Using Web Conferencing to Boost Productivity

Using Web Conferencing to Boost Productivity and Increase the Profitability of Your Business How Citrix® GoToMeeting® Corporate White Paper and Increase the Profitability of Your Business Executive Overview

Growing businesses today face escalating challenges in a rapidly changing global marketplace. They no longer compete with just the companies in their own backyard; now they must contend with competitors from around the world. And many of their customers are facing similar competitive pressures.

These pressures are driving down prices and placing severe constraints on operating budgets. Consequently, growing businesses must adopt new, more cost-effective methods to win and retain customers, including those beyond their usual local reach. This is complicated by the fact that rising travel costs discourage companies from sending salespeople to visit remote prospects.

Many growing businesses are also permitting their employees to work at home. But this can be more expensive and less productive than desired, as remote workers may require additional travel and technology in order to coordinate with their peers elsewhere.

Smart businesses are leveraging the Internet to overcome these challenges. Most growing businesses promote their capabilities via their corporate Web sites and a variety of online search engines and advertising vehicles such as Google or Yahoo. Some more sophisticated businesses are leveraging electronic commerce to sell their goods and services. But few small businesses realize that the Web can be used to build closer ties with their customers, prospects, employees and partners, and compete with larger companies on a more even playing field.

Web conferencing has become a powerful and increasingly popular method to communicate with current or prospective customers, as well as partners and employees who are located remotely. Web conferencing isn’t just for large-scale corporations who can afford sophisticated and expensive services. Web conferencing also permits growing businesses to meet virtually with these important audiences either one-on-one or as a group, and present valuable information in an easy and interactive fashion that can be just as effective as meeting across the table, but at a fraction of the cost.

Web conferencing can enable geographically dispersed employees to improve their productivity by allowing them to collaborate online. It can also be used for internal or external training purposes. It can also be used as a cost-effective sales tool to reach new customers located remotely.

Whether it is to increase sales effectiveness, enhance customer support, better communicate with partners or permit employees to more effectively coordinate their work, Web conferencing can produce tangible benefits and measurable results.

It is for these reasons that a significant proportion of large-scale enterprises have adopted Web conferencing, and a growing number of smaller businesses are following suit. However, many growing businesses cannot afford the cost and complexity of most Web conferencing services, which were mainly designed to meet the needs of large-scale enterprises. Instead, they need an easy-to-use and more economical Web conferencing solution that is just as reliable and secure.

This whitepaper will examine the business benefits of Web conferencing for growing businesses. It will also show how the Citrix® GoToMeeting® Corporate Web conferencing service meets the specific needs of these companies and can help them successfully compete with much larger corporations. The Escalating Challenges Facing Growing Businesses

The opportunities the Internet provides for growing businesses have never been greater.

Businesses of any size can now sell and deliver goods and services to a broader array of customers spread across a far greater geographic footprint. Plus, Web advertising and eCommerce level the playing field, permitting growing businesses to compete with much larger enterprises.

However, these same innovations are being used by others as well. This is creating greater competition for growing businesses. As more companies compete for customers and potential partners within a local geography, growing businesses must expand their target market in order to succeed and survive.

In an increasingly global marketplace, growing businesses can no longer rely on traditional methods to engage new customers and partners, or retain existing ones. With global competition come a number of global business challenges.

These global business challenges include:

Escalating fuel costs are driving up travel costs, both by car and air.
Intensifying price competition and budgetary constraints preclude businesses from sending their sales and training personnel to meet with customers or employees in person unless it is absolutely necessary.
Remote employees need a way to collaborate with their colleagues instantly to share knowledge and drive projects to completion on time and on budget.
Cost constraints make it difficult to afford even traditional on-site customer or employee training programs.
All workers are being required to do more with less to accelerate sales and marketing cycles and increase revenue.
Global businesses need metrics-driven programs and tools to maximize their return on investment (ROI) as they expand their operations. Not only does airline travel cost more, but consolidated flight schedules and tighter security requirements make air travel more time-consuming and a less productive way to do business. Yet, simple phone conversations are no longer sufficient to win new customers or support existing ones.

The same holds true for trying to get the most out of a geographically dispersed workforce. Growing businesses are increasingly dependent on mobile or home-based employees. But, traditional phone calls, emails, and faxes all fall short of meeting the collaboration and training needs of remote and even on-site workers.

Figure 1 illustrates the reasons why growing businesses are demanding better, real-time communications tools.

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Using Web Conferencing to Boost Productivity

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