Once in a while, a new technological innovation comes around that helps to revolutionise the way in which businesses, community groups, government-run services and private individuals communicate. Following in the footsteps of the telephone, the internet and various tools including mobile phones and emails, video conferencing could be the next big thing in communication.
Video Conferencing
As soon as the technology behind video conferencing was harnessed and made available for widespread use, it has been used mainly for long-distance communication between distant relatives, business partners and community groups looking to keep in touch. The picture resolution has generally improved, while delays and loss of connection are two problems which are less frequent.
Long-distance benefits
Despite that, take-up of video conferencing technology by those who might find good use for it, namely the business community, isn’t what it might be despite the many benefits that it can bring. Businesses using video conferencing technology can:
- Talk to clients based thousands of miles away
- Arrange meetings with workers away from the office
- Enable people to work from home if they can’t make it to the office for some reason
Small businesses in particular could find video conferencing useful for letting staff work from home. In some ways, it can actually help them to keep costs down. By letting so-called remote-workers do their jobs at home by communication via video conferencing technology, less money gets spent on computing, energy bills and office space, which for small firms can prove very useful indeed.
Small businesses get major benefits
As a spokesperson from Telecommunication leaders Powwownow commented, remote working could be made easy with video conferencing. They said:
“There will always be situations where a face-to-face meeting is required. However, in most cases, video conferencing is as good as the real thing.
“Being able to see the people you are talking with means that you are better able to read responses through body language. This makes debates easier and, coupled with the ability to share and review data together in real-time, increases productivity.
“We recognise that remote working can be beneficial for workers and employers alike. Employers save money while employees save time, while they don’t feel like they’ve been cut adrift by the office thanks to new technology making communication easier than ever.”
Small firms who decide to use this technology are unlikely to look back. Ease of communication and being able to work in a smaller space without skimping on staff numbers can make a big difference to profit margins, among other things.