Best Practices for Communicating with Customers Online: Engage with Your Body Language (Part II)

April 10th, 2012 by Todd McCormick Posted in Audio Conferencing, Collaboration, Conferencing, iMeet, Meeting Tips, PGi, Tips and Tricks, Video Conferencing, Virtual Meetings, Virtual Sales Strategies, Web Conferencing

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Want to learn more about video? Sign up for our webinar today at 2pm EST with Josiane Feigon—#Vote4Video: The Sales Tool You Can’t Do Without.

Did you know you exchange approximately 800 nonverbal messages during the average 30-minute sales call?

Every salesperson should have at least a rudimentary grasp of how to use body language to support your sale. (If not, check out these body language sales basics, such as eye contact, use of hands, posture, etc.).

The trick with online meetings is that you don’t have the entire body to work with. Your webcam focuses on your head and perhaps your torso. That means making eye contact with your camera, relaxing your shoulders, and bringing your hands into view to emphasize certain points.

Begin with a Smile. There’s nothing revolutionary about this concept, but we often forget to do what we know. By starting online meetings with a smile, you amp up your tone of voice, upgrade your appearance, and communicate confidence. You’re much more likely to forge a quick connection with the other people in your meeting.

Maintain an Open Body Position. Open and expressive movements invite collaborative communication. Sit up straight, and avoid leaning too far back in your chair. Hold your arms away from your body to avoid looking defensive. However, if you notice your prospect responds by pulling back, try to be more subtle with your gestures.

Eye Contact = Bulls Eye. As you and your prospect communicate, focus your gaze directly on the camera. Eye contact is a key element for building trust. Even a brief look away could send the message that you’re not listening, and derail your sale.

body language, eye contact, face-to-face, iMeet, Nonverbal Communication, video conferencing, virtual meetings

Digital Nomad Tip #31: How To Host A Video Conference From a Taxi

April 9th, 2012 by Cora Rodenbusch Posted in Collaboration, Cora the Digital Nomad, iMeet, PGi, Telecommuting, Tips and Tricks, Video Conferencing, Virtual Meetings, Virtual Sales Strategies

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When PGi’s Damian Martina realized a flight delay would put him in Brisbane just minutes before his big presentation, he looked to iMeet®’s mobility suite to keep business moving at the speed of light.

Last month, Australia/New Zealand Sales Director and tech enthusiast Damian Martina scheduled a sales presentation to take place a few hours after he was scheduled to land in Brisbane. Instead of cancelling the meeting due to a last minute flight delay, Damian took iMeet®’s new iPad app for a test drive and showed his prospects what it really means to take your business on the road.

How To Host A Video Conference From a Taxi

As soon as the plane landed, Damian collected his bags and quickly turned his phone into a walking WiFi hotspot by activating his tethering app. After connecting his iPad to his phone’s WiFi signal, he opened up his room in the iMeet iPad app, loaded his presentation and asked the meeting to dial out to him. With the room open and his audio and webcam running, he confidently waited in the taxi line for his guests to arrive.

He even had a few minutes to take questions from an unexpected audience. The curious glances from those around him led to several impromptu demos with onlookers asking, “Are you really on video right now?” and “What’s it called again?”

Once in the taxi, Damian was able to flip through the pages of his presentation, convey points “in person” via the video stream and carry on with the meeting, all at 60km/h.

“My guests couldn’t believe that I was really in a taxi. I had to turn my iPad around so they could see where I was.”

Damian remarks, “Just a few months ago something like this would not have been possible. Today, I find that I can do 90% of my work remotely. Thanks to iMeet, I don’t have to delay business because of my location.”

Just recently I met Damian in person at PGi’s Asia-Pac headquarters in Sydney. I congratulated him on making his meeting come together despite his circumstances – I know how unpredictable life on the road can be! He laughed and said that it wasn’t difficult at all. The app made it easy to start the meeting and pull up his files. And because his guests already had his room name, he didn’t need to dial out to his guests or circulate length dial-in details providing for a stress-free meeting.

As for his video appearance, he said it left quite the impression on his guests.

For more information on iMeet’s mobility suite, watch PGi Founder and CEO, Boland Jones take you through the iPhone and iPad apps in iMeet has gone mobile. Where will you take it?

Want your own iMeet room? Sign up for a 30-day free trial today. For those in Asia Pacific, learn more about the Asia-Pac iMeet pilot program by emailing your interest to APStrategyandMarketing@pgi.com.

