Who are they?
In the past 10 years, my passion has been to read, research and consult with business owners on one question: How do we connect with customers, employees and partners more intelligently in today’s marketplace?
I’ve worked with many businesses around the world to help them reimagine how customers interact, win sales, and drive loyalty. Everywhere I went, the same questions kept popping up: How can I improve my customer relationships with customers of different ages and working style? How can I keep my team connected to others and to other teams? It seems impossible to foster trust, engagement, and the willingness to take risks in a digital world. Finally, my own communications often seem to miss their mark, causing unintended anxiety-filled consequences.
These problems became more apparent as I worked with clients to resolve them. Our failure to grapple with the communication-altering side effects of our shiny new digital toolsemail, text messaging, PowerPoint, Zoomcreated widespread misunderstanding, wasted time and conflict, which in turn manifested to impacting our businesses.
As a Researcher, author, and keynote speakerIm here to help business leaders worldwide reimagine the connection with Digital Body Language. It is a critical driver for small businesses to succeed in modern times.
Their passion for the topic and the research that led to it are where they come from
When people ask me how it happened, I tell them that it was a story that has lasted my entire life. I was born to Indian parents in the United States and came to English indirectly as a first-generation American girl. I was raised in a middle-class neighborhood near Pittsburgh. My parents were both doctors who immigrated to the United States in my twenties. They spoke Hindi and English very rarely at home.
My dad and mom made it a priority that my siblings and I respect traditional Indian customs and values. Silence was a sign to respect elders, and listening was a prized quality. Learning English, academic excellence, and almost everything else came second.
I was caught between two cultures so I went inside. Sometimes you wouldn’t know I was there. In school, I was quiet and shy. I was more an observer than a participant. I was unable to raise my hand or call attention to myself. As a young girl, I had to navigate between the thickly accented English spoken by my parents and my poor Hindi. I wanted to feel at home. SomewhereI learned a few tricks that allowed me to decipher the body language of other people.
The key to understanding foreign worlds was through body language. I became obsessed with understanding my classmates’ signals and cues. This included tone, pacing, pauses and gestures. The most popular girls walked with their heads up, their shoulders pulled back, almost looking down on us. The disinterest of the older kids was displayed by their slouching during school assemblies. They looked at the ground or at each other and never listened to adult speaking.
As a child, I was an immigrant who learned traditional body language. But today, we all live in a digital world and are learning Digital Body Language. Over the past few years, I have seen business owners struggle: Endless sales calls and video chats filled with Oh no, you are gone moments, ghosting, emails that show up a week later, digital tools that create more confusion, angst and miscommunication.
It seemed that Digital Body Language, or rather, the absence of a set universally agreed-upon rules, was causing big problems around the globe: in businesses and communities, as well as families.
This set me on an adventure. I’ve been working for the last ten years to create a nut-and-bolts guidebook for clear communication in today’s digital world. To communicate what we really mean today, we must be able to understand and interpret today’s signals and cues. We also need to have a greater sensitivity to words, nuance and subtext, humor, punctuation, and punctuation.
This topic is important for Small Business owners
Non-verbal cues are 60-80% in face-to-face communication. To build trust and connect with customers, small business owners rely on body language. Because most of our communication happens behind a computer screen, the signals that traditional body language signals can no longer be seen. Digital Body Language is crucial here.
Digital Body Language is all about knowing when to pick-up the phone. It’s worth a thousand replies-all emails. It sends quick recap emails that summarize key points and insights, and confirm next steps within 30 minutes of meeting – it’s like a virtual handshake. Make meetings even more productive by activating the best aspects of the digital world. You can have an existing customer join a sales pitch to a potential customer, or show short videos to enhance an online meeting. It’s like a virtual cocktail hour. How do you conduct yourself in face-to–face meetings? Keep your phone off, do not disturb, so you are not looking at your screen while a customer or employee tries to make eye contact.
Chase for Business is why they are so excited to be a partner
Imagine yourself after Mastering Digital Body Language: Sales prospects can be reached at any time, from anywhere. You’re closing deals and driving revenue up in your company with speed and effectiveness.
My goal is to help small businesses improve their digital body language in order to win sales, drive customer loyalty, and drive engagement in our 21.stCentury marketplace. This content will empower you to lead with more competence, confidence, and less stress. It will also help you build relationships anywhere in the world.
For small business owners, digital body language is key to success in today’s marketplace. I look forward to working with you. Chase for BusinessTo reach clients across the US.
For more information, please visit my LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram!
Erica will be speaking at the Business Insight SeminarEvents throughout the country during 2022 To hear Erica speak, Register hereParticipate in an upcoming event.
For informational/educational purposes only: The views expressed in this article may differ from those of other employees and departments of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Views and strategies described may not be appropriate for everyone and are not intended as specific advice/recommendation for any individual. Although the information has been obtained from reliable sources, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and its affiliates and/or subsidiaries cannot guarantee its accuracy or completeness. Before making any decisions, you should carefully consider your goals and needs. You should also consult the appropriate professional(s). Future performance and outlooks do not guarantee future results.
Before making any decisions, you should carefully consider your goals and needs. You should also consult the appropriate professional.
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