The problem…
The pandemic of Covid-19 is still an important problem which we face in every aspect of our daily life. It seems that the low rate of vaccinations in some countries in combination with the continuous mutations maintain the transmission of the virus at high level. Most of the countries are now facing a fourth way of the pandemic and their public health systems are extremely pressed with limited available Intensive Care Units.
In this challenging environment, business as usual is a utopia and most of the companies are hardly trying to balance and continue running in a profitable way. Especially for sales people the difficulty is bigger because either their clients are working from home or there are limitations in the physical meetings. So a critical question has arisen : how the sales people will continue effectively their contact with their clients in this new era?
The solution…
During the pandemic of Covid-19, many new terms were heard, but one very interesting and quite recent is the “Phygital” which comes from the combination of the words physical and digital. If we try to give a definition this could be the following. Phygital communication is the balanced combination of unique digital interactive services together with the timelessly necessary physical communication actions in order to overcome any social obstacles and achieve a high-level contact.
The use of Phygital communication can be particularly useful for the sales activities in the covid-19 and post of that era. A sales person can use the digital communication platforms that are now very well known to the majority of the people and organize short and efficient calls/meetings with a maximum duration not higher than 30 minutes. In this way both sides easily have the opportunity to discuss projects, new product/services or a simple update without burden their daily schedule. Also, with this digital communication more people can participate, something not always possible for physical meeting. So the information can be extensively distributed in an organization, more opinions can be heard and a more widen brainstorming can take place. Digital communications are now a new reality which if used correctly can offer plenty advantages and for sure will be kept also after the covid-19 pandemic. But are they enough for a complete and efficient communication between the sales people and their clients?
The answer is no and physical meetings are very important to be maintained in a logical amount of visits per year. With physical meetings both sides will have the opportunity to better and easier express their thoughts. Also the sales people will have the ability to better sense their customer’s needs and understand their intentions.
The conclusion…
Phygital communication is a proper combination of strategies from digital and physical world. It is a necessity to keep both and act in an efficient way in order, the obstacles of the covid-19 pandemic become opportunities for better, easier, shorter and much more efficient sales visits and communications which both side will enjoy and appreciate.
Chrysostomos I. Bouras