Up In The Air – Using Technology Effectively
Over the holiday season, I took my daughter to see the movie “Up In The Air” starring George Clooney. Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) is a corporate downsizer who travels around the United States firing employees.
This movie begs the question as to whether technology is the right fit for a business that is hired to fire employees on behalf of large corporations. Imagine looking at a face on a computer screen while being told you are getting fired after twenty years of service to your employer. Not such a great idea, even though the company could have saved 85% on travel costs.
Although technology is an extremely helpful tool, there is a time and a place for it.
As business owners and decision makers, we need to be able to embrace technology or we are going to lag behind our competition very quickly.
In the world of training and speaking, video conferencing and webinars are becoming a cost-effective way to gain and share new knowledge. As for business communications, staying in touch with customers using e-newsletter software like www.constantcontact.ca and www.icontact.com cam be extremely effective.
Twitter and LinkedIn can be useful methods of sharing information and connecting with other like-minded individuals. These forms of social media tend to help us cast the net beyond our day-to-day connections.
Then there comes a time when we need to be conscious of our ability to balance communication via technology with picking up the phone or making time for direct in-person contact with our customers and prospects. If you can manage to maintain relationships using technology as well as direct contact with your clients then you are fully covering your bases.