Video Conferencing: Use it to run a better business
We all know that technology is becoming a huge part of work life, and video conferencing is the perfect example of how true that statement is when it comes to everyday communication. A live video conference is much more effective than a phone call in many different situations. For example, you may need to visually demo a new product with your international sales team or troubleshoot an issue that requires data sharing with a client. Literally seeing what you are discussing is far more effective and meaningful than trying to describe it verbally with an audio conference. Here are 6 ways video conferencing helps with business management and efficiency:
- Video conferencing helps reduce employee travel costs
The ability to be in several places at once without leaving your office is the next thing driving business productivity. Though face-to-face interactions with your customers, partners and colleagues will never be replaced, the huge leaps in quality have made video conferencing is the next closest thing to being there in person. When you calculate the number of trips taken annually and determine the associated costs from transportation to and from the airport, plane tickets, food, and opportunity costs of time lost in travel it becomes clear as to why video conferencing is such an attractive alternative. Businesses often see that the cost of travel for just one employee can far outweigh the expense of a video conference system that can be used by the entire company–however, this is far from the reality. With business video conferencing with BlueJeansfor example, your business expenditure will be able to stand the test of time because it will stay compatible with existing information system infrastructure and growing with your business without the need for you to buy new hardware.
- Video conferencing helps increase employee productivity
In today’s business world it is not unusual to have remote offices across the country or even the globe. Most of these offices will communicate with phone calls, email, or instant messages. The lack of face-to-face communication can cause misunderstandings within your teams, and worse, can result in lost of communication. When video conferencing implemented by providers like BlueJeans, employees are more likely to stay alert and focused on what is being discussed. As a result, projects are completed faster, productivity increases, and employees feel more in synch with each other and the message you want to convey.
- Video conferencing build stronger employer/employee relations
During a video conferencing call you can see the facial expressions and body language of conference participants which leads to faster and more effective collaboration. These are both important aspects of communication that are lost with a basic telephone call. Having an employer hold a company wide meeting in real time when there are office locations across the globe makes employees feel closer to where the organization is based out of. Imagine being able to speak with a producer of your products across the continent and viewing the prototype in real time. What would previously have required an expensive and time consuming flight, can now be down in minutes from the comfort of your own desktop computer
- Video conferencing provides your business with a competitive advantage over direct competition
There is no benefit for being second in bringing new products or ideas to market, and video communication creates and maintains competitive advantage for your business. Teams that communicate through video, will share knowledge faster and will be more informed, which reduces the time required to bring a new product or service to your customers. Support departments using videoconferencing can establish more personal relationships with their customers, which encourages a much deeper loyalty than just speaking on a phone with a call center. If you need to manufacture a product, you can verify the quality, make changes, and ensure accuracy through your product’s life cycle. You can accomplish in less than an hour, what it takes your competition to do in a week via shipping the product for review.
- Video conferencing enhances the management of training processes for businesses
Video conferencing has been a significant benefit to training organizations. No longer must students travel to receive training. Instructors are able to train more students at one time. Thousands of people can be trained in a much shorter period of time by using video conferencing. Instructors would not be able to accomplish training goals without using video conferencing. Travel would have been costly and would have resulted in a longer time to complete the training.
- Video conferencing launches marketing materials more quickly
The use of video conferencing has allowed marketing decisions to be made more quickly and include more people in the decision-making process. Using video conferencing in the development of a global marketing campaign for a new product launch is highly effective. The global nature of some businesses mean employees work around the clock. The use of video conferencing allows the quicker launch of the marketing materials.
