The traveling salesman used to be a job position that people took on with vim and vigor, proud and happy to travel the country and the world to get the job done, no matter what it took. However, today, people don’t have the time or money to travel a lot, and companies are looking to save money wherever they can. Instead of losing business and not having traveling employees that can go to clients and seek out sales for the company, they choose to utilize technology, which can provide all of the same benefits of traveling to other businesses or clients, without the hassles or expenses.
No more tracking mileage, waiting on flights, and sleeping in stale hotel rooms. Some companies will still use these traveling employees from time to time, but more often than not, they stay home and utilize web conferencing software such as the ever popular GoToMeeting to connect with clients around the country and around the world. Through technology, a company in New York can connect with a customer or a partner in China just by turning on the computer and setting up webcam programs. You can have entire meetings and conferences online or one-on-one conversations that offer that personal touch without actually being there.
It’s convenient and affordable to use software like this to work with clients and partners in business. Instead of spending a lot of money on travel and losing valuable time due to layovers, time changes, and travel time, you can now do everything in real-time, without actually having to travel anywhere farther than your computer at the office. You can even work from home with these great conferencing tools, which is another way that companies are cutting costs without actually cutting back their staff. Whether your position used to involve a lot of travel or if you have employees that did, you can now rely on these great tools to save everyone time and money, making business much easier and more convenient for everyone.
Traveling sales is not a dying industry by any means. It just involves much less travel than it used to. Now that you can communicate with anyone around the world from a computer screen, there is no need to waste money on trips and expensive travel when it isn’t necessary. However, there is still a time and place for actual meetings and having that actual presence with customers and other businesses. You will need to determine which trips are critical to make for your business, and which ones can be exchanged for technological innovations like online meetings and chat programs.
