Communication, and its needs, are obvious to human civilisation and was established some time ago. There are various modes of communication, but the ultimate motive is to convey the right message to the right person with the right meaning. With the modernisation of lifestyles, communication methods have also become faster and, in some cases, instantaneous. Online services have truly revolutionised communication by providing fast and free methods for interaction in real time. Today there are hardly any limitations to interaction among people around the globe. Nowadays, these online services are preferred by many over “old” conventional communication tools such as mail, telephone, telegram and messengers.
Image credit to Init .de
a) Electronic Mail: This is the basic and most popular method of communication online. There are so many service providers who provide the email accounts totally free of cost. Every new person coming to this online world learns first to create an email account and send an email successfully to another person. Email, when compared to conventional methods, has so many advantages:
Can send text, pictures, videos and other file formats all at the same time.
Can handle large files easily.
Can be sent to any number of people.
Can receive mail even if the person receiving is away.
Can help to communicate in real time through the inbuilt chat system.
Can be accessed through any mobile, iPad, tablet or computer.
Can securely transfer confidential data through high end encryption systems.
Can be set up as web based or push mail system.
Can be highly cost effective compared to conventional methods.
b) Chat services: This is another popular online communication service. Nowadays chat room facilities have totally magnetised the youth. They spend the majority of their time chatting with friends and family all over the world. Here are some advantages of chat services over conventional methods of communication.
Communication is in real time.
Able to exchange files while on chat.
Video conferencing is much cheaper compared to conventional methods.
No shattering of voices due to network signal failure problems.
The ability to auto record conversations for future reference.
c) Message Boards: Message boards may not appear useful for a newbie but for an experienced person it is really a fortunate thing. Message boards are more popular for technical subjects. A person looking for a solution to a problem, simply leaves the query on a message board. The online community then helps that person by discussing suitable solutions. Here are some advantages of online message boards:
Great way of self education by subscribing to message board discussions.
Minimal cost implication for becoming a member, if any.
Free guidance from experts.
Searching message boards will help in solving most problems you may have.
A moderator of message boards helps in keeping the board free from spam and illegal content.
Online message boards are utilised by companies for interaction with people from different branches. It can act as a single platform for confidential communication over a private domain.
d) Online support tickets: Communication over the phone for technical support is a well known conventional method. In this method, a call is logged by the product/service customer support team for resolving user problems. Once it is resolved, it is communicated back to the user. But this system attracts multiple call costs & delays in communication. Online support tickets have proved to be more effective as compared to conventional methods. Here are some interesting benefits of using online support systems.
Auto generated tickets help in identifying each support call easily.
Complex support queries can be handled systematically.
Cost effective, as there is no call cost involved.
Easy to access even for a new user.
By utilising multiple operators, many support tickets can be handled in the quickest possible time.
The above are some modern means of communication that are influencing the way we interact as a society. Over time, this will become more and more popular, and with the use of Smartphones today they have become part of day-to-day life.
Let me guide you on your business strategy.