Have you needed to run a meeting outside the office? What advice would you give to a novice mobile worker?

app, conference, iMeet, ipad, meetings, mobile, mobile workers, online meeting, presentation, sales, telework, teleworking, video, video conference, virtual meeting, web cam, web meeting

Avoid Business Travel Hassle and Go Green with Online Meetings

April 6th, 2012 by Kim Casey Posted in Audio Conferencing, Collaboration, Collaboration Technology Services, Conferencing, GlobalMeet, PGi, Telecommuting, Video Conferencing, Virtual Meetings, Web Conferencing

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Business travel is expensive. A flight, hotel room, the time spent waiting through security or traffic, it all adds up. But what about the environmental price tag?

Your carbon footprint is a representation of the effect you — or your business — has on the global climate in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases you produce. A flight from Atlanta to Los Angeles for one person emits 755 pounds of CO2 — that’s five percent of a US home’s electricity for an entire year. But being environmentally aware is only the first step to solving the pollution problem. Sustainability is possible and as organizations are adopting a greener approach, they will need to take proactive steps to reduce their carbon footprint.

With today’s readily available technology, reducing work commute and business travel has never been easier. Video and web conferencing tools, such as PGi’s GlobalMeet, are affordable, easy-to-use and require no hardware other than a laptop, tablet or smartphone — tools that most businesses already have. With the spiraling costs and increasing inefficiency associated with business travel, video conferencing is a viable alternative to many unnecessary business trips.

business travel, carbon footprint, Consulting, globalmeet, green meetings, online meetings, PGi, Road Warriors, Smartphones, sustainability, Travel Hassle, video conferencing, web conferencing

Are your workplace tools driving the business results you need?

April 5th, 2012 by Jan Correll Posted in Collaboration, Conferencing, iMeet, Meeting Tips, PGi, Uncategorized, Video Conferencing

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Last month I attended the Gartner Portals, Content and Collaboration Summit where Tom Austin presented on People-Centered Strategies (PCS). In his presentation, Austin defined PCS as an organizational strategy that (1) empowers people to take on demanding, non-routine tasks, (2) enhances employees’ abilities to make valuable contributions that has an impact on the business and (3) increases the workforces ability to do what they do well.

Although many organizations are moving to a PCS approach, I have wondered if those same businesses are giving their employees the tools and technology they need in order to deliver the results they are looking for. With IT spending per employee expected to reach an all-time high of $13,303 in 2012 according to Gartner, it can be a costly mistake to invest in the wrong technology…especially if it’s a technology for collaboration that is used by the majority of the workforce.

With almost 85% of companies having a remote workforce, the office of the future is no longer an office at all. As such, communication and collaboration tools will play a greater role in how business gets done. But the question remains, are companies arming their workforce with the right communication and collaboration tools? With so many players in the market how can you ensure you’re investing in virtual meeting solutions that will positively impact the organizations bottom line? Here are a few things to look for when comparing audio, web and video conferencing solutions:

better meetings, Charles O’Reilly, collaboration, communication, Frost & Sullivan, Hidden Value, human resource management, human resources, Jeffrey Pfeffer, meetings, PCS, People-Centered Strategies, return on investment, ROI, video conferencing, web conferencing

Best Practices for Communicating with Customers Online (Part 1)

April 3rd, 2012 by Todd McCormick Posted in Collaboration, Conferencing, iMeet, Meeting Tips, PGi, Tips and Tricks, Video Conferencing, Virtual Meetings, Virtual Sales Strategies, Web Conferencing

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Want to learn more about video? Sign up for our webinar on 4/10 with Josiane Feigon—#Vote4Video: The Sales Tool You Can’t Do Without.

It’s highly likely that your prospects don’t have time for long, face-to-face sales pitches. That leaves salespeople with email and the telephone.

Of course, the people you’re trying to reach receive 200+ emails a day. Of those, perhaps a handful are relevant and wanted. According to InsideView, over 90% of C-level execs never respond to email blasts or cold calls.

When you limit communication to email and telephone, you miss out on one of the most important aspects of closing the sale: nonverbal communication. With a phone call, you lose body language but retain vocal cues; with email, you have even less to work with.

Many sales professionals are correcting this problem by finding new ways to leverage nonverbal communication during online meetings and video chats.

At least 55% of communication is nonverbal—93% if you include tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language. During online meetings, you can use nonverbal cues to reinforce your message. Some experts say these meetings can be even more powerful than in-person meetings because you can use technology to focus in on the most important source of nonverbal communication: facial expression.

