Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, part of the InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG®), has released its first-ever Business Meetings in a Modern World global research report, revealing that businesses around the world could be missing out on nearly a quarter (24%) of additional revenue because they are not investing enough time in face-to-face contact – and British businesses could be losing out on over a fifth (21%).
Use of virtual and face-to-face meetings
The report surveyed more than 2,000 business men and women across five major markets – the UK, US, United Arab Emirates (UAE), China and India – to better understand how business professionals are using both virtual and face-to-face meetings and the possible economic impact.
The survey found that:
- Nearly a quarter (23%) of British business men and woman surveyed believe they had lost a contract or client simply because they didn’t have enough face-to-face meetings, which resulted in the estimated yearly revenue loss of 21% – a significant loss for any business
- In fact, 87% of business men and women in the UK state that face-to-face meetings are better for building long-term trust and ensuring strong client relationships
- However, over half (54%) of UK respondents reported that the number of virtual meetings they attended has increased in the past 5 – 10 years, further demonstrating that the value of face-to-face meetings is being overlooked in favour of cost and time-saving technologies, such as video conferencing
Face-to-face brings significant benefits
Hazel Carter-Showell, Business psychologist and body language expert, said:
“Although developments in technology allow business men and women to make achievements in meetings that would have been impossible a few years back, meeting face-to-face continues to bring significant benefits that are much harder to obtain through virtual channels. One of these benefits is building trust, which research has shown is behind many profitable companies. Trusted companies have higher morale, productivity, lower employee turnover and create deeper relationships with their customers”.
Timing of meetings also important
According to the findings in the report, the outcome of a business meeting could be changed by not only how, but also when, it is conducted. Tuesday morning is identified as the optimum time for a successful face-to-face meeting in the UK and US, while Monday mornings are considered the best time of the week for productive meetings in China, India and UAE.
Janis Cannon, Global Vice President, Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, IHG added:
“The findings are clear. Virtual meetings can save time and money, but there are times when sealing a deal requires a handshake and ‘seeing the whites of the eyes’ of a business associate. At Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, we empower our guests to do both. Our highly trained Crowne Plaza Meetings Directors tailor meetings to individual needs, whether physical or virtual, to ensure they are set up for success.”
Additional findings:
- Business men and women in the UK and worldwide attend more face-to-face and virtual meetings than they did 10 years ago – the biggest increase seen for virtual meetings
- Starting a new business relationship (57%), finalising a deal (54%) and contract negotiation (53%) are the top subjects respondents prefer to discuss face-to-face
- 53% of respondents believe that connecting with a business associate on social media can help them develop a stronger and more trusted relationship. In Britain, Facebook came out more popular than the business networking website LinkedIn, with 48% saying they had used Facebook and 42% had looked at an associate’s LinkedIn page
- Small talk is recognised as a good business meeting tool, with the average meeting in the UK starting with about 6 minutes of very British light-hearted conversation
- The UK & the US spend the first few minutes of a meeting discussing the weather, as opposed to news and current affairs, which is the main topic of conversation in China (64%), India (59%) and the UAE (49%)
- According to an overwhelming majority (74%) of British business people surveyed, the key advantage of face-to-face meetings compared to virtual meetings is that there is less risk of misinterpretation
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