a feeling of closeness that online interaction just cannot replicate. You can tailor your message depending on who you’re speaking to at the time, build your credibility, get a better insight into people’s personalities and motivations and get a response in real-time.
Emma is the founder of EMARI. She hosts ONLE breakfast @Village Portsmouth and the next event is on 8th April 0630 – 0830.
References:
https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/news/2012/consumer-trust-in-online-social-and-mobile-advertising-grows.html
https://www.ft.com/content/e94986fb-468e-42c8-880d-e7290f8f0baa
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Lee, P.S., et al., Internet communication versus face-to-face interaction in quality of life. Social Indicators Research, 2011. 100(3): p. 375-389.
Qiu, M. and D. McDougall, Foster strengths and circumvent weaknesses: Advantages and disadvantages of online versus face-to-face subgroup discourse. Computers & Education, 2013. 67: p. 1-11.
4. Okdie, B.M., et al., Getting to know you: Face-to-face versus online interactions. Computers in Human Behavior, 2011. 27(1): p. 153-159.
5. Grieve, R., et al., Face-to-face or Facebook: Can social connectedness be derived online? Computers in Human Behavior, 2013. 29(3): p. 604-609.