Here’s the first of three major areas where you can harness power of nonverbal communication in an online meeting:

Mirror and Match

Researchers at Boston University Medical School studied people in conversations. As conversations progressed and rapport was established, the participants began to coordinate movements such as blinking, hand motions, and head nods. They even began to match one another in voice pitch and rhythm.

Mirroring and matching is the process of entering your prospect’s world and matching your mind with theirs during conversation. This sends the nonverbal message that you’re in tune with their state of mind, and helps establish rapport.

Watch BNet’s Carol Kinsey Goman discuss effective mirroring:

Boston University Medical School, Carol Kinsey Goman, communication, Conversation, face-to-face, iMeet, Mirroring, Nonverbal Communication, video conferencing

Meetings Stink! Introducing iMeet Multi-Sensory Technology for Effective Meeting Management and Collaboration

April 1st, 2012 by Blakely Thomas-Aguilar Posted in Collaboration, iMeet

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It’s time to smell the roses — in every online meeting.

Here at PGi, we make every effort to lead our industry through innovative group meeting solutions iMeet and GlobalMeet. And more than just creating amazing conferencing technology, we create places online where you can actually be a real human being and enjoy your meetings again.

By creating groundbreaking social video user interfaces, cloud-based “always on” availability and personalized meeting rooms online, we help bring people together with simple, personal and mobile meetings — anytime, anywhere, on any device. And now, iMeet hosts and guests can experience online meetings using more than just their eyes and ears.

The Power of Sensory Technology

Combining the existing iMeet platform with breakthrough acute olfactory sensory technology, we cracked the code to create the digital sense of smell. Watch this video to see this breakthrough technology in action.

This is more than just a functional improvement for iMeet and PGi. It is a quantum leap for virtual collaboration everywhere. The power of scent makes virtual meetings extremely immersive and compelling, intensifies emotions across virtual barriers and establishes a sense of belonging unlike anything ever imagined — it’s the stuff real collaboration is made of. After all, a rose by any other name might smell as sweet — but you have to actually smell it to find out.

“With smell being the number one trigger of memory, PGi’s new iMeet technology guarantees an 80% greater impact on meeting effectiveness and creating a unified culture of collaboration for global companies,” said Ireni Stinkpot, VP of Collaboration at the Georgia Society of Fish Mongers.

Imagine working at home in the US and smelling croissants baking in a real Parisian café, the aroma of cappuccino via an Australian colleague and the salty scent of the ocean when a customer’s on a Brazilian workation. We have officially changed the digital collaboration game — and it smells so good.

To try out our latest digital scent technology, visit the iMeet Four Senses Demo Room. Simply scratch the photo and enjoy the pleasing aromas that fill your nostrils.

Enjoy a great first day of April with a big whiff of iMeet.

collaboration, iMeet, innovation, online conferencing, PGi, video conferencing

How to Effectively be Managed Remotely

March 29th, 2012 by Jordan Biasetti Posted in Collaboration, Cora the Digital Nomad, GlobalMeet, iMeet, PGi, Telecommuting, Video Conferencing

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“Employment location: Austin, Texas or Atlanta, Georgia.” I remember reading the job description and wondering, “Now how does that work?” Wouldn’t PGi specifically need me in one office or the other? Apparently not. With teleworking on the rise, my managers were given the go ahead to hire an employee that they would end up supervising remotely.

Being fresh out of college, I wasn’t sure what to expect from this set-up. The whole “Hi, I’m your boss,” conversation is usually done so in person the first time, followed up with a physical handshake, yet it wasn’t until I had been with the company for almost a month that I met the first of my two bosses, and I still won’t meet the other for two more months.

globalmeet, iMeet, PGi, teleworking, video conferencing

Digital Nomad Tip #28: Don’t Let a Few Miles Keep Your Team From a Big Opportunity

March 19th, 2012 by Cora Rodenbusch Posted in Collaboration, Conferencing, Cora the Digital Nomad, iMeet, PGi, Telecommuting, Tips and Tricks, Video Conferencing, Virtual Meetings, Web Conferencing

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G’day mate and greetings from down under in beautiful Sydney, Australia! After taking a week off in the Hobbit capital of the world, South Island, New Zealand, we made our way to Sydney and have been enjoying some of the best weather the city has to offer.

In the short time we’ve been here, my colleagues have taken me to Sydney’s most iconic landmarks as well as a few lesser known sites, such as ~~the local pub and~~ this stunning art installation in a small alleyway just a few feet from the office.

