Good relationships require mutual trust and good communication. The described “status,” of a relationship is a direct reflection of it’s quality in the view of the person describing it.
Great relationships can happen online and the parties involved can regularly communicate this way, but it is nearly impossible to actually cultivate and maintain a “great,” relationship exclusively online. Relationships usually require some offline, personal interaction and face to face engagement to become or remain “great.”
Imagine spouses communicating with each other exclusively via email, text message, or on their social network profiles… It is hard to imagine a healthy relationship surviving exclusively in this sphere. Most business relationships aren’t any different. If you communicate with someone exclusively via email, text message, instant messenger, etc., what type of quality do you really have in the relationship?
In an increasingly hectic and demanding professional world, we can all benefit from using online means of interaction to improve our ability to communicate more frequently with our relationships. However, we must also be careful not to forsake the value of offline interaction.
Quality in our customer, employee, and vendor relationships benefits from personal conversation, periodic face to face meetings, or a social activity where goodwill and trust are built and maintained.
Facebook users are given the option of describing and openly displaying their “relationship status,” to provide an outward indication of their:
1) Availability
2) Happiness/Satisfaction
3) Commitment/Loyalty
4) Intent
What if our customers, vendors, and employees had their business relationship status with us openly displayed for review? What would it say?
What if we relied so heavily on online communication that this became our best chance of really understanding their perspective on the quality of our relationship?
Depending on your business or industry there may be some discrepancy, but the table below is an approximation of the business equivalents of some common Facebook “Relationship Statuses.”
Business Relationship Status Equivalents
Don’t be so busy that you let the quality of your relationships suffer.
Pick up the phone and tell someone that you appreciate them or that they are doing a great job. Better yet go see them in person and tell them face to face. Invite someone you care about to do something fun or interesting with you. Take some time to get to know somebody better and begin a great relationship.
These actions create memories for both of you.
View this as a communication strategy, or just consider it as “a way of doing business.”
For assistance with evaluating, managing or improving business relationships contact us:
idealangle.wordpress.com 
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