The landscape of work is shifting, isn’t it? As remote work and distributed teams become the norm, you’re likely finding that the old ways of collaborating just don’t cut it anymore. That’s where video collaboration steps in, transforming the way you connect, communicate, and create with your team.
In this article, we’re diving deep into the heart of video collaboration. Not just listing the top 10 video collaboration software tools, but also discussing why video collaboration is more than just a trend– it’s a necessity in today’s work environment. We’ll also share with you the core principles of effective collaboration for a comprehensive guide to fostering successful teamwork, even when your team is miles apart.
Let’s jump right in!
What is Video Collaboration & Why Is It So Important?
Video collaboration is the act of collaborating with other team members via some kind of video collaboration software. As the number of remote workers and distributed creative teams continue to rise, the need for video collaboration tools has exploded. More and more businesses are seeing the benefits of video collaboration
Benefits of Using Video for Team Collaboration
There are plenty of reasons why you should make an effort to improve collaboration with your team, and video collaboration tools will help.
Team collaboration through video improves productivity and communication, boosts creativity, and makes healthier office relationships. A team that collaborates well will be much more effective than one that doesn’t. Take a quick look at these statistics:
- According to Salesforce, 86% of employees and executives list poor collaboration and communication as a reason for workplace failure
- 94% of employees agree that a strong sense of office community has encouraged them to stay at a specific job longer than they should have
- Lastly, a recent study found that companies that promote collaboration are five times more likely to be high performing
What does this all mean for you and your company? It means that collaboration is key to business success and has been proven to help prevent failure, retain top employees, and improve workplace productivity and effectiveness.
The Principles of Effective Video Collaboration
Video collaboration is important to working effectively and productively in the modern age. So, let’s move on to the nitty gritty details of collaborating successfully. The foundational principles listed below will help improve collaboration skills with your creative team.
1. Prioritize Video Collaboration
To efficiently collaborate with your team, especially in a remote environment, make video collaboration a top priority. Not everyone thrives in team-based settings. Some individuals have “lone wolf” mentalities and favor operating independently.
While it’s important to respect individual working preferences (within reason), we’ve already seen that a complete lack of collaboration leads to less creativity, lower team morale, and overall reduced productivity. Your office needs to find and strike the perfect balance between individual working preferences and visual team collaboration.
Other folks on your team might not oppose the shift towards more video cooperation, they might simply be unaccustomed to the idea. Convincing them about the advantages of a video collaborative environment will be essential.
Make no mistake, initiating video cooperation when they’re used to handling tasks independently may be challenging. Change is never easy. But if you can convey the benefits of collaboration, as well as the potential pitfalls should they not begin collaborating, you’ll be able to motivate your team to work together.
2. Clarify Team Goals and Objectives
Once video collaboration becomes a priority and your team aligns with the concept, it’s time to outline your group’s goals and objectives. What are you aiming to achieve through this collaboration? Why does it matter that these objectives are met?
Much has been written in the past about the power of goal setting. If you don’t know where you’re going, how can you possibly expect to get there? The answer is, you can’t. But goal setting is even more crucial when collaborating with other staff members via video. If you and your team aren’t on the same page, your video collaboration solution will fail.
So before attempting to collaborate, clarify team goals and make sure that everyone is on board with them. (Note: if you’re the boss, you don’t need employee approval when choosing goals. But you do need to make sure that each person on your team understands what’s expected of them and what you want achieved.)
When setting video communication and collaboration goals, we recommend you take the SMART approach. If you’re not familiar with this goal-setting methodology, SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound. Let’s look at each of these a bit closer.
I. Specific
The goal(s) you choose to work toward should be very specific. For example, “We want to boost conversion rates by 10%” is a much better goal than simply saying, “We want to boost conversion rates.” The specificity of the first goal gives your team a tangible target to hit.
II. Measurable
It’s also important that your collaboration goals are measurable. “Raising conversion rates by 10%” and tracking this metric as it goes up and down is straightforward. If your goals aren’t measurable, it will be difficult to gauge progress as you strive to reach them.
III. Achievable
The “A” in SMART stands for achievable. The goals you set need to be realistic. We applaud ambition and encourage you to shoot for the moon. Just make sure that your team actually has a chance to accomplish what it sets out to do. Constantly striving after unattainable goals will dramatically lower team morale and make collaborating successfully all but impossible.
IV. Relevant
A relevant goal matters to your company. Boosting your organization’s social media presence may seem like a great idea. But if most of its sales come from email promotions and your target audience doesn’t spend much time on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (or X), you’d be better off working toward a different goal.
V. Time-Bound
Finally, every great goal is time-bound, which means that every project your team collaborates on needs a deadline. It could be a week from now or three years down the road, it doesn’t matter. Just make sure that each of your objectives has a projected due date that your team can work toward.
When selecting video collaboration goals, make sure they’re SMART. Then communicate them clearly to your team before working to accomplish them.
