With digital marketing on the rise, many people would have you believe that you no longer need to meet your customers face to face to sell products. The evidence, though, suggests that this isn’t true. Despite advances in technology, people are still the same as they always were, and they naturally prefer meeting companies in person.
Meeting in real life with customers, though, is a challenge. We’re so well-adapted to online services and apps that we barely think about how to conduct ourselves during in-person contact with somebody. It can be an alien experience.
What Do The Data Say?
The data are still in support of the idea that customers want human interaction when dealing with companies. No amount of chatbots or same-day delivery services are going to change that.
Here are some of the data which suggests that people still want to meet company representatives in real life:
- 64 percent of customers prefer to interact with people rather than robots when visiting the store
- 30 percent said that they liked using the company’s mobile app in-store
- 64 percent of people said that they only interacted with automated solutions because of the queues that can form waiting for a human assistant
The data, therefore, suggests that companies should be focusing heavily on providing face to face interactions with their customers. But what form should these actually take?
Trade Shows
One of the best ways to meet new customers is to attend trade shows. These events bring hundreds of companies together to a single location, often attracting thousands of delegates and attendees.
Infinity Exhibits, a company that sells stalls, believes that they are a great way to grow your audience. Companies often discover that they have markets they never imagined that they had when they meet people in person. They find out that there are more people out there who could benefit from their products than their digital marketing analytics told them.
On top of that, trade shows are an opportunity for customers to get up close and personal with the products themselves. Seeing them on a screen is one thing, but holding them in your hand and playing with them is quite another. The physicality of the experience matters, and is a highly effective way to build customer loyalty.
Of course, trade shows aren’t the only place to meet people in person, but they are one of the most valuable. They give customers the chance to get to know you in person and find out more about the ethos of your company. You also have the opportunity to explain more about the products that you can’t convey in sound-bite marketing messages online. You often find that the small details are what interest your customers the most. They want to achieve a higher quality of life, and you can help them get there.
For these reasons, face to face interactions with customers are still king. Don’t ignore them – they could be the spark that allows your company to grow exponentially.
Featured image courtesy of Pixabay – CC0 License
This is a Contributed Post.