Businesses will have to embrace social media to stay in the game, but it will never beat face to face contact, says ISES chair Jennifer Trethewey.
As the rise of social media sees more businesses incorporate media platforms such as Facebook and LinkedIn to their operations, industry experts agree that social media will revolutionise how businesses operate in the future.
Professional Conferences Organisation (PCO) treasurer, Peter Sugg, maintains social media will be a "significant part" of the conference sector in the future, while Meetings and Events Australia (MEA) chief executive Linda Gaunt expects it will become a "critical portal" for some businesses.
But International Special Events Society (ISES) chair, Jennifer Trethewey, remains condifent social media will never replace traditional networking.
"The need to keep ahead of technology will be ongoing, and there is no doubt the big thing in special events is social media at the moment, but it will never beat face to face," she said. "Traditional networking will always be ultimate."
Trethewey admitted businesses would have to embrace social media to maintain their competitive edge, and added it was a "useful vehicle" to communicate with clients.
But it would never trump personal interaction, Trethewey said: "We need to work smarter in this current environment, and social media comes into that, but face to face networking will always have more impact for clients."