Aside from the temptation of Sydney’s nightlife, working here couldn’t be easier. The connectivity is the best we’ve experienced in Asia-Pac and much like Hong Kong, the city runs 24/7 making it easy for digital nomads like myself to find places to work (and coffee to drink) at all hours.

Just recently I put my Digital Nomad skills to the test and joined Evernote’s Andrew Sinkov and Green Strategist Lewis Perkins in PGi’s SXSW panel, Up in the Air: On the Move with the Working Nomad via iMeet®. I was honored to (virtually) sit alongside two of the industry’s top thought leaders to discuss what it looks like to work on the go.

Over the past few years, I have attended SXSW in person thanks to PGi’s prime real estate, centered in the heart of downtown. But this year was special in that I was able to show the power and financial value of video conferencing by joining via iMeet®. No plane tickets, no travel time, no hotels, just me in my office here in Sydney, far removed from an 18+ hour flight and a $3,500+ transportation bill.

I started to realize that video conferencing was no longer a nice-to-have for my business, but a must-have. From budgets to time management, environmental awareness and taking advantage of overseas’ opportunities, video fills a void that exists in the workplace today.

Go Virtual to Cut Costs: PGi recently brought USA Today’s rising cost of travel stats to life with a powerful visual – Ditch the Rising Gas Prices – Get a Room [INFOGRAPHIC]. I chimed in to say that driving my car wasn’t the only mode of transportation that was becoming cost prohibitive. I think I set an iMeet® record when I was in Zurich, Switzerland paying $17 just to go a few miles on the bus!

collaboration, digital nomad, face-to-face, globalmeet, home office, iMeet, mobile meetings, online conferencing, telework, video, video conference, virtual meetings, web conferencing, web meeting, Work from anywhere, working from home

The One Stop Business Shop: Simplify Your Worklife with the Cloud

March 15th, 2012 by Blakely Thomas-Aguilar Posted in Collaboration, iMeet, PGi, PGi Partners, Telecommuting, Video Conferencing, Virtual Meetings

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Last week’s announcement of the alliance between PGi and Deutsche Telekom is an incredibly exciting indicator of where our world is going — to the cloud. And we are thrilled that iMeet — PGi’s groundbreaking web-based video conferencing experience — will be the landmark app that helps launch the upcoming Deutsche Telekom Cloud Center in Germany. Deutsche Telekom’s investment in cloud technology offerings for subscribers — consumers and businesses alike — signals the beginning of a new era in communications, where everything you need is right there in the palm of your hand. And the world lets out a resounding cheer.

For the past five years, leading technology analysts like Wainhouse Research have warned businesses about the end of times. A new world era where companies don’t own data centers, desktop computers are virtually nonexistent and consumers expect applications to be available anytime — day or night, home or work, mobile or tablet. This new world is alien to anything humankind has ever experienced. This new world changes everyone’s lives, from small businesses to Fortune™ 100s, schools to governments, consumers to employees and CEOs to temps. And this new world is removing the barrier between work and life by providing performance-enhancing apps for work and pleasure anytime, anywhere, on any device.

Always Available, Always On, Always Ready
So, just what is the cloud? The cloud, according to Wikipedia, is “the delivery of a service rather than a product, whereby shared resources, software and information are provided to computers and other devices as a metered service over a network (typically the internet).” In layman’s terms, the cloud is a vast resource of information that floats in the data universe until we decide to hit the “connect” button. And the world’s citizens access that information all the time — and absolutely love it.

cloud, cloud collaboration, cloud technology, collaboration, Deutsche Telekom, iMeet, telecommuting, video conference

4 Proven Communication Techniques for Successful Virtual + Online Meetings

March 13th, 2012 by Todd McCormick Posted in Collaboration, Conferencing, GlobalMeet, iMeet, PGi, Tips and Tricks, Video Conferencing, Virtual Meetings, Virtual Sales Strategies, Web Conferencing

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Modern business moves at breakneck speed. Your prospects don’t have time for long, face-to-face sales pitches. But when you limit communication with prospects to email and telephone, you miss out on one of the most important aspects of closing the sale: nonverbal communication. According to Microsoft, buyers receive 200+ emails a day. Of those, just six are relevant and wanted. They ignore voicemails and deny meeting requests. With a phone call, you lost body language but retain vocal cues; with email, you don’t even have that. It’s no wonder so many are turning to online meetings to correct this problem. At least 55% of communication is nonverbal—93% if you include tone of voice, facial expressions and body language. Why cut your communication effectiveness in half?