How to Increase Business Productivity with Instant Messaging

 

Instant messaging (IM) is an efficient way to communicate with your customers, clients and co-workers. You can “chat” with them in real time without leaving the comfort of your office or home. It also allows you to streamline the business communication process which saves time, energy and money.

In the past, business professionals turned to email as the fastest form of web communication. And while it is still relied upon to send long emails to multiple people at once, IM is much faster when it comes to one-on-one "fast" interaction.

There are a variety of free instant messenger programs (see list below) that offer the same service: instant communication with your contact list. However, before you rush into adding IM software to your business computers, keep these 4 tips in mind:

And remember…Do NOT share secure, confidential information via instant messenger - an easy way for hackers and spammers to steal your information. 

#1 Establish an IM program for the entire company. While most messenger programs function in almost identical ways, not all of them are compatible with each other. It’s a good idea to use one IM program within the company to prevent compatibility issues.

#2 Instant messengers are less prone to spam. If you use email, then you know what a big nuisance spam messages can be. Instant messenger programs are less prone to spam. If you receive a spam message, it’s easy to permanently block the sender on IM programs.

#3 IM conferences can sometimes be more efficient than conference calls. Most IM programs offer a conference messaging feature. This makes it easier (and less expensive) to hold online conferences or to ask "real time" questions to a group of people at once. 

#4 You can log and store every IM you’ve ever made. Normally, IM programs will store IM conversations up to one week. However, it is possible to change settings so that every conversation you have is permanently logged and stored in your computer (stored by who you chatted with and the date).

By following these 4 easy tips, your company can successfully implement instant messaging. What better way to increase productivity and communication then by using this handy online communication technology?

Free Instant Messaging Programs:

Yahoo Messenger

AIM 

MSN

Google Chat

Skype 

 

Skyping & IM'ing - Why Insta-Communication is Your Friend & Foe

I'm a Skype-a-holic Skyper and log into Skype every day. I work with a Texas agency and I live in California - makes communication between us a lot easier. Who doesn't love the modern conveniences of insta-communication? Between phone conferences and instant messaging, my world is a constant stream of phrases that include:"Can you Skype conference call at 4pm PDT? or "I'm sending the website link right now via chat."  Skype works great for international calls. I recently talked to a friend in Australia and another colleague in Argentina - not too shabby for not having to pay a dime to use Skype.

In May, Skype added their app so people can use it on 3G networks - another great idea. Or is it? As a Blackberry user, I became frustrated with learning the in's and out's of my Skype app but I worked through the techie hoopla. 

Are these insta-communication online tools really our friends or possibly our foes? TeleGeography reported that 54 billion minutes international call minutes (out of a total of 406 international call minutes) were Skpe-to-Skype international calls. That's a lot of chattiness happening in the world. How much is used for business and how much for pleasure? How many people use instant messaging for good or for evil?

What's so great about Skype and instant messaging chat programs such as Yahoo Messenger or Gmail's chat feature? Yes, they are fast and convenient and you can chat 24,7 and 365 days a year. As a business professional, these programs have made my life a lot easier.

However, as easy and wonderful as this technology makes our lives, it also carries risk. For companies who use Skype and instant messaging technology, you face security, compliance, inappropriate usage by employees and of course, the biggie - trade secret leaks. Then we have those friendly crackers (black hat hackers) who sneak into Yahoo Messenger and attack with "phishing" (pesky spam and bots that pop out from the cyber ether). Even though "insta-communication" online makes our lives more convenient, be aware of the security risks - make sure your firewalls and virus softwares are up-to-date.

I'm not giving up my instant messaging programs or Skype anytime soon but it makes me think more carefully about what I share and whom I share it with in IM-Land or via Skype call. Now if only Skype could deliver a latte to me in the morning - maybe Starbucks and Skype should team up- hmmmm, that's a thought.

How has Skype and/or instant messaging made your life/business easier, or maybe it hasn't? Happy Skyping & IM'ing!