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An introduction to virtual meetings

By Lasa Information Systems Team

In these tough economic times, new web based technologies are making virtual meetings not only a less expensive replacement for physical meetings but also more effective in terms of exchanging information and networking with colleagues. This article provides a brief explanation of virtual meetings and why you might want to use them.

What are virtual meetings?

Online virtual meetings – also called conferences, seminars or webinars - take place over the internet using features such as audio and video, instant messaging, slideshows and screen sharing. 

Why are they significant?

Virtual meetings can be a great way of saving time and money on travel and venue hire to physical events, as well as an effective way of exchanging information in an interactive and dynamic way.  Virtual meetings can also be used to meet needs for different types of event - such as delivering a training session, presenting a topic for information or even hosting a meeting for remote workers.  Many of the tools for virtual meetings are also low cost and within reach of small organisation’s budget. 

Are virtual meetings right for you?

Do you have sufficient capacity? 

If done properly, virtual meetings can be a considerable undertaking for an organisation of any size.  Experienced providers estimate that it can take from between 20 and 70 work hours to organise, promote, facilitate and deliver a virtual meeting.

Face to face: 

Whilst virtual meetings may be appropriate for many situations, there are times when only face to face will do – such as engaging hard to reach groups, delivering motivational talks, and networking with decision-makers.

What Do Online Conferencing Tools Do?

The basic function of virtual meeting tools is to provide an online “meeting room.”  Some tools require participants to download a small application the first time they're used, an important consideration if many different people of different technical skill levels will be participating. 

These are some of the key features to look for: 

Video conferencing  

Some more advanced tools let presenters broadcast video of themselves talking.  If they have Web cams, participants can broadcast themselves. 

Desktop/Screen/Document sharing

This basic feature lets participants see exactly what's on the presenter's screen.  Presenters can share anything from simple documents to PowerPoint presentations and software demonstrations.  If you need to show desktops for Mac, Linux or Firefox users, look for a tool that supports that. 

Desktop remote control

This lets you grant control of your desktop to someone else, allowing them to open and work with the applications on your computer - for example, to provide you with technical support via your machine. 

Web site co-browsing

If your conferencing needs are limited to showing or sharing a web site, this is likely to create a better view for the participants, and requires less bandwidth than desktop sharing. 

Text chat

This lets participants and presenters “talk” to each other via typed text chat during presentations.  Some tools let all participants see such messages, while others allow for private one-on-one messaging. Some more advanced tools even provide for “breakout rooms” where multiple participants can chat privately. 

Promote attendees to presenters

If you have multiple presenters, some allow you to shift meeting control temporarily to a participant. They can then show their own desktop, advance slides or demo another application. 

Polls

The ability to do quick polls to gauge participants’ options or situations can help keep them engaged.  

Whichever tool you select, pricing is normally based on a combination of features and a maximum number of attendees. 

Software and hardware requirements

Although the technology ‘under the bonnet of virtual meetings’ is continually evolving to work across PCs, Mac and Linux, you’ll need to check the minimum software and possibly hardware requirements for everyone to take part.  

• Some tools don’t support Macs or Linux
• Almost all tools support Internet Explorer browser)
• Most also support Firefox browser 

You may also need participants to check they have the following installed: 

• Flash - recent version which most people will probably have
• Java - may need to download a Java applet (small piece of Java based software)
• Install some other proprietary software application (vendor’s software – this would be a big issue when presenting to large audiences so best avoided) 

Summing Up

Although it’s not for everyone or situations where face to face is essential, virtual meetings can be a great way taking the hassle out of organising physical meetings, and saving time and money on travel and venue hire. 

Acknowledgements

       

We’d like to thank Idealware and TechSoup  for the inspiration and some of the content for this article.  Their work is published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 License.