Curious about web conferencing? This article
will help you understand what is involved and some of the benefits.
Web Conferencing Services: Meetings in Cyberspace
Author: Jay Moncliff
A web conference allows groups of
individuals in different locations to have online meetings and discussions
via the world wide web. Large corporations, small businesses, families and
educational institutions are all taking advantage of this new form of
communication. However, most web conferencing is currently done in the
business sector.
By reducing the amount of face-to-face meetings, companies
are able to reduce travel expenses, meeting costs and overhead. Web
conferencing provides the same business to business or business to client
interaction at a fraction of the cost.
Utilizing web conferencing services reduces lateness and absenteeism to
company meetings, since the meetings are easier and quicker to attend.
Employees can view the web cast at a common location or at their own
personal computers, depending on how the conference is configured.
Additionally, materials and information can be shared equally, making
participation more uniform and useful.
Companies that specialize in providing web conferencing services abound on
the internet. There is a software and application for almost every size
business, and prices vary as widely as the sophistication of the software.
Most companies charge per minute, per person, or on a flat rate basis, so be
sure to review the rate structure as it pertains to your business.
Some of the companies that provide web conferencing services limit
themselves to Windows and Internet Explorer, but others are expanding into
Firefox and some of the other browsers. Webex works with the Internet
Explorer browser and Windows and is one of the most popular web conferencing
services out there. You may also want to check out other providers who
charge a flat monthly fee like eBoardroom Suite at about $250 per month if
you are planning on heavy utilization.
Microsoft Office LiveMeeting offers any user visiting its website a free 2
week trial. You can have your first web meeting on them. The trial includes
meetings with up to 10 attendees for the first 14 days, the ability to embed
a web page into your meetings and have all of the participants view it,
application sharing and live polling capabilities. After the free trial, you
may decide to purchase the software or go with another carrier. With their
full software you can even choose to record or archive your meeting.
Whatever software you choose, investigate costs carefully. Price plans vary
widely, so decide how you’ll be using the software in advance and choose a
plan that will allow you the most access at the least cost. Since some plans
charge per participant and others charge per minute, preplanning and
choosing the correct plan can make web conferencing services a bargain!
About The Author:
Jay Moncliff is the founder of http://www.webconferencingsolutions.info a
website specialized on Web Conferencing, resources and articles. This site
provides updated information on Web Conferencing. For more info on Web
Conferencing visit: http://www
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