3. Promote Respect and Openness
Prioritizing collaboration and clarifying team goals are vital first steps. But neither will matter if your team doesn’t respect each other during the video collaboration process. They also need to commit to being open with their ideas.
Have you ever worked with someone who never shares their thoughts? They just have ideas and automatically act on them. Even if things work out, it can be a very frustrating environment to work in. You need to encourage your team to “think out loud.” Ideas should be shared, vetted, and improved (if necessary) before being put into action.
A true spirit of openness requires two things: bravery and trust.
Your team needs to be brave enough to submit ideas to the group. If they’re too afraid of their ideas being shot down, true collaboration will never happen. Trust between collaborators is also essential. Each team member needs to believe that everyone else in the group is honestly working toward the same goal and that team success always comes before personal gain.
All this sounds great in theory but how do you actually promote openness, bravery, and trust in the workplace? You start by ensuring mutual respect within your team. When potential ideas are discarded, it should be done with care. If a team member feels disrespected or embarrassed when working with other video collaborators, they’ll stop sharing ideas and won’t participate in group sessions.
As the leader of your group, you also need to make a conscious effort to be open and transparent with your team.
Share with them what’s working and what isn’t. Let them know the progress that’s being made. Invite feedback and suggestions on your own work. If you do these things, your team will follow your lead.
4. Hold Team Members Accountable
Finally, it’s vital that you hold your team accountable for effective collaboration via video. Make sure that each staff member participates in group discussions and shares ideas. As we mentioned earlier, if your team isn’t used to working collectively, they’ll naturally resist your attempts to make them collaborate, especially on video – at least in the beginning.
Look for opportunities to bring people together and promote video collaboration. Remind your team of the benefits of collaborating. And lead the way by being more collaborative yourself.
In the words of Dr. Graham Hill, “Collaboration only works when individuals within the company act collaboratively.” As the leader of your team, it’s your job to ensure collaboration happens.
A Few Specific Tips for Remote Team Collaboration
Now, if you’re part of a distributed team whose members work remotely from different corners of the world, you’ll definitely need to utilize video collaboration. All of the general collaboration tips listed above apply. But here are two more to help with your specific situation.
1. Schedule Regular Video Conferencing Times
You want to schedule regular collaboration times. Since remote colleagues aren’t in the office together (hence the term “remote”), they can’t simply walk down the hall, knock on a colleague’s door, and ask their opinion on an idea or project.
Fortunately, project management software and video collaboration tools make it easy for distributed teams to keep in touch. But we still recommend you set aside specific times each week for video conferencing to bounce ideas off each other, share progress reports, and more.
2. Invest in the Right Tools
When collaborating with remote team members, technology is non-negotiable. It’s the only way you’ll be able to communicate with each other and stay on the same page. But “technology” could refer to just about anything. For example, email is an important piece of technology but if that’s the only way your remote team communicates, you’ll likely run into problems.
You need to invest in the right video collaboration tools to ensure your remote team collaborations are effective. Here are a few of the best collaboration tools in this regard:
10 Best Video Collaboration Software Tools For Ambitious Teams
Want the best collaboration apps for video communication? Try these:
1. Zight (Formerly CloudApp)
When it comes to video teamwork, Zight takes the cake for the most intuitive app.
Its screen recording and screenshot features will allow you to easily share what you’re working on. If your device has a webcam, you’ll also be able to record a video of yourself to send to colleagues.
Imagine how much time you’ll save by simply speaking your mind rather than typing your thoughts into a 500-word email!
But that’s not all! Here are more Zight features that make it the best video collaboration platform:
- Video annotations: Adding annotations to videos can further enhance clarity, especially when discussing complex topics or providing detailed feedback
- GIF creation feature so you can make short video content for instructions and communication
- Integration with other tools: Zight’s integration capabilities with other popular productivity tools like Slack, Jira, Trello, etc., allow team members to share videos directly within the tools they use every day, which can streamline workflows
- Zight makes it easy to share files through many platforms. For instance, every video saves to the cloud, and Zight generates a link to that video that you can easily copy and paste to your teams. In addition, you can invite your teams to collaborate on the video, thus making communication and teamwork possible
Want to try Zight video collaboration for your creative teams? It’s available for Mac, Windows, and Chrome extensions. You will only need to download the app, create an account, and start using the features.
You can also use Zight on a free plan that allows you to make 25 videos and upload them to the cloud.
2. Slack
Slack is a popular messaging app. You may have heard it referred to as the “email killer” by enthusiastic users. While we don’t think email is going anywhere any time soon, we do believe that Slack is a fantastic collaboration tool, especially for remote teams. And, Slack is more than just text messages.
It has a video recording feature and screen sharing option that you can use to make video collaboration a breeze. You just need to open a message thread or channel with your creative teams and record yourself and screen, then send the video. Your team will be able to video these videos on a desktop or a mobile device and work on your project that much faster after getting clear instructions.
3. DialPad (Formerly Highfive)
DialPad is another video collaboration tool, but this one focuses on video conferencing. If you’re tired of cumbersome digital meeting rooms and stingy minute limits, you should definitely take a closer look at this app.
