Amidst the COVID-19 crisis, working from home has become more common than ever as companies strive to remain open while keeping clients and employees safe. Video conferencing software is crucial to enabling businesses to connect employees with colleagues and clients, ensure collaborative projects stay on track, and keep the business running smoothly overall.
With so many options for video calling solutions available (and with new ones being released all the time), it can be difficult to find one that meets your specific needs. Here is our breakdown of five popular video conferencing programs, outlining their pros and cons and identifying which needs each one is best suited to handle.
All of these programs include the following key features:
Video & audio conferencing
Screen sharing
Remote desktop
Drawing & annotating tools
PC & mobile versions
Instant messaging/chat functions
Dial-in option (some have a fee)
Scheduling & meeting invitations
Recording & playback
SSL, AES-256 bit, and end-to-end encryption.
Best free tool: freeconferencecall.com
This website has been providing service for almost two decades and has had very few complaints since it started. It is one of the largest providers of online conference calls in the world. And, yes, it really is free—if you want it to be. They use a “Pay What You Can” policy, so you can decide to pay a certain amount if you want to.
There are also premium features, such as additional storage or a dial-in number, which come with their own fees.
Pros:
Video conferencing can have up to 1,000 participants for free.
Presentation tools and a free dial-in number.
Integration with Slack, Outlook, Google Calendar, Evernote, & Dropbox.
Cons:
Only 1GB of free cloud storage (can have up to 40GB for a fee).
No file sharing or storage.
Very few options for customization.
The bottom line:
Being free is a great draw, but you get what you pay for—it’s good for businesses with simple needs, but it does not have as many custom and advanced options and features as other programs.
Most user-friendly: Google Hangouts Meet
Google apps are frequently hailed as being pretty intuitive. Plus, many businesses already have G Suite accounts. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Google recently made all of the features in their highest paid Enterprise plan available for free to all G Suite users, through July 1, 2020.
Pros:
Integration with Skype and all G Suite applications, including Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Calendar.
Unlimited cloud storage in Google Drive.
File sharing & storage, free dial-in number, and certain presentation tools.
Cons:
Video conferencing is capped at only 250 participants.
No integration with Salesforce, Slack, or Outlook.
Reviewers frequently reported that Mac users have had trouble staying connected to calls or that the video and audio quality are not as strong as other apps.
Screen sharing has been reported to cause significant lags during calls.
The bottom line:
For current G Suite users, this is pretty perfect since it will integrate with all the Google apps already in use, but if all of a company’s other communication tools are with outside apps, try something separate that will integrate with the apps currently being used.
Best all-inclusive package: Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams comes as part of Office365 Business, so it is not a stand-alone video conferencing software. However, there is currently a promotion to get a “freemium” license of Microsoft Teams that is valid through January 2021. This version offers video & audio calls with up to 250 participants, recording, screen sharing, chat, collaboration, integration with existing Office apps, and 10GB of team file storage (but no ability to schedule meetings in advance). The paid plans included in Office365 Business include those features, plus some additional ones.
Pros:
Office365 comes with a host of other Office apps and features, such as a 50GB email with a custom domain name and 1TB of OneDrive cloud storage.
Integration with other Office apps, Google Drive, Slack, Skype, & Dropbox.
Automatic transcription, file storage & sharing, whiteboard collaboration, note-taking, background-blur technology, and ability to host live events with up to 10,000 people.
Cons:
Video conferencing is capped at only 250 participants & there is a fee for a dial-in number.
No integration with Salesforce, Google Calendar, or iCal.
Reviewers frequently report that the user interface is confusing and overly compartmentalized.
The bottom line:
If the only thing a company wants is video calling, then this may not be the right choice (except maybe the freemium version). But for businesses looking for a one-stop shop for most of their professional communication tools, then Office365 would definitely be one to consider.
Largest meeting size: GoToMeeting
While the regular paid plans host video conferencing for up to 250 participants, companies needing more can contact the sales team to set up a custom rate for up to 3,000 participants. LogMeIn, Inc. also offers other programs, such as GoToWebinar and GoToTraining that work well all together, but there are no price discount or bundle options available for combining purchases.
Pros:
Integration with Slack, all Office365 apps, Google Calendar, & Salesforce.
Unlimited cloud storage, automatic transcription, note-taking, presentation tools, free dial-in numbers, meeting lock, password-protected meetings, and recent audio enhancements, like background noise suppression.
HIPAA compliant.
Cons:
No file storage or sharing.
Reviewers frequently say that the screen-sharing process is unnecessarily complicated.
Customer service has a reputation of being unresponsive and unhelpful.
The bottom line:
This is perfect for those looking for a program made solely for large video conferencing that will also integrate with the other main professional apps that most companies use.
Best for businesses with advanced needs: Zoom
We’ve all heard about Zoom recently. Its usage has skyrocketed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and for good reason. It has tons of options for customization and advanced features, some of which are not offered with any other software. But we’ve also heard about them in the news for other reasons. In March, many of their security and privacy practices began to raise questions. They had their Facebook scandal, where it was discovered that Zoom was sharing device analytics data with Facebook without telling its users. But that issue was resolved on March 27 (confirmed by Motherboard). There is a free version, but it can only host up to 100 participants and each meeting has a 40-minute time limit. Here are the details of the paid versions.
Pros:
Video conferencing with the highest paid plan can have up to 1,000 participants and a 24-hour time limit.
Integration with Slack, Salesforce, Skype, Outlook, Google Calendar, iCal, Dropbox, Telehealth, & Polycom systems.
Automatic transcription, presentation tools, whiteboard collaboration, polls, file sharing & storage, background settings, and many customization options.
Can integrate well with a long list of external video and audio equipment, so it’s the best option for broadcasting in a large conference room or working with many people in one place.
Cons:
Extra fee for dial-in number and for cloud storage over 1GB.
Some of the advanced features allow what some people deem “unfair” surveillance of employees, including:
Attention-tracking, which notifies hosts when a meeting participant navigates away from Zoom as their primary window. This means that people clicking out of the video to take notes or check a reference versus watching cat videos on Facebook would all be notified in the same way to the host.
Administrators can join any call at any time, without previous warning or consent of the meeting participants.
“Zoom-bombing” has become rampant, due to the program’s increased popularity. This is when meeting participants or hijackers exploit features such as screen-sharing to display unwanted or offensive material that would be visible to all participants. There are ways to prevent Zoom-bombing, but they are complicated and not very intuitive.
The bottom line:
Zoom has its issues, but those problems can be avoided if people are willing to put in the effort. Its unique, advanced features and customization possibilities are unparalleled by other programs, making it a useful, if somewhat complex, program for businesses desiring the most innovative software. However, for industries with more stringent privacy regulations, such as healthcare/HIPAA, the program should be thoroughly evaluated to determine if the usability is worth the risk.
Baobab Partners has been a primarily remote firm since day 1, and we have extensive experience setting up IT solutions that empower companies to work effectively without being in an office. If you're struggling with questions of process or technology, or just how to handle the transition to an all-virtual workforce, please reach out to us directly at 919-724-9260. We are offering all businesses a free 30 minute consultation to offer our support during these difficult times.
