5 Common Problems People Associate with Video Conferencing

Have you ever wondered why, despite the advanced technology, people still don’t use video conferencing that much? This article lists down some of the main challenges associated with video conferencing and how they can be resolved, writes, Klaris Chua, Web Content Specialist, RingCentral

Video conferencing has been around for a long time. However, such services still get a bad rap from people in general because of the common issues they had to deal with during the age of legacy video technology.

As such, it’s important to learn about the benefits and advantages video conferencing give to individuals and businesses. Let’s take a look at the recent data about this technology.

The factsOpens a new window are these:

• **It is projected that the enterprise video market (of which video conferencing is a part of) will reach $35.6 billion in 2018**
• **94% of businesses that use video conferencing believe that it increases their productivity**
• 9 in 10 employees say that video helps them feel more connected to the workplace
• Users of video conferencing have increased by 87% when compared to numbers in the past two years
• 50% of conference rooms will have video by 2020

Before you make video conferencing a regular practice within your daily workflow, it would also be good to understand the reasons why people don’t use it as much as they should.

“It’s so tasking in terms of setup and configuration.”

Much has been said about how difficult it is to set up video conferencing without the help of any IT personnel. Not too long ago, joining a video meeting required installing a specific program or software on your PC or laptop. You need to create an account under the service for it to start working. On some services, you would have to adjust certain settings like your bandwidth allocation after installation.

Today, it’s a lot different. WebRTC, for instance, has enabled people to join video conferences without having to download and install programs or plugins. You would only need your web-based browser to start or participate in a video meeting.

Some providers have also developed ways to ensure that video quality is optimized. There’s no need for manual configuration. Your machine will detect your internet speed and deliver video based on the information it read regarding your bandwidth.

Additionally, a lot of services now extend beyond the usual desktop, meaning video conferencing can also be done through laptops, smartphones, and tablets with ease as long as they are connected to the internet.

“There are just too many technical issues.”

Most people have the misconception that video conferencing services are prone to glitches and technical difficulties. This is because it has been this way in the past. Organizations have been repeatedly stressed and frustrated about low-resolution videos, delays, and other quality-related issues.

But since video conferencing today has become so advancedOpens a new window (mainly due to higher internet speeds and advancements in video compression technology), there’s a lot less room for errors or issues. Nothing that a simple video or audio setting reconfiguration by your IT staff can’t fix.

 “I don’t want to be seen on camera.”

People tend to get self-conscious whenever they participate in video conferences. Sometimes, insecurities can come so deep that people would spend more time on looking good than on preparing for the contents of actual meetings.

It should be noted, however, that there’s really no need to be camera shyOpens a new window . If you can talk to someone over the phone or talk to your boss face-to-face, then you shouldn’t feel uneasy when talking to people over live video.

Probably the other reason why people don’t want to be on camera is that they might be doing something else.

While it’s a general and accepted practice to multitask while on a video conference, it’s just impolite to not be fully “there.” The essence of having such a meeting is to be truly engaged; when you aren’t, you’re probably better off doing something else.

“It’s so difficult to use.”

Providers of this emerging technology have always been hard at work to provide the best user experience possible. User interfaces are continuously improving at lightning-fast speeds. If one’s lucky enough, his or her video conferencing service can be tied to his or her unified communications platform, for a more familiar look and feel.

As mentioned earlier, most services promise consistency across devices, so your video meeting tool should look the same whether you’re launching it as a program on your desktop, using it on your mobile phone while you’re on the field, or working on a task using your laptop in a neighborhood café.

It should only take a little getting used to, just like any other rich internet application.

“I can’t invite any more people in my meeting.”

**Some people tend to think that modern video conferencing isn’t capable of handling a huge number of attendants. This isn’t clearly the case** since there are a lot of services offered in the market that feature hosting of up to 500 participants.

These people are also able to perform actions available in most video conferences such as screen sharing, chatting, and file sharing while on the meeting.

For online conferences with wider audiences, such as training or product presentations, there’s also what they call webinars, which allow broadcasting to thousands of people at a time.

Thus, there’s really no need to get frustrated when it comes to video conferencing since the technology can accommodate quite a large number people without any problems as if all of you are in just one conference room.

With all of the common issues about the technology being addressed continuously, more and more people should start joining the pack of individuals and businesses that communicate through video.