During his presentation on the Emerging Trends in Virtual Markets and Workforce Management, John C. Davern, Jr., MBA discussed some of the problems that clients often encounter when managing their Virtual Workforce: Communication, Connectivity, and Collaboration. In this blog, we will provide some VA tools to help you manage your virtual assistant better.
“Telephone – office Desk – Paul Otlet -Mundaneum” by Sebastien Wiertz is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Related: Global Challenge Through Virtual Teams and Resources
In today’s VATools review, we are going to be featuring some Communication Tools that we found are effective in bridging the VA-Client Communication gap.
Communication
Communication is important in any type of team or work structure – particularly when it comes to online outsourcing.
They are available on computers and mobile devices to allow better connectivity.
Skype is by far one of the most used communication tools when it comes to managing a VA or Virtual Workforce. We use it to communicate daily with the Virtual Assistant Talent team. The main advantage of Skype is that most of its features are free, such as Skype to Skype calls and instant messaging, which you may do from your computer or mobile device.
Features:
- FREE to use for Chat and Skype-to-Skype calls
- Instant Messaging or Chat
- Voice/Video Calls
- Screen Sharing capabilities
- File Transfer
- Paid features: Virtual Number, Caller ID, Call Forwarding, SMS, Calling plans
Google Voice allows you to create a single phone number that rings up to six phones simultaneously when called. These could include your office phone, mobile phone, home, etc. Your voicemail is consolidated into one place, and you receive alerts via email when new messages arrive. It offers message transcription, custom greetings, conference calling, and more. All of these features, including outbound calling to any U.S. number, are free.
Features:
- Free Chat, Video, and Voice Calls (up to 10 participants) and Unlimited calls to US and Canada
- Google Hangouts
- Paid features: Low rates for calls to countries outside the United States
MagicJack is one of the most used VOIP systems when managing a Virtual Assistant. You can opt to use its paid plans or the free Magic Jack application that is also available on the Apple Store.
Features:
- Free calls on the mobile app to the US and Canada
- Magic Jack Plus offers 6 months free for the MagicJack phone service and cost-effective calling plans
GoToMeeting is a video conferencing software designed for professional online meetings. We also use this software at Virtual Assistant Talent and we find it useful since you can use it on any device—laptop or smartphone.
Features:
- Screen sharing
- HD video conferencing
- VoIP, phone, or freephone options
- Personalized URL for instant meetings
About VA Tools
VA Tools provide information and helpful tips or reviews on tools or applications that you can maximize in managing your Virtual Assistant or Virtual Team.
