How Tech Has Helped Bring Us Together Despite Being Further Apart

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, U.K. - June 21, 2021 - PRLog -- The past year has seen us become more isolated than ever before. With multiple national lockdowns and stay-at-home orders issued, we've ended up spending most of our time within the same four walls.

Though it's often criticised for damaging real-life relationships (https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/negative-effects-of-technology#psychological-effects) and interactions, technology has replicated some of the experiences we've missed out on. Businesses have hosted virtual meetings and conferences, we've taken part in Zoom pub nights, and our favourite performers held virtual gigs. Imagine how much more we'd have struggled without these digital options.

Here are the ways tech has helped bring us closer together throughout the pandemic and how we can make the most of it moving forward.

Business collaboration tools

Virtual meeting tools had already been utilised by businesses that had multiple offices or existing home-based employees. These tools surged in usage, however, when office workers were instructed to work from home in March 2020. Zoom saw its profits increase by 326% in 2020, while Microsoft saw a huge 700% profit increase from Teams.

The replication of in-person meetings was essential, as a number of studies performed by psychologist Dr Albert Mehrabian have shown that 55% of any message is conveyed through non-verbal elements (https://trainingindustry.com/blog/it-and-technical-traini...).

According to a recent survey by Chris Herd, 90% of employees who have been working remotely during the pandemic don't ever want to go back to the office full-time. Leading businesses including Lloyds PLC and HSBC are committing to a hybrid model of office and home-based working.

Video conferencing tools can help your home-workers feel more connected to colleagues in the office. You can connect your PCs and video calls to digital signage (https://www.exterity.com/) screens in the office to create that together feeling.

Socialising goes virtual

We'll forever remember 2020 as the year of virtual pub quizzes. These remote events soared in popularity when our favourite watering holes first closed their doors in March 2020.

While Zoom pub nights stole the headlines, it wasn't only our after-work drinks that were digitised. Facebook Portal pushed itself (https://www.cnet.com/news/facebook-portal-is-a-hit-during-the-coronavirus-lockdown-thanks-to-your-grandparents) as a solution to disallowed family gatherings with a forceful advertising campaign in 2020. For those of us with family and friends who live far away, video calls are the perfect way to replicate that in-person catch-up over a coffee or a pint.

Technology has helped us to strengthen our relationships, our business communication, and even our education in the past year. As we emerge from what is hopefully the final national lockdown, we can blend our physical and virtual communication to make sure we never feel isolated like this again.