The best video conferencing software offers the best in business communication and advancement in interactions. Even a free download of video conferencing software will enable you to maximize virtual meetings for higher business returns. With the increasing demand for cloud-based business operations, there is no doubt that soon, almost all business communications will be done via video calls.
Aside from the general features of connecting multiple users at one time for a meeting through high quality video and audio, video conference software will also help your business hold large events and interviews among others.
However, newly interested businesses may still need clarification on video conference software for business’ disadvantages. Apparently, all software options have their downsides, but these pitfalls can be coped with correct use.
What Makes Video Conferencing Solution Advisable for Business
One of the top benefits of using video conferencing software is the cost. Video conferencing solutions are obtainable for free and paid. Apparently, free tools have limited yet usable features, whereas paid have more advanced features.
Instead of allocating a budget for meeting presentations, you can simply use soft copies and desktop presentations and graphics for free. Video conferencing can be used for document sharing. No need for hard copies since sending files via your video call group is allowed.
In addition to this, travel costs will no longer be a problem. Most executives and associates complain about travel costs, especially in big companies requiring regular board meetings. By using video conferencing, you can provide convenience to each member of the company.
Video conferencing software multiple users feature allows associates, who cannot attend personal meetings often, join discussions from now on. According to Global Workplace Analytics’ research, up to 90% of American workers would like to telework. They prefer working at least two to three days a week at home. From this given fact, it is plain to understand workers may opt for chances to work at home, but would still prefer a way to communicate to the office.
With multiple users a video conference can connect, you no longer have to wait until all concerned are available for face-to-face discussions. You will also avoid making an employee uninformed, which could affect his or her performance. According to Acas help and advice for employers and employees, absence may cause low morale, delayed production, as well as poor service to the company among others. You can address this by giving your employees access to meetings regardless of their location.
Personal connection should be maintained in any organization. Through this, exchange of ideas, motivation, addressing problems and completing projects quickly can be implemented in your team. Other than that, the more each employee communicates with each other, a stronger trust will develop. Aside from business-related matters, conferencing regularly can open for fun at work discussions. This will help staff de-stress in a middle of tough projects.
The Downsides of Using Video Conferencing in Your Operations
Video conferencing software may have presented its large number of advantages for personal benefit and business perks, but it could also have downsides like any software. On a day-to-day basis, you may notice the downsides of video conferencing.
Personal communication is said to be affected extremely by video conferencing. When you use video conferencing, such as to conduct meetings or trainings, external factors may affect a participant’s way of information retention. For instance, if your meeting is set for locations globally, time zones will be different. If an employee listens to the training at 3 o’clock in the morning, there is a possibility that he or she will find it difficult to focus on the topic. Sleepiness may contribute to how he or she understands the discussion.
Other than that, natural flow of conversation cannot be maintained with most video conferencing tools. This may be due to lags occurring whenever a participant speaks and another responds. If you have poor connection, lags can be longer and worse. Attending a training will not be as informative if you miss some of the lecture’s points.
Intermittent connection will waste valuable time during your meeting. There are cases that the presenter has to repeat points when some missed it. Other than that, intermittent internet may also cause misunderstanding, which could be worse if you are speaking with other nationalities. This is the reason why some do not recommend video conferencing for large-scale events.
Human resources application of video conferencing may not be as helpful as it seems. Though your company may conduct interviews on real-time basis, some of the body languages are missing during the interview. In a video conference interview, you may only see the face and the shoulder. Anxiety levels exhibited by the hands and legs are not visible. It could also be critical to shortlisted candidates if you need to examine their appearance and how they carry themselves.
Face-to-face video call and personal communication are different. If you get used to video conferencing, the empathic connection with your teammates is eliminated. Moreover, focusing on improving your employees’ confidence via video conferencing will not assure their confidence in personal interactions. Some may only be confident for they are aware of their physical distance from the other party. But in real life, awkwardness can still be encountered.
Issue on absence during a meeting cannot be eliminated completely. This happens when the hardware required for the meeting breaks down. For instance, a participant will not be able to join the team’s discussion with broken PC or dysfunctional camera.
Although some people confide video conferencing expensive, businesses prevent adapting this technology feature due to large investment. If you want to have a high performing video conferencing tool, you only do not need software, but other facilities as well. It will cost your company a lot if you apply for fast internet connection, reliable camera and a suitable desktop computer.
How to Overcome the Disadvantages of Video Conferencing
Video conferencing software reviews may have revealed the downsides of using the tool for your business, but this does not mean you have to drop the chance of using it. You can still overcome the disadvantages of the tool in clever ways.
Time zone is a problem for multinational companies aiming to conduct meetings and trainings. According to others, it will be unfair for some to schedule session equivalent to sleeping time. You can prevent this by finding an appropriate time by studying the time zones of your participants. It may be challenging, but it is possible even across 10 countries. One good example is how American Communication Network Inc. copes though it operates in more than 20 countries.
Another option in solving your time zone problem is to schedule separate discussions. Group the participants based on their suitable time availabilities. By doing so, you can eliminate complaints and everyone can focus well on the discussion topic.
As for lagging conversations, you can solve this by increasing your company’s internet connection speed. This will not only be beneficial for video calls, but for the operations as well. It is best that the upload and download speed of your internet is both fast.
There are different factors contributing to maintaining a smooth video conference. The first factor is bandwidth, which is responsible for data transportation in the conference and equivalent to rate in bits per second. Latency is the second factor that determines network connection delays in milliseconds. Lastly, it is about the route followed by data.
If you want the most optimal network connection speed, you can coordinate with your provider. They know what speed will best accommodate your video calling requirements. On the average, if you will hold a meeting of 10 participants with 1920 x 1080 screen resolution, you need as much as 1.1 Mbps for the incoming stream direction and 5.9 Mbps for outgoing stream direction.
Human resources, with the help of video conferencing, will remain as a trend to enterprises. According to Cisco statement, human resources department needs easy-to-use connectivity in order to get along with the ever changing nature of work and inconsistent economy. Diverse changes in the economy requires for a better and flexible workforce. Apparently, you can do this only with video conferencing.
With video conferencing, you can recruit staff quicker than before since online interviews are more convenient. Other than that, getting talents around the world is possible. Regardless of your employees’ locations, you can still reach them for projects in real-time. Ongoing training is not a problem since video calls are open for cost-saving yet interactive lectures.
As a manager, you definitely worry about the real-life training of your employees. Video conference does not eliminate this. If you prefer, you can simply use the conferences as preliminary discussion or refresher. Afterwards, you conduct onsite training when everyone is available to test if his or her studies paved off.
Lastly, the downsides of video conferencing in terms of investment and hardware issues can be addressed by finding the right list of video conferencing software. A high quality tool for video conferencing will give you the power of cloud conferencing, removing worries of hardware breakdown. Other than that, by obtaining comparison of video conferencing software, your budget preferences will be met regardless of its amount.
CrowdReviews.com will help you remove barriers in supporting innovative business communication with video conferencing. Get reviews of video conferencing software, select one, and start unifying your workforce in clicks!
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