Do you ever wonder how many people actually sit through your podcast? Is there a possibility that your customers or employees listen for a while, get distracted and blow off the last half? I imagine most people have done this at one time or another, so lots of us worry about it. There is an easy solution to this problem. You should consider replacing your podcasts with video conferences.

With Today’s Technology, Video Conferencing is Simple and Low-Cost

Bringing real time communication to your company does not have to cost a bundle. I recently read a blog article called “WebRTC: Changing the Way Business Communicates” by an industry specialist named Michael Vitale, who is Chief Technology Officer of a company called TalkPoint who said, “… a $100,000 video conferencing installation on a corporate network can realistically be replaced by a few laptops with high-definition webcams and monitors.” Doesn’t that blow your mind?

The only thing you need to convert your podcasts to real-time and deliver professional quality webcasts to thousands of people (or just that one important person) is a decent laptop with a good webcam and a subscription to a webcasting platform.

Why Is Video Conferencing Better Than Podcasting?

When you make a podcast available for download, you have one shot to present the material in the clearest, most engaging manner. If you’re not Jay Leno or David Letterman, you probably are not going to be able to keep anyone’s attention for any length of time.

Video conferencing is totally different because it allows you to engage your audience. The video conference takes place in real time, so you have the option of allowing attendees to participate in the discussion. You can poll them or address comments to them during the webinar to help keep them engaged. You can use a power point presentation, movie clips, or a simple white board to add interest and clarity. Best of all, you can attach a survey or test to the end of the webinar to provide confirmation of attendance and gather additional information or questions from your attendees.

Your attendees need nothing more than a regular computer, tablet or smartphone to attend. If anybody is absent, you can record your webinar and make it available to whoever needs to view it, at their convenience.

Use Video Conferences for Training

Traditional training methods require you to bring your employees together in one location and have a trainer available to teach them the material. The company ends up not only covering snacks or meals, but often paying travel expenses.

Using video conferencing, one trainer can train multiple employees in different states or even countries. The trainer and each attendee simply log in to the webcast at the specified time. It doesn’t matter if they are at home or at the office. Web conferences are totally portable. The webcast can be recorded and stored for future viewing as needed.

Building Teams with Webinars

If your project coordinator is in Arizona, your best closer is in Texas, and your design <h2department is in New York, you can use video conferencing to bring them all together. No more expensive flights and long hotel stays to launch the project. Video Conferencing can greatly increase your ROI by cutting expenses, maximizing productivity and facilitating collaboration between employees or clients at diverse locations.

Provide a Better Client Experience at a Lower Cost With Video Conferencing

Video conferencing can also be used to enhance your client experience. Build trust and loyalty with super-fast response times by leveraging your computer and webcam. In-person client meetings are great, but you can maximize your efficiency by using video calls to touch base between visits. Your clients will appreciate the more personal video call and value the time savings. With some free or nearly free applications, video conferencing can be done even with a small budget and without a computer. According to Simon Berg, CEO of Ceros, “I ran mine off an iPhone on a 3G connection. It works perfectly; you have to give it to them.”

Remember, no special equipment is needed to begin using video conferences instead of podcasts. Your basic laptop with a decent webcam should work very well. You can save money and maximize efficiency with just a few clicks.

Originally posted on December 8, 2014 @ 12:18 am