MODERN FORMS OF
COMMUNICATION: EMAIL
AND VIDEO CONFERENCE
INTRODUCTION
DEFINITION:
“COMMUNICATION is a process of passing
information and understanding from one person
to another.” -Keith Davis
Electronic mail, most commonly referred to as
email, is a method of exchanging digital
messages from an author to one or more
recipients.
ROLE OF EMAIL COMMUNICATION
IN BUSINESS
Email is quick or easy and even costs low.
Non-verbal communication.
Email communication is broadly important for
business growth.
Maintains a connection with your supporters.
Keeps record of conversations.
BENEFITS OF EMAIL
Emails are fast.
You can attach documents or files.
Emails do not use paper.
Advertisement.
Low cost.
Easy to create.
Easy to share.
DEMERITS OF EMAIL
Spam mails.
Mailbox gets flooded.
Not everyone has internet.
Lack of verbal communication.
Misunderstandings occur.
Emails carry viruses.
Email Etiquette
Email etiquette is so new – the rules are
evolving because of our increased use of email
Some general rules of etiquette should be
observed
Need of Email Etiquette
- Professionalism
- Efficiency
- Protection from liability
www.animation.com
POOR EMAIL CONTENT
Deepak,
Hey, I was just thinking about the meeting we had about the new
workshop you were planning for next week about resume-writing. I think
that we may have forgotten to include all of the students who might benefit
from this workshop. Of course you may have added them to you list since
our last meeting. Ramandeep from the Applied Sciences Branch contacted
me to ask if the students from the Computer Science Engineering
program were on our list of included students. She also wanted a list of all
of the included departments from Applied Sciences. Can you send me a list
of all of the included student groups? I can then send the relevant
information on to Ramandeep because she needs this information by
tomorrow.
Thanks,
Ashok
BETTER EMAIL CONTENT
Dear Deepak,
Can you send me a list of the students included in the
resume-writing workshop by tomorrow?
We may have forgotten to include all of the students who
might benefit from this workshop. There are several groups
of students at the Applied Sciences that were not on your list.
Ramandeep from the Applied Sciences Branch contacted me
to ask if the students from the Computer Science Engineering
program were on our list. I will send her that information
tomorrow after I get the list from you.
Thanks,
Ashok
EMAIL ETIQUETTE RULES
Be concise and to the point
Use proper spelling, grammar & punctuation
Make it personal. Avoid using Bcc and Ccc unnecessarily
Use templates for frequently used responses
Answer swiftly
Use a meaningful subject
Read the email before you send it
Keep attachments to a Minimum and mention your attachment
in the content
Take care with abbreviations and emotions
Take care with rich text and HTML messages
Use active voice instead of passive voice
POOR USAGE EXAMPLES
No subject line
Action required and key points are hidden in the
message
Misusing the global distribution list
Discussion that could have been done on the
phone
USE SMART SUBJECT LINES
Good Subject Line Examples
FYI: Meeting minutes from 3/14 discussion
Reports Included: Minutes from MRM, all Reports due Friday 4/1
DISTRIBUTE: Program agenda & related information
Bob, Joe: need you at noon meeting Wed w/ your updates
AGENDA: Staff meeting Thurs 3/12 10:00 pm
Mary: I will attend the MRM & present summary. (EOM)
Poor Subject Line Examples
Weekly Minutes
Here are the URLs
Re: presentation
(blank subject line)
Unrelated subject line – sending an email with an old subject line
THINK BEFORE YOU CLICK
Don’t automatically “REPLY TO ALL”
Take one last look at your distribution list – is
this email necessary for all recipients. Eg.
Welcome Mail – when replying, send it only to
the person to be welcomed.
Once the email discussion goes beyond 2-3
replies anyway, it’s time to pick up the phone
GENERAL TIPS
Font:
- Use standard font throughout the message content
- Avoid colored fonts in a professional email
- Be very specific with the use of bold, italic or underline
font style
- Keep the size of the font visible and constant
Paragraph and line spacing should be legitimate and
visually appealing
Avoid short forms or slang (e.g. ‘u’ instead of ‘you’, ‘y’
instead of ‘why’, ‘r’ instead of ‘are’, etc)
VIDEO CONFERENCING
WHAT IS VIDEO CONFERENCING???
