Communication between businesses consists of constant emails, text messages, phone calls and voicemails. But do we get everything we need out of these non-visual communicative outlets? I don’t think so.
For example, when you have a conference call with a prospective client or vendor are you really sitting at your desk with your eyes pinned to the phone, 100% attention on the phone call? Maybe it’s just in my case, but no. Instead, activities include surfing the web, maybe taking notes, texting on our cell phones or just simply staring off into space. This is a common problem. It’s not intentional but sometimes it’s impossible to keep our full attention on the phone call when we have so many other things going on around us.
A new solution for businesses may be advancing our technology to communicate more effectively. Instead of conference calls, how about video chat? We use it with our family members and friends but should we shift this way of communication into the office? Here at The TNS Group, conference calls are scattered all over daily calendars. Would video conferences better benefit the pitchers and listeners?
According to Inc.com there are currently 3-Low Cost Video Chat Services available that are better made for business conferencing. They are as follows:
Tokbox: This service allows a video chat session with up to 20 people. You can share you screen, tweet invites, video e-mails etc. Testing assures that the audio and video are crisp. Cost – $9.99 for basic chats
OOVO: This service supports video chats with up to 6 people. Same applications as Tokbox, plus you can record videoconferences. There is a slick design and high-quality audio and video. However, users say the interface was a bit confusing. Cost- Free to $39.95 a month per user for business plan
Skype 5.0: This service is only for PC’s and allows video chats with up to 5 people. You can share your screen during calls and record video conferences using an add-on. Skype had the fewest dropped connections and smoothest calls among the other choices. But like ooVoo, it was a bit confusing. Cost- Free
Are video conferences going to become the norm for business-to-business communication in the future?
Tara McKenna
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