Simplify your Video Conferencing and International Calls
Video conferencing helps facilitate better communication in our daily lives - it's why many of us use FaceTime or Skype to communicate with relatives and friends we can't visit in person. The same applies to professional communication, using both video and audio allows for clearer, more engaging communication. To this end, Northwestern offers several video conferencing options: BlueJeans, Skype for Business, and Cisco WebEx. We want to highlight one of these tools, WebEx, as a good and reliable choice for a variety of situations, including international conference calls.
When to Use Webex
- Have a one-on-one video conference
- Hold virtual office hours
- Make international conference calls
- Record presentations for later use or feedback
- Invite presenters from other institutions to guest lecture remotely
International Collaboration
Cisco's WebEx has a stand out feature - the ability to make phone only conference calls. Rather than your department relying on a subscription to a paid service, a phone conference - local or international- can be held using WebEx. Guests don't need to sign in to any account, and rather than relying on an international participant's spotty internet connection, guests can call in using local phone numbers provided by WebEx. WebEx also offers the ability to mix different forms of conferencing; participants can dial into video conferences as voice only participants.
International Video-Conferencing
Cisco's broad international reach allows it to provide a reliable service even with international video conferences. We've found some services to be spotty or often drop video during conference calls, while others like Skype require a sign in and have other limitations. If a video call has international guests that have an internet connection, WebEx can be your tool of choice. Additionally, if an internet connection drops during a video call, you can easily pick up your conversation using the call-in option.
WebEx strongly outperforms other video conferencing services in the international sphere and it also provides a wide and competitive array of features. With WebEx, conferences can be hosted with groups ranging from two to four hundred participants, and conferences can be recorded for later use. If materials like PowerPoint presentations need to be displayed during a video conference, those can also be shared in addition to video of participants.
To start using Cisco WebEx simply go to northwestern.webex.com and begin a video conference! We have also made guides on how to schedule, set up, and join various types of conferences that you can find below.
How to Guides
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