Posts Tagged ‘Web Conferencing Service’

A Web Conference is Not that hard to do

Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010

I think that everyone is intimidated by new technology a little bit, but depending on the technology and the known benefits we will tolerate the learning curve.  Web Conferencing is no different.  Web conferencing has been around as a service for about 15 years now and even though its use is now pretty widespread, many people are still afraid to take the plunge.  But if you try a web conference once you will see that it is just not that hard to do.

Basically, anyone who can use a PC can do a web conference.  When the web conferencing services first came out there were downloads and PC settings to worry about just to get the web conference off the ground.  Today, however, starting a web conference is just a few clicks away.  Many of the services, including Zip Conferencing’s, do not require any download as they simply use the software that is already on your computer.  And the web conferencing service is usually integrated with an audio conferencing service, like Zip Conferencing does.  This makes it very simple to hold a remote meeting with a web conference and a audio conference call. 

To conduct a web conference as the Moderator all you have to do is open a browser, log into your web conferencing account, start a meeting by clicking on a start button and then click on Share your Desktop.  The participants on the web conference now see whatever is on your PC.  So to do a web conference presentation you simply need to be able to pull up your PowerPoint presentation, spreadsheet or whatever is part of your presentation and the audience will see it while you speak to them on the conference call.  It really is that easy.

A presentation that has visual elements is more impactful than just a conference call where you only listen to the presenter.  And in some cases you may need to share materials where without a web conference the only way to hold the meeting would be via a face to face meeting.  A web conference saves time, money and increases your productivity.  And it is REALLY easy to do!  So what are you waiting for?  Try a web conference today!

www.zipconferencing.com

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Web Conferencing with Video

Tuesday, September 8th, 2009

Maybe I am dating myself a little bit, but even young people these days have heard of the Jetsons.  When I was growing up the Jetsons were a popular cartoon on Saturday mornings and the concepts of flying cars, pushing buttons for a living and video telephones were introduced to a generation.  Certainly some of the ideas used in the cartoon may never come to pass and others already have to a degree.  But the one idea I think many people thought would have taken off by now is the video telephone.  Video conferencing has been around for a while and many people thought every business would have a video conference room at one point.  Then the concept of video conferencing was brought to the desktop and people again thought this it it, everyone will be doing it.  Well, as conference calls and web conferencing have continued to grow, video conferencing has not.

There are plenty of theories on why video conferencing has not grown much in the past ten years.  I think that several factors contribute to it, but I think mainly as a stand alone technology it is simply not as practical for businesses as web conferencing.  Just being able to see someone at distance while you talk to them is not adding much to the equation.  But now with web conferencing you can have integrated video within the web conferencing tool itself.  This marriage of steak and sizzle puts web conferencing in a position where you can have the added comfort of being able to see the presenter and focus on the materials in a presentation. 

In our web conferencing service is an integrated desktop video conferencing tool that is simple to use and provides the ability to see multiple parties as part of your conference call.  If you have a laptop with a camera integrated into the system or have added a camera to your laptop or desktop, you can now share your live image with the participants on your web conference by simply clicking a button.  As presenter on the conference call you can decide if the participants can also share their images with the other participants during the web conferencing.  A scroll bar allows you to look across multiple video feeds at once and have some control over the picture as well.

As an integrated part of a web conference, video helps connect you with your audience and yet keeps the focus where it should be, on the materials.

 

www.zipconferencing.com

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Web Conferencing makes the Meeting Room

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

The mass adoption of web conferencing hasn’t really happened yet, but it is surely well along the adoption path lifecycle.  Don’t get me wrong, web conferencing is growing like a weed and is today almost a $1B business in North America.  But when you look at the sheer number of conference calls going on today and the number of them that contain a web conferencing element to them it is a drop in the bucket.  What we ahve seen in the industry so far is the adoption of web conferencing for the killer applications and those users love it and use it extensively.  That segment continues to grow as more and more people discover that they can conduct online seminars, sales presentations and training sessions remotely using web conferencing services.  What hasn’t quite happened yet is the use of the web conferencing element on an everyday conference call.  Conference call moderators don’t think “Maybe I should start a web conference with this conference call just in case we want to share something.”

This use of web conferencing as an integrated part of the conference call is the next step in getting web conferencing to be a part of the online meeting experience.  The technology certainly is there.  Web conferencing is easy to use and can actually enhance the conference call without even sharing any visuals.  When you have a web conference up and with it an integrated audio conference call you can actually see the participants talking and know who is talking and as a moderator you can control the audio element of the call through online controls in the web conference.  And the pricing is certainly there.  Most web conferencing service providers today offer an unlimited seat package.  That means there is no additional cost to having a web conference up during every conference call.

If you happen to have a web conference up during every conference call someone might share something they otherwise would not be able to since they can share the visual element that was missing before.  Have you ever been in a meeting room that does not have a white board or flip chart for use?  Most have them there because during any meeting it is sometimes much easier to explain something using visual cues than simply trying to talk through the issue.  And the same hold true for the virtual meeting room on a conference call.  If the capability exists to share something visually and participants are used to having those tools available, they will begin to use the tools more often.  This will encourage more participation from the people attending the conference call and improve the communication in the meeting.

So, what are you waiting for?  Try using web conferencing with every conference call and see if it doesn’t start a better conversation in your next meeting.  www.zipconferencing.com

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