Communication channels your business needs to succeed

Whether you're a business leader, partner, or team member, communication channels are your most powerful tool for growing your business relationships.

However, communication is a tricky strategy, as human impressions come from verbal and non-verbal communication cues and depend not only on the channel used, but also on how it resonates with the target audience.

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The modern plethora of communication channels allows a business to engage more directly with its audience than ever before. But how do you use these channels to create meaning and not just variety?

From live to virtual, we'll cover the different types of business communication channels. We'll also help you choose the best ones for your business and learn how to build better relationships with your audience.

What are the communication channels?

A communication channel is a platform that one person uses to communicate with another in person, in writing, or digitally. In a business context, communication channels can be external for communication with prospects, customers, and business partners or internal for communication between colleagues.

Different communication channels cater to different users. Some channels make it easier to communicate with new customers, while others are best for regular communications. Some channels are better suited to local businesses than online businesses and vice versa.

Types of communication channels

Communication channels can be roughly divided into three main categories: formal, informal, and unofficial. When choosing a channel for a professional conversation, ask yourself how well you know the other person and how formal the code of conduct should be.

Official

Formal communication channels are used to communicate official information about a company, its policies and news. These channels prefer the written form and are generally one-way, meaning they don't require much dialogue.

Formal channels facilitate communication within the organization and with external sources, such as customers, partners, and investors.

Examples: email newsletters, internal knowledge platforms, press releases, official emails, corporate website and blog

Informal

Information channels are crucial for communication between companies, customers and employees. Dialogue is an essential aspect of these channels. Informal communication channels are more likely to persuade and convert customers through conversational marketing than direct marketing.

Examples: social media, internal company messengers, live chat, video conferencing and team building activities

Unofficial

Unofficial communication channels facilitate behind-the-scenes interactions that are not directly business-related but essential to the organization's communication culture. These channels allow for the private sharing of experiences about a company that could make or break its reputation with customers and employees.

Examples: word of mouth, live or virtual social gatherings, and informal activities.

Communication channels by type of interaction

Communication channels can be classified according to the type of interaction. Since different industries and audiences prefer to communicate differently, each business should define a primary and secondary interaction channel according to their needs.

Face-to-face communication

A face-to-face communication format is any form of interaction between two or more people. In a business environment, colleagues, managers, employees, partners and investors prefer face-to-face communication. It also highlights a business meeting that was too important to go digital.

Examples of face-to-face communication channels: Live office meetings and informal chats Employee interviews One-on-one with managers Live meetings with partners Meetings with customers Meetings with investors Business lunches with partners or clients

Best used for:

Daily internal communication Important business meetings Contract signing Business offers Digital

Any technology-based communication channel is called a digital communication channel. These channels focus on mobility and fill communication gaps. Most digital tools are available as cloud tools or mobile apps. Digi...