DialPad doesn’t require pins or passwords to join meetings. Participants simply show up and, you know, participate. It can also be accessed on any internet-capable device and integrates with other popular tools like G Suite, Slack, and Skype.
4. Zoom
Known for its easy-to-use interface, Zoom provides video recording options during meetings. Recorded video content from meetings can be stored locally or in the cloud, and then easily shared with creative teams. Zoom’s breakout rooms feature also promotes collaborative work.
Besides video conferencing and recording, Zoom offers features like polling, Q&A, and virtual hand-raising, which make collaborative meetings more interactive and engaging. Its built-in chat feature allows for instant messaging during meetings, and its compatibility with various devices ensures seamless collaboration.
5. Loom
Loom is a video content messaging tool that allows you to capture your screen, voice, and face and share the recordings instantly. This can be incredibly helpful for providing clear instructions, feedback, or updates to a team. It’s particularly useful for remote teams as it allows for more personal, efficient communication compared to long email threads.
6. VidYard
Want the best video collaboration tool for marketing teams? This might be it!
Beyond a simple screen recording tool, Vidyard positions itself as a comprehensive video platform that supports both internal and external communication. You can record your screen, your webcam, or both and share these videos via email, integrations like Slack, or embed them on your website.
Vidyard provides viewer analytics, giving you insights into your video reviews and how long they stayed engaged. This allows you to gauge the effectiveness of your communication and tailor future content to better serve your team’s needs.
7. Camtasia
As a robust video editing and screen recording tool, Camtasia supports high-quality video creation that can be used to educate, instruct, or present to your creative team.
Whether you’re creating a detailed tutorial or an engaging presentation, you can make it interactive with quizzes and clickable links. Shared videos can be stored in a cloud library, accessible to your team for feedback or future reference, thereby promoting collaborative learning and communication.
8. Google Meet
Part of the Google Workspace, Google Meet provides high-quality video meetings where you can present your screen, and meetings can be recorded and saved to Google Drive for easy sharing and access by team members.
Google Meet is also integrated with Google Workspace tools such as Calendar, Docs, Sheets, and Slides. This means scheduling, joining meetings, and collaborating on files is streamlined.
9. ScreenPal (Formerly Screencast-O-Matic)
ScreenPal offers screen recording, video editing, and sharing tools in a straightforward package. It’s especially useful for creating tutorials or guides for your creative or marketing teams, allowing you to visually demonstrate processes.
Once you’ve recorded, the platform offers an array of editing tools to polish your video content. The ability to easily share videos through a wide variety of channels, including social media, Google Drive, and YouTube, ensures your creative teams can access the content anytime, anywhere, enhancing collaborative understanding.
10. Webex
Cisco’s video collaboration software, Webex, offers video conferencing with recording capabilities. Recordings are stored in the cloud and can be easily shared. Its co-editing feature also promotes collaborative work.
This software offers features like digital whiteboarding, note-taking, and file sharing, allowing for dynamic collaboration during video meetings. It also has a feature called Webex Assistant, an AI-powered assistant that can help automate meeting tasks.
Your Turn: Win at Video Collaboration!
Congratulations, you now know the four principles of effective collaboration and how video will play a good part to make it possible. You also have the best tools to start collaborating through video with, so you are ready to work with confidence.
When it comes to remote collaboration, the use of video is imperative. Fortunately, companies like Zight offer proven and intuitive solutions for fair platform pricing. Why not try Zight now and see for yourself? Click the button below to get started!
Frequently Asked Questions About Video Collaboration
a) What is the meaning of video collaboration?
It is the use of tools and platforms that allow sharing of video, audio, and data in real time for communication, coordination, and problem-solving. You will use video collaboration tools to facilitate teamwork across distances, enabling real-time communication and interaction.
b) How do you make a collaborative video?
Creating a collaborative video using Zight is an effective way to communicate visually with your team. Here’s a simple step-by-step process:
- Plan Your Video: Before you start recording, define the purpose of your video. What do you want to communicate or demonstrate to your team? Jot down the key points to cover in your video.
- Start Recording: Open Zight and select the ‘Record’ feature. Choose whether you want to record the full screen, a window, or a specific area. You can also choose whether to include your webcam in the recording.
- Capture Your Video: Start the recording and navigate through your presentation, demonstration, or tutorial. Speak clearly and concisely, explaining each step of the process.
- Add Annotations (on a Pro plan): You can pause the recording and add annotations, such as arrows, text, or highlighting to enhance your communication and ensure your points are clearly understood.
- End and Review: Once you’ve covered everything, end the recording. Review it to ensure it’s clear and accomplishes its purpose.
- Share Your Video: With Zight, you can instantly share your recorded video with your team. Simply copy the link generated by Zight and paste it into an email, chat message, or project management tool.
- Collaborate: Invite your team members to watch the video and give feedback. They can leave comments, ask questions, or add their own annotations, fostering a collaborative environment.