Top Trumps: Digital vs. F2F

The role of the Medical Science Liaison has evolved over the last thirty years, and rightly so.

With the introduction of the internet, everyone’s role has taken a more digital edge. Gone are the days when you had to send all your important communications in the post, or spend days tracking down a telephone number for that KOL you wanted to speak to.

But one thing that perhaps hasn’t been embraced so boldly is the online meeting. We are still in an environment where we assume face to face (F2F) is always better. You don’t get the same interaction with an online meeting. Right?

Wrong.

Online meetings can still be interactive. In fact, some might even argue a small-group online meeting may be more interactive than a large-scale conference. You just need to get the balance right.

I’ve been playing a lot of top trumps with my nephew recently, and if we pitted F2F against online in a top trumps battle, I think online would stand a good chance in most categories: environmentally friendly, cost-effective, convenient and, particularly in Corpus meetings, interactive.

So how do you make sure your online meeting delivers?

The first thing you need to do is choose the right platform. There are lots of digital meeting rooms out there, but each one offers something slightly different. The most common versions will usually provide a downloadable bit of software to enable multiple users to join the same online meeting room, but often this will be limited to audio only if the meeting is for more than a few people.

The Corpus is a dedicated provider of online medical education meetings, working at the cutting-edge of technology to ensure our virtual meeting platform is always ahead of the game and accessible to all. Up to twenty users can join Corpus meetings via HD video feed and the platform allows for moderated and interactive multi-way conversations.

Online meetings can provide an excellent way for participants to speak with global experts, irrespective of their location. They break down physical barriers and can offer unique opportunities to share knowledge and discuss ground-breaking clinical trials.

But can anything really ever replace face-to-face? I think there is definitely still a place for meetings in person but with budgets being increasingly slashed, virtual meetings could be our saving grace. They can reach across oceans, over mountains and even between languages. We can’t always afford face-to-face, and I’m just saying that there are other options.

Over the coming months, we’ll be revealing the top tips to get the most from your online meetings, advice on how to make sure your audience remains engaged and explore the key benefits of virtual medical education.

But you don’t have to wait until the next article, to find out more about how The Corpus can help with your virtual meeting needs, contact the team today.

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