Research Report
Why You Should Host a Web Conference
You may be asking yourself, "Why should I host a Web conference?" There are plenty of reasons for hosting Web conferences, starting with improved real-time communication, increased efficiency and reduced costs.
Web conferencing is still young. Only 30 percent of companies surveyed by Wainhouse Research have any type of teleworking initiatives, with Web conferencing the most common. But companies are realizing its potential.
For example, Desire2Learn Inc., a developer of Web-based learning systems in Ontario, turned to Web conferencing to reduce the cost of pre-qualifying sales leads among U.S. schools and colleges. Flying a salesperson to the West Coast could take two days and cost $800 -- for a one-hour meeting that could end without a sale [source: Small Business Computing].
Instead of flying out, sales reps now host a Web conference first with a prospective customer. The sales rep can show a PowerPoint slide presentation, give an interactive demonstration of the software and give customers remote access to a computer to try the product themselves.
Let's look at several other examples to show how Web conferencing can work effectively:
A Web conference also can be useful in giving consumers and shareholders information they need during a new product launch, during a product recall, or at a time when news about the company needs to be explained or clarified.
For all of its potential benefits, hosting a Web conference doesn't have to be difficult. Go to the next page to learn more about the technology required.