Six Ways to Use Video Conferencing for Your Small Business

The internet has provided various tools for business communication that not only help with  marketing and sales, but are also very cost effective when running a business. Tools such as social media, cloud storage and video chats can be very useful to any entrepreneur. There are also free services such as Google+Hangouts or other paid subscriptions such as Skype that may also be helpful to a small business.

Small business owners are always looking for ways to save money. One way they can save money is by using video conferencing. It is an extremely valuable option for businesses since it can save them money while staying efficient. There are many ways a small business can use video conferencing to aid and increase business prospects.

1) Save money: As an entrepreneur, one concern you may have is saving business costs. By using the Internet to communicate with your employees, you can save on costs for space and equipment. Your employees could work from their own space which means they are likely to be happier and more productive. You can save a lot on the costs of equipment such as computers,  furniture, or on different bills if employees can work outside of the office. At the same time, you can also check in with your employees from time to time about their performance.

2)  Telecommuting: By staying connected online or through other video conferencing methods, you can have a staff with institutional knowledge of your business without having any restrictions of time or space. Doing so can mean you may only need some employees a few days a week or you can keep staff and employees who want to relocate but are useful to your business and clients. All this can be achieved at a low expense by using video conferencing tools like google chat, skype, or web conferencing.

3) Hire people in different time zones: Hiring people for your business in another time zone isn’t a problem when you are working over the internet. When it comes to expanding your business, you don’t have to worry about geographical locations. As an employer, you’ll be able to keep track of employee performance and use social media to locate prospective clients or buyers for your business products.

4) Stay connected: Tools for video conferencing such as web conferencing or chatting can enable team members in different locations to meet regularly. You won’t need to wait for a quarterly or annual meeting to discuss important issues. Weekly or regular conferences over the net can work just as well to keep matters moving and ideas flowing. Video conferencing software can help demonstrate ideas, display new products, services, or materials, it also allows you to  hold discussions and get immediate feedback on your proposals or suggestions.

5) Save on travel time and expenses: By using online meetings with your clients or employees, you can save a lot of time and avoid long, tiring, expensive business trips. Instead, the time that would be used for traveling can be used for more productive activities. Employees would be happier to work in a stress free environment. The relaxed work structure definitely contributes to constructive work.

6) Provide a personal connection: Video conferencing has its advantages compared to talking on the phone. Either way can be effective to communicate, but through video conferencing, your clients can see your facial expressions, your body language and have a better vision of their association with you. The prospective customer or buyer gets a chance to analyse your personality and your presentation skills that can set you apart from your competitors. Make sure you look presentable during the conference, check your hair, make up for women, and clothes to make sure you don’t look messy or tired even if it’s the last hour of the day. More importantly, video conferencing sessions can be recorded or archived for future reference. This means that important statements, valuable discussions, and ideas can be stored and referred to later.

Apart from the benefits you’ll enjoy as an entrepreneur, using video conferencing will give you more time to take care of other work related issues. You will also be able to enjoy your time at home stress free knowing that you could you were able to accomplish more at work by using video conferencing and now have more free time at home. You can’t ignore the time you need to give yourself or your family as an individual.

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Shelly Verma is an avid small business writer touching on topics from insurance, health, higher education, career improvement, self-help to home improvement.