An overview & benefits of Video Conferencing Software as a Team Building Tool

With the quarantine procedures, we are following right now, gathering your team to conduct conferences or meetings can be quite tricky. 

According to research from Statista, the number of downloads for video conferencing apps is increasing due to COVID 19. It’s easy to see why. Teams can conduct virtual meetings conveniently and help engage employees while working remotely. 

If you are considering whether you should implement one for your organization, here are some benefits that might help you make up your mind as well as things to consider so you can plan out how you’ll navigate around potential challenges in advance.

Benefits of video conferencing software

1. Save time, money, and effort

Having in-person meetings do not only require effort but also budget. While in-person interaction is necessary with other meetings, you can alternatively stay connected and engaged through virtual meetings. Using technology, you can save time and money associated with traveling for in-person meetings, allowing you to allocate resources to more substantial tasks.

You can use FLOOR to plan, start and manage your virtual events. It’s equipped with all the necessary features you need to host your events digitally — from onboarding and registration to live streaming and session recording for later playback.

Moreover, getting in touch with your colleagues also eliminates lengthy email discussions and back-and-forths. It can be a struggle when there are specific issues you need to resolve quickly, but you can’t get a hold of some of your employees.

But being able to contact and gather your team anytime and anywhere, you can quickly brainstorm and find resolutions together. You no longer have to spend too much time getting everyone on the same page so you can complete projects or tasks as efficiently and quickly as possible.

2. More structured communication

With a structured communication, the information you deliver is clear and easy to follow. For large scale meetings, it is inevitable to get lost in the different perspectives of the participants. You can use a video conferencing tool to structure communication from the get-go and avoid such an issue.

Before a meeting starts, let the host give the participants a master sheet of agenda to discuss. This will help everyone stay on track so you will know which key discussion items you should address, and avoid talking about topics that are not crucial at hand.

3. Record video meetings

Attendance is important in meetings, but there are inevitable cases when a few employees might not be around — whether it’s due to an emergency or they have a sudden, urgent task. Not getting the information to all the key personnel in your organization defeats the purpose of a meeting. 

Fortunately, most video conferencing software allows you to record video meetings and review later on. With that, everyone can view what’s discussed at a later time, ensuring the topics discussed get across everyone. It is also an accurate way to record minutes of the meeting. Oftentimes, you will end up missing a few things during the meeting as you’re jotting down items in real-time. Reviewing the recordings can help you see any factors you missed.

4. Allows you to show more and tell less

Some information requires a lot of explaining and consists of too many details. Instead of discussing them verbally, you can provide visual representations to quickly deliver the information you want to relay. For example, you can use graphs and charts to represent your data. Using visuals makes information easier to digest, helping your audience understand your points more effectively.

You can do so using a video conferencing app’s screen-sharing feature. This not only makes things easier to understand but also improves interaction among participants.

Lately, many people appreciate the value of video conferencing, as it is becoming more mainstream. If you are also into video conferencing and virtual events, you might want to check out this article that talks about 5 lessons you must learn as virtual events get mainstream.

5. Builds and strengthens relationships

Compared to audio conferencing, video conferencing is a more effective way to collaborate with colleagues. Hosting a virtual event is a more engaging way to collaborate as it allows everyone to interact with each other. Seeing each other face-to-face is also more interpersonal. Besides, interactions are more productive when you see how your participants react or respond to the meeting.

Because of the quarantine protocols, companies adapt to technology to conduct video conference call team building activities. A survey from Statista shows that 19 percent of the respondents’ companies host professional development sessions. In contrast, 35 percent of the respondents’ companies do not host any virtual event. That is why some organizations host digital team building activities, keeping everyone engaged remotely. 

6. Fewer time conflicts

Video conferencing lets anyone join virtual meetings in the comfort of their homes. Thus, you can ensure the availability of every participant without physically having them under one roof. Oftentimes, agreeing to a schedule that works for everyone can be impossible, especially when factors such as travel time, transportation, and physical locations are involved.

Through video conferencing, you can schedule your meetings that meet everyone’s availability. Additionally, the best video conferencing app can help you with this if you can sync or integrate the solution with your calendar system. This functionality not only makes it easier to schedule meetings, but it is also easier to add participants to your group.

If you are in the look out for various options of video conferencing software tools to compare and contrast, check out the list. Evaluating different solutions can help you be familiar of common features and narrow down the list of key functionalities you need for your organization’s unique processes.

Factors to consider

1. Lighting quality

One of the common issues during video conferences is low lighting. It makes it a not very pleasant experience when members can’t see clearly who they’re talking to, defeating the purpose of video calls. 

Hence, talk with your team and outline best practices to observe during the web conference. For instance, you can ask them to stay in a well-lit room.

2. Audio issues

Audio issues such as echoing, scratchy noises, or loss of sound are common problems during video conferences. Since most audio issues occur because of the user’s equipment, don’t forget to ask your employees to check their devices’ compatibility and settings first. Then, ensure that all the cables are connected well.

Additionally, another issue that some may encounter is background noise. To avoid this, ask everyone to stay in a quiet and controlled environment during video conferences. But if you are in a crowded place, you can mute your microphone when you are not talking to avoid unnecessary noise and distractions during meetings.

3. Weak internet connection

The main sign of this issue is a laggy video screen, choppy audio, and delays. Video calls take more bandwidth than chat, so ask your team to make sure they have a stable connection before the call to avoid wasting time. 

Team Building Using Technology

Team building is one of the most crucial ways that can help improve relationships between employees. It builds trust, develops skills, increases collaboration, and encourages communication. With less engagement, there might be a lesser productivity rate, and decision-making can be a struggle.

At the same time, virtual team building challenges can be expected. Not everyone is as adept in moving to technology for such interactions, but the absence of team building can be a hindrance to achieving your business goals. That is why despite the challenges we are facing right now due to the pandemic, you should not limit you from giving your employees a fun virtual team-building experience.