Could Online Meetings Save You Money? Submitted by http://www.isavesmart.com

Rapid growth in fuel prices is forcing business to consider alternatives to business travel.

One alternative being considered is online meetings. Some estimates indicate that the use of web-conferencing can save as much as $2,000 per executive each year.

Web conferencing has been taken to a new level by the introduction of high-speed, multi-megabyte broadband connections. A combination of real-time video, audio, instant messaging and application sharing can enable colleagues to see and hear each other while working simultaneously on the same documents anywhere in the world. All that is required is a headset and microphone plus optional webcam.

There are more sophisticated services available that allow participants to online meetings using laptops and 3G phones.

The quality experienced of both audio and video was notoriously poor due to slow internet connections. There were also severe restrictions on numbers attending online meetings due to strains on the limited bandwidth available.

Online meetings were also overlooked due to the security concerns that surrounded them. The use of an open network to conduct a private meeting always gave rise to a possible threat to confidentiality.

The good news for business is that these problems have now largely been sorted out, and a fiercely-competitive market is growing rapidly attracting internet giants such as Microsoft. Even better news is that prices are being driven down by this competition, and fully managed online conferencing services are now within the grasp of even the smallest business.

However, tread carefully before you start booking that first online conference. Establish which elements of these services will really improve the efficiency of your operation.

Live video conferencing will not be the answer for all firms. For a lot of companies a VoIP ("voice over internet protocol") service or instant messaging, possibly combined with application sharing, will serve all of their needs.

Another trap to be avoided if you will be including third parties in your web meetings - do not use a service provider who requires all participants to be using their own proprietary software.

Finally, if you are using any form of encryption in your online meeting confirm that it covers all forms of media that are being used.

 Articles Source - Free Articles
About the Author

At Five Marketing Mark Vandorone provides a simple, fast, and extremely powerful source of online advertising. You can try out Mark's service by visiting http://www.fivemarketing.com This article submitted by http://www.isavesmart.com