I recently had the privilege of traveling to a remote part of northern Nebraska to interview the chairman of the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska for a Lifesize case report. Nosotros first met over an sound-only conference call since the chairman was traveling between locations and couldn't connect over video. Betwixt the spotty connection and not being able to run across the nonverbal cues, I finished the call feeling disconnected — like nosotros were not on the same page. Dissimilarity that to our second video conference call where nosotros spoke face to face up, and information technology felt like I was meeting the chairman for the outset time. By being able to see him I had a amend understanding of what he was trying to communicate, and it began to foster a relationship between us. This connectedness made the in-person interview more than personal and helped me tell the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska's story in a meaningful way.

The digital age of smart phones, social media and instant messaging has made communicating faster and easier than ever, but nothing can quite replace the impact of face to face communications in the workplace.

What is confront-to-face communication?

Face-to-face up communication is the distinction of beingness able to run across the other party or parties in a conversation. Information technology allows for a better exchange of information since both speaker and listener are able to see and interpret body language and facial expressions. Face-to-face communication doesn't accept to exist washed by people in the same concrete space; the benefits tin too be achieved over a video briefing telephone call or a more breezy video chat.

5 Benefits of contiguous communication through video conferencing

When coming together in person isn't an pick, video conferencing provides a great alternative. The contiguous connection allows you to be nowadays and engaged in the meeting, regardless of your physical location.

i. Go on remote workers in the loop

Information technology's like shooting fish in a barrel to experience left out when y'all work remotely, especially if nigh of your team works together in the same role. Video conferencing brings remote workers face up to face with in-function employees to interact globally and ensure the entire squad is working together as one unit. Video conferencing as well has the unique power to bring a human connection to every interaction so remote workers experience connected to the rest of their team.

ii. Boost overall productivity

Get together remote and in-office employees together in the aforementioned virtual coming together room, at the same time for regularly scheduled meetings and quick, impromptu meetings for amend communication. The face-to-face interaction helps build a collaborative environment that inspires and energizes employees to participate in meetings and be more productive.

iii. Reduce travel expenses

Sometimes gathering anybody in 1 location just isn't feasible. Information technology can take a significant amount of time for attendees to get to a meeting, not to mention the cost of travel, food and hotel accommodations. Video conferencing is an effective way to meet face to face up while saving fourth dimension and travel costs.

four. Improve communication reliability

Video conferencing provides a fast and secure way to communicate with your entire team face to face. Many companies are even transitioning into video-first organizations, meaning they employ video conferencing every bit the beginning line of communication and autumn back to audio or electronic mail only when needed. The improved reliability of video conferencing ensures that your unabridged message is communicated as intended and not left to misunderstandings or misinterpretations.

5. Better value and reduce redundancy

When researching the total cost of ownership (TCO) of a collaboration suite, many companies are unaware of just how much is being spent on all of the different collaboration tools across an organization. Lifesize offers an all-in-one video conferencing solution that includes video and sound conferencing, screen sharing, chat, meeting recording, whiteboarding and event live streaming to support all of the ways your teams communicate and connect.

How face-to-face communication improves business concern

In the digital historic period of smartphones, social media, texts, emails and instant messages, communicating has get faster and easier than e'er, but for all the advancements in technology, cipher can quite supersede the touch of confront-to-face up communications in the workplace.

Read nonverbal cues

Studies show that equally much as 93% of communication is nonverbal. That's why having the ability to see the people you are speaking to and interpret their reactions is so of import. When presenting in a coming together you tin can gauge a person's understanding and involvement in your presentation by observing their facial expressions, posture and gestures. If they are little with their pen or checking their phone, you may need to accommodate your tone of voice to capture their attending. As well, if coworkers are actively nodding their heads and smiling, it is clear they are engaged and understand what y'all're trying to communicate.

Heighten productivity

Miscommunication is one of the major causes of inefficiency in the workplace. Many of these bug can be attributed to digital communications and the diverse ways they tin exist interpreted. Imagine trying to explain an intricate projection in an email and then spending the whole day fielding questions. Instead, you can clearly explicate the entire projection, get feedback and respond all questions in one face up-to-face up meeting. This ensures anybody is on the aforementioned page, assuasive meeting participants to hear all instructions, feedback, questions and answers at the same time.

Increment credibility

Trust isn't built over text messages or emails. It's built through confront to-confront connections, making eye contact and interpreting body linguistic communication. This is especially truthful when you're meeting someone for the first time. Contiguous communication allows the other person to encounter how your actions align with your words and enhances your credibility.

Build relationships

 It's far easier to build stronger relationships face to face. Cold calling on the phone or through e-mail is not very personal. The all-time way to "warm up" a prospect and assistance build a relationship is to connect with them in a face to face chat. Information technology provides a experience of friendliness that, in turn, boosts the success of your concern relationships.

How WP Engine improved face-to-face communication with Lifesize

WP Engine is the leading WordPress digital experience platform with over 500 employees located in the United States, Europe and Australia. Equally a company that makes their culture a acme priority, they were faced with the challenge of bringing unity to teams spread out over iii continents in six different offices. Past having Lifesize in meeting spaces throughout each part and on every employee's laptop, coworkers tin instantly connect with one another and managers can effectively manage remote employees in one-on-i video calls. Human interaction helps employees have engaging conversations and personal connections with managers and team members thousands of miles away.

"By existence able to jump on Lifesize, it just feels as though we are one team, one office working together seamlessly."

— Sarah Jones, Sr., HR Business Partner at WP Engine

Determination

The importance of confront-to-confront communication is often undervalued in organizations considering it'southward difficult to measure, merely its ability in shaping company civilization, squad engagement and sales outcomes should not be underestimated. When coming together in person isn't an option, video conferencing allows you to still be present and engaged in the meeting regardless of your physical location. Lifesize'south lifelike 4K video quality makes everyone in the coming together feel like they are in the aforementioned room. And the contiguous interaction lets you see the other person to truly understand them and connect on a deeper level.