Meet You Online?

The “lock-down” state of the country – the world – has put a tremendous burden on computer technology, and, as is usually the case, also created tremendous opportunity.

The entertainment and communication factor aside, businesses have been strained to continue in business while unable to work, other than in skeleton crew size, from the office. Email, while a tool of immense value (you only have to imagine an isolating experience like this without it), isn’t always sufficient. Teams sometimes simply need to talk as a team. Teleconferences are great, but as anyone who has used the voice-only technology knows, lacking visual cues can make for talking over one another, background noise from participants, and awkward pauses.

Enter online video conferencing.

Again, this isn’t new technology – but until recently, had been limited to very specific groups and particularly to presentation style meetings. GoToMeeting, for example, is an application that’s been used extensively in business for meetings and presentations since 2004. Originally just for computer, the system is now available in mobile and tablet apps, and a single meeting can be held for 1-1000 participants (price dependent). The application was most frequently used for one-to-many webinars, with chat and questions available in a chat window. Meetings could be recorded for further dissemination.

Some of the focus today has – of necessity – shifted to small team meetings, with or without a shared screen option. They’re being used heavily today for “socially distanced” weekly or even daily team meetings, with every user able to log in on a smart phone or computer, and the video windows of either a speaker or the entire team available, some of these applications are free or very inexpensive, and allow people to chat (one-to-one or one-to-many), and hold a meeting or discussion online. Zoom has made a big name for itself if for no other reason than so many video recordings (it will record and even transcribe a meeting depending on how much you want to spend, from free to somewhat pricey) of people either pretending to be, or actually in a Zoom meeting that, usually because the users are unfamiliar with the technology, went horribly wrong. That said, the Zoom option is actually quite user-friendly, and does facilitate an office group getting together to stay connected and conduct business remotely.

Google Hangouts was rolled out quite a while ago, and was generally used for a free online chat or VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), and while it did have business adherents, was most often used the way texts are, but within the desktop/laptop environment. Now known as Hangouts Meet, the application has gained some traction in business, and can be used for 25 (free) up to 100 (for GSuite users), with recording available at the GSuite level.

Skype began as an online “phone call,” that enabled free (or low cost) calling anywhere in the world, as well as video calling. FaceTime made inroads into the face-to-face call market, and Skype for Business added enterprise calling for up to 10,000 for a webinar (one-to-many), as well as larger multi-participant meetings. Skype is now also being used for meetings, and will allow for recording.

There are as many as 50 commercially available applications available, ranging from a video chat between two people to a several thousand participant webinar, and we haven’t even touched on webcasts with chat support, which can reach tens of thousands with a live stream (and global reach).

Two conclusions are clear: if your business was caught without a meeting application before the virus altered the landscape, you are either searching for one now, and will no doubt have a selection in place either before, or soon after, business returns to business. And, given that work-from-home-office was an increasingly popular option where on-site time wasn’t absolutely necessary, it’s likely that “the office” will have changed permanently when the lockdown is lifted. With more businesses adopting dial-in meetings, and getting used to that option as a means of getting together periodically, while online meetings can never replace a commercial presence altogether, the world will undoubtedly look at least somewhat different when we emerge on the other side.

Nancy Roberts