How Does The Communications Gap Relate To Success In E-business


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In our digital era, where almost everything is connected to something else, it’s easy to get distracted. Consistency is one of the most important qualities for success in business.
You have to be consistently present in order to succeed, but how does that relate to the communications gap?
The term “communications gap” comes from researchers who studied why some companies survive a takeover while others do not. They found that when a company is taken over, those inside the organization sometimes leave quickly because they don’t feel like their ideas are being heard or valued.
By the time they walk away, however, there has been a lot of work done on improving what made the company successful before the takeover. And even if they never use that new idea within the company, they often go onto to create similar products with features that include that same improvement.
That’s why I call this the “I will just develop my own product” effect. People who left the company may not know about your competition, or maybe they did and decided not to switch brands. But they can still benefit from you by creating their own version of what you had.
Communications gap affects customer service
As we’ve discussed, one of the biggest weaknesses in most businesses is their lack of engagement with their customers. Even bigger than this, however, is how much they neglect their employees.
Too often business owners think that once hired, their job is done — they spend more time networking or talking about themselves and what they are doing rather than investing in and supporting those under them.
This isn’t only unprofessional but it can also have significant implications for the success of their company.
As we know, without strong relationships with others, happiness at work will be limited. This low level of energy will negatively affect both the productivity of workers and the quality of services delivered to clients.
And while some may consider these differences minor, things like not having enough staff can actually hurt your business significantly.
By leaving certain responsibilities unfinished, you could be depriving your company of crucial resources and expertise needed to succeed.
Communications gap affects website content
As mentioned before, one of the biggest reasons why your business’s growth is limited is due to the lack of engagement with your audience.
If you are not communicating important messages that people want to read, then it does not matter how good your product or service is – they will never know about it.
The more time you spend talking about things that people do not care about, the less attention you draw from them. This negative effect can be even greater than what we called The Paradox of Choice — where having too many options can actually hurt your sales because people get overwhelmed and give up.
Your potential customers may also assume that your company no longer cares about their needs after reading some poorly written marketing material. If nothing seems interesting, they will look somewhere else for help!
This article will talk about several ways to fix this communication problem.
Communications gap affects social media
Social networking sites have become an integral part of our daily lives, with over 2 billion people now belonging to at least one. Businesses are taking full advantage by using these sites to connect with their customers or potential clients.
But what happens when there is a lag in communication? You have users who feel disconnected from the company and its leadership. This can result in negative reviews or comments about the business on sites like Facebook and Twitter. It also may create a sense of distrust for the company’s products and services.
If this doesn’t get resolved quickly, it could cost your business sales down the line. Over time, people will develop feelings towards the brand, and how well it works for them depends largely on their perception of key relationships within it.
Here are some tips to help you close that communications gap and keep your reputation high.
Communications gap affects advertising
The importance of having adequate communication channels for your business cannot be stressed enough!
As we have seen, without good internal and external communications, it can become difficult to know who your allies are, and which ones you should avoid at all costs. This impacts not only your success as an entrepreneur, but also your ability to grow your business long term.
By this I mean, if someone close to you reports bad things about you or your company, how will you find out? If people don’t respond to messages you send them, how will they get your message?
Fortunately, there are many ways to mitigate against this problem. First, make sure that you keep up with your colleagues and friends via social media, chat apps, phone calls, etc. However, nothing solves the challenge completely unless you address the root cause – poor relationships within the organization.
This may sound like a lot of work, but it isn’t. Starting from today, take one step towards fixing the issue by reading my article.
Communications gap affects online reviews
Recent studies show that when people use social media sites like Facebook, they are often reluctant to give negative feedback or leave comments due to the amount of time it takes them to write down their thoughts and feelings.
This is especially true for customers who have experienced bad service or dissatisfaction with an item or product. Because they do not want to waste anyone’s time by calling out a company in public, they keep their frustration to themselves until they can gather their thoughts and prepare a scathing review.
Even worse, some dishonest business owners will actively look for ways to avoid giving negative reviews so that they don’t hurt their reputation.
These types of situations cause an immense amount of harm to your company and its long term success. Online reviews are one of the most important tools you have as an entrepreneur, and keeping positive reviews up and natural negative reviews under control helps promote trust in your brand.
If you're ever confronted with a negative review, try to respond with something other than “I'm sorry you didn't enjoy what I did for you!” Instead, emphasize how much you appreciate the person for taking the time to share their experience.
Communications gap affects face to face customer service
As mentioned earlier, one of the biggest assets for any company is its reputation or brand. A well-known organization has built up trust with their customers through consistent quality products and services, as well as responsive, friendly customer service.
But what happens when there’s a bad day at work? What if an employee goes rogue and does something embarrassing?
In this case, the media hears about it. And they hear both sides – how the underling was not able to handle his/her job and how the higher ups were totally oblivious to the situation.
Since companies rely heavily on reviews and word of mouth marketing to thrive, negative comments can have long lasting effects on business.
It may be difficult to recruit new employees after such a scandal, which decreases productivity and efficiency. In addition, unhappy past patrons may choose to go somewhere else for services, reducing sales.
This could very much hurt your business in the end.
Communications gap affects email marketing
Email is one of the most popular forms of communication today. It’s very easy to use and maintain, which makes it perfect for business purposes. With almost every company having an address list of some kind, using email as a tool to connect with your audience is virtually guaranteed.
However, there are some issues when it comes to effectively using this medium. First off, not everyone uses email or reads emails at their own speed. There may be people who rely heavily on quick replies, for example, that take them longer to read and respond to than someone who likes more detail oriented writing.
This can create a situation where they have time to write their response but you don’t see a message from them until hours later. This cuts out part of the engagement process because you never get a chance to try and build connections with those individuals!
Another problem related to the first one mentioned is lack of consistency. Some people will actively manage their inbox, while others won’t – and both these things can affect how well your messages get seen.
Running into the same issue slightly less is the fact that not everyone has access to internet or computer technology. In recent years we have seen a rise in digital literacy and opportunities to learn via websites, apps, and social media, but not everyone fits into that category yet. These people could potentially lose out on important information if businesses do not cater content towards different levels of expertise.
Communications gap affects push marketing
Push marketing messages are those that require action from recipients or purchases or inquiries must occur, he said. Messages like email blasts, advertisements, and statements made online or through social media sites are all considered push notifications.
Examples of push marketing include sending an email announcement to members of an e-mail list or posting a statement about product updates on a company’s website.
This is why it can be so frustrating when you spend time creating content and promoting your business only for people to ignore you, he said. You have invested energy into building your brand and engaging with potential clients and customers – and they just don’t seem to care, he added.
That’s why most marketers use pre-recorded videos instead of oral presentations — because who wants to listen to someone talk?
But there's a big problem with this approach, according to Chapman. "Most people cannot process spoken information at a normal speed," he explained. "So even if you hired the best speech therapist in the world, people would still not understand what you were saying.