According to a famous theory by Maslow regarding basic human needs, the third most important and basic need is that of building a relationship. Once you have enough food to eat and shelter to live in, you need to interact with your kin in order to move ahead with your life.
This is the most basic foundation of any human relationship prevailing in the world. But does this translate to the business world as well?
Well, I think yes, it does. A business organisation is composed of and run by human beings. A business is all about interacting with people belonging to your internal as well as external business environment.
The importance of communication in the business world is immense, especially compared to informal and casual forms of communication. Here, what you communicate and the way you communicate it holds a major importance in terms of the firm you’re handling.
The challenge in business communication is to convert the sense of acknowledgement into action. Most entrepreneurs would acknowledge the importance of a business relationship and ways to improve it, but hardly anyone practices it for real.
Here are some of the reasons why there is an issue in implementing healthy and strategic business communication for majority of the businesses:
The ‘Soft Skill’ Factor – As compared to all the technical and financial aspects, communication is often referred to as a soft skill, which is not really taken seriously by the organisation.
Practitioners often disregard the skill due to the lack of its visible attributes and results. However, it has always proved to be the other way round. If you are not able to communicate properly with your employees and associates, your business would not be able to survive for long in the market.
So, this is where the problem lies. Entrepreneurs hardly consider effective communication as a strong parameter to bring their business to the top. The scenario can drastically change when it is no more considered as just a ‘soft skill’.
The Personalisation Factor – Another major mis-belief in the organisation lies in the fact that business communication is merely sidelined as a personalisation factor.
Here, the broad perspective of communication creeps in and assumes the business communication to be as casual as any other form of communication. This limits the reach to which an entrepreneur can allow communication to take place, which is never healthy for an organisation. Business communication can be personal as well as public, and both of them have their own importance.
Personally, I believe it is easier to evaluate our relationships and nurture them in order to track the growth of an organisation. However, when you look at the bigger picture, it requires more commitment and vision to run a business while maintaining official relationships with the people affecting the functioning of your business.
If you would not have healthy relationship with your creditors, you would get your raw materials at a higher price. If you won’t have a healthy relationship with your lenders, you will not be able to avail benefits like business loans, overdraft, cash flow finance and many more.
Business relationships are not only difficult but also extremely complex to continue on a daily basis. It is such a broad concept that it includes several activities under it – be it PR, Advertising or even internal communication within the organisation.
Unless you’re able to establish a healthy and effective communication channel within your organisation, everyone in your firm will not be on the same page. If you’re not communicating effectively with your creditors, you may not get the best quotes price for certain product.
If you are not communicating effectively with your customers, you would never be able to understand their needs and their responses for the products you’re dealing with.
This is why business relationships can make or break any business at any stage of its productivity and growth. Always make sure that you have a transparent and open flow of communication within your organisation as well as in the external environment you’re functioning in.
Benefits of Having Strong Business Relationships
When you are trying to get ahead in the world of business, it is not only necessary for you to offer help to others but in certain situations you have seek help from others as well. Here are two major rewards you get when you have strong business relations:
Word-of-mouth marketing
Most successful businesses get their business through referrals. These referrals can come from friends, family, customers as well as business partners. Hence, having strong business relationships is an easy, free and an unbiased way to promote your business and generate more profit.
Potential partners
Every business is in search of new talent. One of the best reasons to have strong business relations is because you may never know who you may end up working with in future.
Businesses activities keep changing over time. Your previous company colleagues could end up working with/for you later in future. Thus, try to maintain positive relationships with everyone you have worked with previously.
