The art of personal contact is alive and well

19th September 2016

Joe Bush

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One of the most significant benefits of modern office technology and mobile communications is the ability to work from anywhere at any time. Because of this, today’s business/customer relationships are generally conducted via email, often with no personal contact either face to face or by phone, which is undoubtedly time efficient but is also impersonal.

So is it fair to say that the days of face to face business meetings are drawing to a close? We think not, but recognise that it depends very much on the business sector and the product or service involved. For obvious reasons, the seller will always try and negotiate with the buyer in person, while today’s buyer or customer is often reluctant to comply, preferring instead to make enquiries and demands – price etc – remotely. However, is there still a case to be made for face to face meetings between seller and buyer, designer and technical support and so on.

For many years, trade shows have provided the ideal platform for companies to meet existing and potential customers. But the business-to-business electronics exhibition sector has undergone major changes and significant downsizing over the years with established events disappearing and new ones closing after just a few outings. Many large European and US electronics exhibitions have gone, replaced in some cases by single subject, specialist events aimed at designers and specifiers while in the Far East, shows in China and Taiwan for example are catering for their local needs. With a single exception, the days of the global event are over.

That exception is of course electronica, which this year will again attract tens of thousands of visitors and around 2,700 exhibitors. So what is electronica’s secret? Firstly, it is an event that attracts exhibitors and visitors from all parts of the world. It takes place at a very modern venue with an excellent transport network. Since a lot of business meetings take place away from the exhibition, an abundance of city hotels and restaurants complete the mix.

At its heart, electronica is an exhibition covering practically everything our industry does. At the same time however, it is the venue and biennial occasion where companies bring together their management and customers from all over the world for top level decision making in a face to face format.

Once again, Electronic Specifier has been chosen as a media partner for electronica and our October issue will feature a hall by hall guide looking at the latest products, solutions and technologies that will be showcased at the event. We look forward to seeing you there!