Are you using the right technology for your business? Video conferencing is a must have today. Learn about the benefits of video conferencing here.
Are you running a company with several divisions? Are you having a hard time setting up meetings because of logistical challenges?
Then you need to consider video conferencing for a good number of reasons.
Video conferencing involves a live video connection between two or more people. The key element is that the parties reside in separate locations. Video conferencing allows all parties to communicate through full-motion images with high-quality audio.
Today, more multinational companies are using the technology. Moreover, more small businesses are starting to experience the benefits of video conferencing.
Continue reading below and discover how video conferencing can change the way you conduct your business.
Benefits of Video Conference: What You Need to Experience
Video conferencing is one of the best gifts of technology. It practically changed the way people communicate in a business setting. Let’s take a look at 10 of the best benefits of using online video conference.
1. No Need to Travel
Perhaps the most appealing benefit of video conferencing is eliminating travel. Workers no longer need to travel back to the office if their manager calls for a meeting.
In like manner, modern professional service providers are using video conferencing software for initial client meetings. Video conference technologies allow companies to remotely present their business pitches.
There is no need for your people to travel to a particular place to present a product to a potential client.
With the need to travel already out of the picture, this equates to more savings for your company. You don’t need to spend as much when it comes to travel expenses.
All you need are the key equipment to conduct a video conference meeting. Prior to the meeting, you simply need to send an online invitation to the people you need to talk to. Simply send an invite to your employees or prospective clients via email.
2. Better Attendance
Are you running out of patience for meetings with poor attendance? Video conferencing can help improve attendance, especially during the most important meetings.
With the different divisions in your company, a good number of your staff are in different areas. A video conference can solve the logistical challenge.
Your employees only need to take out their smartphones and tablets to join that important meeting. Furthermore, they can also enjoy access to valuable data and information without having to delay or postpone the meeting to a later date.
3. More Effective Than Audio Conferencing
One of the key elements of effective collaboration is the clarity of communication. This is where video conferencing trumps audio conferencing.
Video conferencing offers a more engaging level of communicating. With real-time images now coming into play, the feel, and conduct of the meeting changes. This means everyone can see everyone.
If you are in charge of the meeting, you can see the people who are not paying attention. You can see the attendees’ body language.
Audio conferencing gives attendees the room to “zone out” and drift away from the meeting. But with video teleconferencing, people are more attentive. Attendees are more aware of the discussion.
They will try to maintain eye contact with the other party, at least in a virtual manner.
If you are presenting a new product or a business proposal, video conferencing can help you earn the trust of a prospective client. Showing your face as you conduct your presentation can help foster a stronger relationship with a client. The latter can see with your facial expressions if you are sincere or not.
Since you already know how the other person looks like, you will no longer feel like talking to a stranger when you meet face-to-face.
4. Improvement in Communications
Through video conferencing, you can conduct more structured meetings. This will save you and your employees from going through a myriad of emails and voicemails.
Everyone follows a specific start time and end-time. With everybody keeping track of the limited time, people are more direct. There will be less time chatting and more time for productive talking.
This, however, doesn’t undermine the value of emails. But sometimes, relying heavily on the long email trains may cause confusion. Emails do not show the real intent or meaning behind messages.
You cannot see the real emotions behind the emails. With video conferencing, you can humanize your communications.
This particular advantage continues to prompt businesses to incorporate video conferencing. More companies are starting to use video conferencing in their unified communications strategies.
5. Real-Time Mobile Checks
One of the most irritating things that tick off business owners is seeing their employees slacking off. But through video conferencing, you can minimize these instances.
With just a few taps from your mobile device, you can connect with your employees who are out in the field. You can check up on their tasks and see if they are doing their job. You can also get real-time updates in case an urgent concern comes up.
In addition, you can instantly cascade announcements to a lot of people at the same time. You can do this regardless of the current location of your employees.
6. Fewer Conflicts with Time
Sometimes, meetings are at the mercy of people’s availability. Some employees are already at work in the morning while others will go in much later in the afternoon. When you need to call an important meeting, chances are, some of them aren’t around.
Through video conferencing, you can conduct meetings that are independent of time. Even if some of your staff is still at home, they can join the virtual meeting right at the comforts of their homes. This saves your company more time and resources in the long run.
You can accomplish more without having to physically converge under one roof.
7. Increase in Productivity
As we mentioned above, an online video conference will help increase employee productivity. This applies to different aspects.
With everyone communicating better, people can make faster and more decisive decisions. People are more in-sync with regards to brainstorming and agreeing with important decisions.
A video conference helps you explain and demonstrate things more effectively. If there are running changes in your new product, you can host a video conference with key personnel instantly. They can make real-time adjustments, which will save you more time.
If you are part of the human resources department, you can conduct job interviews. You can perform an initial screening of applicants regardless of their location.
8. Alignment Between Dispersed Teams
In a corporate structure, there are people who do their work inside the office. There are also those who have duties outside. Most of the time, these people fail to align in certain areas because they rarely see eye to eye.
But with video conferencing, you can align dispersed teams in an instant. This is highly beneficial if your company has operations in other countries. Regardless of their location and time zones, you can get in touch with employees with much ease.
You can set up a video meeting with a client who is thousands of miles across the country.
You can monitor their tasks and ensure that everyone is on the same page. You can track their progress and determine if they are meeting their deadlines or not.
9. The Greener Way
Of the different benefits of video teleconferencing, this is the one that leaves an impact beyond the business structure. Through video conferencing, you will lessen your overall energy consumption. You don’t need to drive or fly to different destinations for meetings.
In turn, this lessens your carbon footprint. You help reduce the production of carbon dioxide and other forms of air pollutants.
In the same manner, you also reduce your waste consumption. Whenever you conduct in-person meetings, you create different kinds of waste products. For starters, there are paper, toners, printer ink, and plastic water bottles.
All of these are landfill hazards.
Lastly, there is food waste. If you are conducting a big conference, you will likely order some food. Hence, there is a chance of people leaving snacks, cocktails, and other food leftovers.
10. Happier Employees
Finally, conducting more video conference sessions can lead to happier employees. This is because you are saving everybody a lot of time.
When people save a lot of time, they can finish their other tasks faster. If they complete their duties ahead of the deadline, they can go home earlier than usual.
In fact, a Harvard study noted that people who go home earlier to their families are happier. In addition, these people also become more productive in the following work day.
Enjoy the Benefits of Video Conferencing Today!
With the numerous benefits of video conferencing, it is a sin not to incorporate it in your business. If you already practice it, then you should consider using other tools that will help improve your business as a whole.
To learn more about how you can increase productivity, check out our other articles. Never get tired of learning.
Continue passing your knowledge down to your employees. Experience seeing your business enter a new frontier of success.
This is a sponsored post.
