Once you’ve decided to integrate a new and improved communications solution into your business, your work begins in finding the right platform. In today’s marketplace, you’ll want to explore all of your options thoroughly before making a decision. A popular video conference platform you may have heard of is Microsoft Teams.
What is Microsoft Teams?
Microsoft Teams is a chat-based workspace of Office 365. It integrates your contacts, video, and voice calling, and project management to integrate seamlessly into many other collaboration tools.
As you’re looking at your options for online conference platforms, you might find Microsoft Teams is not a good fit for you. If you are exploring alternatives to Microsoft Teams, there are many comparable options to choose from.
1.Zoom
Zoom gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic as the workforce pivoted to remote work. It had a few security issues at first since hackers were able to break into and disrupt meetings. Developers later resolved this issue, but it might indicate that the platform has weaker security than other platforms.
Overall, it offers many of the same features as MS Teams. These include whiteboard tools, breakout rooms, screen sharing, in-call chat functions, integrations, cloud file storage, analytics, and more.
To read a more in-depth comparison of Microsoft Teams vs Zoom read our detailed comparison in our blog: Zoom Vs Microsoft Teams: What's the Difference?
2.Slack
Slack is another great alternative to Teams. It’s a bit more affordable if you’re looking for a free plan, as you don’t need an existing account or subscription to use it. However, the free version of Slack comes with limited features that users can unlock by upgrading to a paid tier.
There are many shared features between Teams and Slack. These include private messaging, channels (or “teams”), file sharing, screen sharing, web/desktop/mobile apps, integrations, productivity tools and many others.
Overall, Slack is an excellent project management and communication platform, ideal for organizations with multiple teams and projects.
3.Google Meet
Google Meet is another popular option, as it comes free with a Google account. Beware that the free version limits call duration. This may hinder productivity if your business tends to have longer meetings. Security is a perk for Google Meet, with complex meeting IDs that are hard for hackers to guess via brute force attacks.
Like Teams, Google Meet has screen sharing, customized backgrounds, meeting host controls, audio and visual preview, and integrations.
4.Cisco WebEx
Many businesses opt for Cisco Webex, another video meeting-focused platform. As an ideal option for hosting webinars, Webex offers many accessibility features. such as closed caption translation for over 100 languages, HD video, crisp audio, and gesture recognition during webinars.
Webex has a free plan, with a relatively wide range of features compared to other free versions. Just like Teams, Webex has features like breakout rooms, video messaging, meeting recording, integrations and end-to-end encryption.
Overall, Webex is best for bigger companies that host large webinars. This is because of its advanced security features, multilingual accessibility, and larger meeting capacities.
5.Skype
Skype has been around since 2003, giving it a 14-year head start over Microsoft Teams, released in 2017. For many, Skype was the first well-known video conferencing platform and remains a great choice for businesses today.
With basic SMS functions, you can message team members directly through Skype. However, there is no way to efficiently organize team chats like Teams allows. This makes Skype less than ideal for organizations with several users.
Other features shared by Teams and Skype include free plans allowing for meetings with up to 100 participants, video recording, captioning, and customized backgrounds.
6. Honorable mention: Asana
Although Asana is not a virtual conference platform, it has many similar features to Microsoft Teams. As a project management platform, it can store files and help you organize team communication and assigned tasks.
Like Teams, it allows for SMS messaging in organized group messaging channels along with private messaging. All things considered, Asana is a great choice for complex project management and user-friendly group chat functions.
What to Look For in Cloud-Based Business Communications Solutions
Several factors go into choosing the right virtual conference software for your needs, including accessibility, ease of use, security, sound and visual quality, and more.
Accessibility and Ease of Use
There’s nothing more tedious than having technical difficulties during a call or video meeting. It can slow down productivity, annoy clients, and set a negative tone for your meeting. For this reason, look for a platform that has a simple and modern user interface that your users will gravitate towards.
Accessibility for participants who speak different languages or need visual or audio accommodation should also be taken into account. Some features to help with this include real-time closed captioning and translation.
Security Features
Cybersecurity is a worry for virtual conferences as hackers are improving at breaking meeting codes and passwords. For this reason, ensure your chosen platform has security features such as:
- Unique PINs for each meeting
- Waiting rooms for participant authentication
- Multi-factor authentication (MFA)
- Meeting encryption
Quality Video and Audio
Crisp audio and clear video starts with a quality connection. A bad connection is a major cause poor call quality. Learn how to fix it in our blog here: 6 Common Issues with Video Conferencing and How to Solve Them.
Besides finding a good conferencing platform, it's important to invest in compatible video conferencing equipment.
Read more about what to look for in video conferencing equipment in our blog about it here: An Ultimate Guide to Video Conferencing Equipment for Small to Large Rooms.
Easy Meeting Scheduling and Setup
It’s useful to know exactly what your internal staff and external parties need to do to join meetings.
Do participants need to download software beforehand? Will they need to enter passwords? Can they access meetings via an app? These are all questions you’ll want answered before investing in a platform.
Integrating A New Communication Platform into Your Workplace
When you’re creating your business communications plan, partnering with a quality managed communications provider is a great way to find the right software and support.
Click the button below to speak to an experienced managed communications expert to talk about your business.