Video conferencing
is simply a vehicle for interactive communication.
enables one set of people to see and hear people
in a different location.
in its most basic form is the transmission of
image (video) and speech (audio) back and forth
between two or more physically separate
locations.
Also known as “Videoteleconference”.
BASIC FEATURES
Very straightforward approach.
Callscan be made locally, nationally or across
the world.
www.MessengerGuide.com
VIDEO CONFERENCING
COMPONENTS
Camera
Microphone
Speakers
TV or Monitor
www.MicroEnterprises.com
CAMERA
To
capture & send video during video
conferencing.
MICROPHONE
To capture & send audio during video
conferencing.
www.Guestpostgeek.com
SPEAKERS
To
play the audio received during video
conferencing.
MONITOR
To display the video received during video
conferencing.
www.Zoomblog.com
VIDEOCONFERENCING SYSTEMS
Dedicated systems
have all required components packaged into a
single piece of equipment.
usually a console with a high quality remote
controlled video camera.
Desktop systems
are add-ons to normal PCs, transforming them
into videoconferencing devices.
Dedicated systems
Large group videoconferencing: non-portable,
large, more expensive devices used for large rooms
and auditoriums.
Small group videoconferencing: non-portable
or portable, smaller, less expensive devices used for
small meeting rooms.
Individual videoconferencing: usually portable
devices, meant for single users, have fixed cameras,
microphones and loudspeakers integrated into the
console.
VIDEOCONFERENCING TYPES
Point-to-point
A videoconference that connects two locations.
Each site sees and hears the other sites at all times
www.Bostbloom.com
VIDEOCONFERENCING TYPES
Multi-point
A videoconference that connects to more than
two sites through the use of a multi-point control
unit( MCU ) or video hub.
Participants at all sites can hear one another at all
times and see the site that is currently speaking.
( Voice activated switching)
This is a bridge that interconnects calls from
several sources.
USES
Business
E-Meetings
www.Kismetrics.com
USES
E-Learning
Presentations
Wwwgroupconferencingservices.com
USES
Chatting with friend
TrueConf.com
USES
Family talk
www.TelecomAssociation.com
USES
Telemedicine
Transmission of medical images
Diagnosing & consulting
www.aoom.com
ADVANTAGES
Student learning is impacted in several ways:
Enhances student motivation.
Is exciting or different, catches the student’s
attention.
Connects with the real world.
Promotes student retention and learning.
Accesses information from primary
sources.
Accommodates many learning styles.
ADVANTAGES
Students have the opportunity to interact with the
experts in a particular field of study.
Videoconferencing accommodates a variety of
different learning styles through several
modalities.
Videos
Animations
Audio
Graphics
Collaboration
ADVANTAGES
Videoconferencing affords students the opportunity to
develop and improve various communication skills.
Presentation and speaking skills.
Communication and management skills.
Questioning and interviewing skills.
ADVANTAGES
Use of sign language communications for deaf, hard-of-
hearing and mute
Can improve work quality
Reduce costs
Improves communication
Groups can meet more frequently
Critical meetings can be conducted in less time
More faculty and staff can be involved
Webmation.com
LIMITATIONS
Initial cost of the equipment is high.
Ghost/Blurred images seen when rapid movement
occurs :
Wear neutral, solid colors.
Avoid checks and stripes.
Avoid white and shades of red.
Red is not codec-friendly.
Use plain background.
Avoid glass in the background.
Audio echo effect seen when system is not properly
installed :
Switch OFF microphone when not in use.
REFERENCES
• www.facweb.iitkgp.ernet.in/~jay/slides/vid_conf_ws.ppt
• https://tcet.unt.edu/weblibrary/ppt/videocon.ppt
• www.videoseminarlive.com/
web_based_video_conferencing.html
• www.avispl.com/resources/
• www.slideshare.net/bhunuzz/tele-conferencing-and-video-
conferencing
FAQS
What preparation is required before making a
conference call?
What are the dos and don’ts of a conference call?
What points should be kept in mind while making a
conference call?
