Most organizations, like yours, have teammates dispersed throughout the world who serve customers in various locations and work remotely in a flexible work climate.
Many workplaces are unfamiliar with working remotely because of the COVID-19 epidemic, which has caused several organizations to exercise extreme caution and safety while allowing workers to work from home until it’s safe to return to the office.
Now, many employees in businesses and sectors are turning to video meeting apps to conduct meetings as frequently as a weekly team meeting or as important as board meetings, making critical company decisions via video.
Individuals new to video conferencing may experience a learning curve as they become comfortable with video applications like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and other similar services.
While remote work may provide many benefits, it may also cause isolation in some cases. Video conferencing is one of the most useful tools for increasing productivity among remote workers.
Video conferencing is typically used instead of in-person communication for feeling connected with coworkers. For video conferencing and collaboration, there are a variety of applications and platforms to choose from.
Some, such as Cisco WebEx, are industry standards with a price tag to match. Others are becoming more popular and may even be free or low-cost. Here’s a list of the top 10 video chat apps for conducting efficient online meetings for your hybrid teams at any budget.
Let’s take a deeper look at some of them:
1. Zoom
Zoom is a well-known video conferencing software for businesses. It offers various features and pricing tiers depending on company size and requirements.
Zoom is free on a limited number of devices and operating systems. The free plan allows for personal and team meetings, whereas the premium plan costs $19.99 /month/host (with a minimum of 100 hosts) for large enterprises.
Millions of people worldwide enjoy using Zoom’s free plan, but if you need a more comprehensive solution for your remote teams, the business-level package offers up to 200 meeting participants, unlimited cloud storage, customizable emails, a vanity meeting URL, and more.
2. Skype for Business
Microsoft’s well-known Skype service is now being used as an enterprise-ready video conferencing platform. It has several business capabilities, such as holding up to 250 people in a meeting, integration with other Skype users, and virtual whiteboarding features.
There are some limits, such as an integrated dial-in audio conference function and hardware support for online-only subscriptions. The free version of Skype is a decent tool for small groups with fewer than ten members, and it’s a straightforward method to conduct free conference calls from your computer, phone, or tablet.
3. Slack
Slack is a very popular collaboration software used by businesses worldwide. It has incorporated video conferencing capabilities into the mix. But adopting this software for video conferencing won’t be necessary if your company isn’t already using it. However, it’s a simple method to have quick discussions if you already use Slack.
Video conferencing is an extra feature of Slack that may be beneficial for combining human and virtual teams. The purchase price for a one-on-one video chat is included in the cost of a Slack free account, and you can join up to 15 people in a call from a channel, but customized business pricing is required for larger meetings, which requires a tailored quote.
4. BlueJeans
BlueJeans is a powerful web conferencing software that works with many sharing applications. In contrast to certain of the more complicated services offered by rivals, Bluejeans uses a meeting system of meetings, rooms, and events to provide video meetings anywhere.
With the ability to start meetings from a browser, no software is necessary. Furthermore, the service allows for easy viewing of all video conference activities in your company. Enterprise teams can subscribe to Plans beginning at $16.65/month/host.
5. Whereby
This video chat service is perfect for small businesses looking for a simple way to connect team members. Its simplicity makes it fast. Users provide their meeting link, and anybody can participate in-browser, as opposed to (formerly Appear.in), which necessitates an app download or log in.
Whereby is free to join, but teams will want to pay $59.99/month to use it with multiple users and administrators.
6. GoToMeeting
The company’s basic membership plan starts at $14 per month for up to 10 meeting participants and $29 per month for 150 participants or more groups.
This teleconferencing software is well worth the investment, which comes with features like:
- HD video conferencing
- Business messaging
- Supports desktops, tablets and Smartphones.
- Screen sharing
- Record meetings
- Automatic Transcriptions
7. Cisco WebEx
Cisco’s WebEx video conferencing service is an industry-standard service, and it works like a hybrid of web conferencing and voice calling services for firms with a large number of team members or an enormous business.
Participants can now conduct virtual board meetings online or over the phone, depending on their location and availability at the time.
Costs
Basic Plan: Free
Their free plan has limited access to certain features, but it’s a great way for you to try before you buy.
Meet Plan: $13.50 per user/month
HD meetings with up to 200 people, screen sharing, recordings, breakout rooms, and more are available in the premium package.
Meet + Call Plan: $20 per user/month
When you join our Meet+Call plan, you will save money. You’ll get all of the features available in both the Meet Plan and Call Plan.
Enterprise: Flexible subscription plans
Useful for large gatherings, seminars, training sessions and support.
8. Google Meet
The Google conference call software is Google Meet, designed for business clients. It’s a more advanced version of Hangouts aimed at groups.
Google Meet is a video-conferencing software built around scheduled team meetings and has many of the same features as Zoom, such as calendar synchronization, conference room booking, and a more polished user experience.
You may access all of Google Meet’s features, including unlimited meetings of up to 300 hours in length, 250 people, the capacity to live-stream to up to 100,000 viewers, and 24/7 online assistance, by contacting the G Suite sales team for a personal quote.
9. Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams is one of the most well-known video conference solutions. Organizations that already use Microsoft technologies have most likely utilized at least some of Teams’ functions, but there’s still a lot to discover about it.
Microsoft Teams comes with a free edition that doesn’t need you to commit any time. The monthly cost of the Microsoft 365 Business Basic subscription is $5 per user; the price for 365 Business Standard is $12.50 per user per month, and Office 365 E3 costs $20.
Microsoft Teams is a cloud-based communication software that enables teams to collaborate more effectively. Unlike Cisco Webex, Microsoft Teams offers many features in its premium versions, justifying the fee versus what the free plan provides (which is still quite a lot).
Teams, in particular, is an obvious alternative for a Microsoft-centric office. The paid plans are well worth evaluating for a long-term investment in a remote workplace or a big business. If you’ve heard about Teams for some time and want to dip your toes before diving in, the free plan makes sense.
10. RingCentral
With minimal downtime, you may use RingCentral Video to host and chat in HD video and audio conferencing. It delivers the most integrated video, message, and audio experience possible while being lightning quick, unified, and accessible. It’s designed for teams and organizations of all kinds.
RingCentral operates in the web browser without the need to download anything. It also has good computer security and integration with a variety of other programs, including Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Salesforce.
RingCentral Meetings does not have an official trial period, but it does have a Free plan with many valuable functions. The Essentials variant is $14.99 per user per month, while the Advanced option costs $19.99 for each user per month.
