Why is travel for business important to companies? (Part 1)
The benefits of face-to-face business meetings are overwhelmingly persuasive. Sure, we know it’s easy to lose sight of them in the face of online convenience. But as vaccines become more prevalent and we march toward post-pandemic reopening, businesses are reconsidering travel and guidelines for proving value from meetings.
- In-person meetings will generate more and better interactions than their remote alternatives. Just think of the number of times you back away from an online transaction before clicking the Order Now button and magnify that by the dollar amount of your deal. In-person negotiations let the buyer feel confident in asking more questions more efficiently, which can then increase trust. In-person discussions also promote clarity of communications, which can reduce confusion and post-sale support issues. Clarity concerns apply to in-person vs. remote communication in general. The ramifications for business outcomes should be clear. If you want quality results from interviews and interactions, nothing beats doing them in person.
2. It’s human nature: The more we invest in something, the more of an active interest we take in its outcome. Whether or not you paid for the airfare and hotel, we all deeply grasp the sacrifice of time that goes into business travel. Those around the meeting table may be in the same circumstances. Even if they’re not, though, the understanding is clear: You made sacrifices to be here. Others will be inclined to appreciate that (see the law of reciprocity,) and you will act with more determination to make your sacrifice worthwhile. Personal interactions can also apply to job-related training. Contrary to many assumptions, many years of studies reveal that, overall, the efficacy of in-person and online learning are roughly equal. However, some types of learning are better suited to in-person than others. High repetition-style learning does well online, but things like leadership training clearly benefit from the role playing and instructor/group interaction that come from an in-person classroom environment.
3. To avoid risks to business outcomes. Even if you’re the type who loves working from home, there are just as many — or more —distractions for us there than when we work from the office. So, it isn’t a surprise that many people believe virtual meetings can present significant opportunities for negative consequences to business. The negative outcomes can include situations such as ineffective selling or negotiating, lost attention, ineffective leadership, and low tolerance of diverse views.