e-Collaboration Tools: Not Just For the Big Boys Anymore

Learning and Training Innovations Magazine
April 2003

Until recently, only large companies could take advantage of on-line collaboration tools (also known such as e-conferencing or Web conferencing solutions) and their associated benefits. Prohibitively high technology costs and the hurdle of complex implementation have kept smaller companies from taking advantage of the benefits of Web conferencing, which include huge savings in time and money and considerable enhancements in productivity. In fact, even today only about five percent of Fortune 1000 companies use data conferencing technology.

These smaller companies, need the benefits that on-line conferencing offers. Like larger companies, small to medium sized businesses (SMBs) need to stay close to customers and to get their products to market quickly in order to stay competitive. A soft economy means that SMBs have to do more, do it more quickly, and with less infrastructure and support than ever before. Meanwhile, the expectations of customers, business partners and co-workers are evolving to the point that decisions must be made quickly, problems addressed immediately, and communication between everyone coordinated seamlessly. Added to the mix is the reality that key players in any given situation may often be in geographically dispersed.

Fortunately, collaboration software vendors are offering products that are feature rich and affordable enough for even the smallest company. First to market were high cost server solutions and as well as offerings from application service providers (ASPs),. ASPs host the application on their own servers, then sell it as a service with an associated monthly charge based on the number of users or bandwidth needed. These solutions, from vendors such as WebEx Communications Inc. and PlaceWare Inc., cost about $100 to $200 per concurrent user per month plus initial setup fees.

Now, however, solutions are available that can be hosted on a company’s own server at a fraction of the cost. For example, Linktivity’s WebDemo Web Cconferencing solution costs $2,000 for a five-seat concurrent user license (about the same cost as two -months of service under the ASP model). "Overall, we save between $1,600 and $4,000 per month using WebDemo versus [our former] Web conferencing service provider," said Mark Zimmerman, vice president of IT, at Gevity HR, a provider of outsourced human resource solutions based in Bradenton, FL.

Ease of use has also reached unmatched levels—the system can be installed and operational in as little as 45 minutes and users can start hosting and attending meetings with little or no training.

At first glance, it is clear that Web conferencing is a perfect tool for any sales department that wishes to supplement face-to-face company sales meetings, and or meetings with existing and potential customers. The Internet-based interface of these types of collaboration tools allows for the ready exchange of documents in order to encourage collaboration, as well as for on-line product demonstrations.

"As a software company, we used to do more ‘on the road’ sales demos. Now, thanks to WebDemo, we save money on travel and other resources by doing live product demos online,” said Tim Kisner, training manager at Gyrus Systems, a learning management software company in Richmond, VA. “Sales prospects have come to accept this approach as the industry norm, and they appreciate the fact that we’re utilizing their own time and resources better."

Many organizations also choose to have regular weekly or monthly “virtual” sales meetings, in addition to less regular on-site meetings. These online meetings are ideal to for reviewing new product rollouts, conducting sales training, sharing sales and closing techniques, and building team spirit.

Once SMBs experience online collaboration for sales, though, they often choose to migrate the solution to other departments. Collaborative Strategies Inc., a consulting firm in Boston, MA, estimates that in 2000, Web marketing and sales demos only accounted for 15 percent of the 1.2-billion-dollar data conferencing market. Other potential uses for collaboration software include corporate e-training and e-learning (23 percent of the market), technical support (9 percent), and project management (4 percent). Some small businesses are also exploring the use of Web conferencing for the human resources department, IT, and operations collaboration, as well as for connecting with peripheral corporate groups, such as the board of directors or external business partners. With products such as WebDemo, connecting with outside companies is simple, since they need nothing more than a Web browser and an Internet connection to participate.

Some of the savings inherent with Web conferencesing are obvious: no hotel, rental car or airline costs, for example. Other savings are less obvious but also significant. Employees spend less time traveling to meetings, whether they are across town or across the country. In addition, meetings often become more efficient. If additional expertise or information is needed during a meeting, additional attendees can be readily added to the meeting so that they can participate fully.

Web conferencing allows for the quick organization of small ad hoc meetings (eight participants or less). This trait mirrors the way that employees at SMBs typically work—interactions tend to be spur-of-the-moment and include fewer participants than typical interactions in larger companies. Each person can attend a meeting at a moment’s notice, simply by turning to their personal workstation and logging into the meeting.

SMBs should look for some basic functionality when choosing an online collaboration solution. For example, a file transfer feature should be available that allows the meeting host to transfer files to meeting attendees in real time. A “transfer host” capability will allow the meeting owner to pass control of the meeting to any other individual at the meeting without starting a new session. In addition, some better e-conferencing products enable users to release control of their computer to another remotely user; this feature is critical in help desk situations where a tech support person is trying to help a user troubleshoot a software problem. Finally, good Web conferencing products have the ability to record and playback meetings—this allows for those who cannot attend the meeting “live” to review the session at a more convenient time.

Today, Web conferencing solutions provide an easy to use, affordable and efficient solution for small and medium sized businesses. Using this type of technology both within and outside the organization will allow SMBs to rise above their competition by reducing costs, increasing efficiency, and providing superior customer service.

About Linktivity
Linktivity, a 20 year-old Tucson, Arizona-based division of Converging Technologies Inc., provides server-based communications and control products that enable person-to-person interactions through a browser window. Linktivity products include WebDemo, a Web-based, real-time conferencing and collaboration software tool, and WebInteractive, a real-time software tool that gives support professionals an efficient way to manage and resolve online support requirements for personal computers. For more information, please visit www.linktivity.com.