Is There a Reason to Use Instant Messaging in Business?
Ah ha! I knew it would happen. Sure enough, one of our prospective clients asked us “the” question.
“Instant Messaging? Like AIM and Yahoo? We lose tons of time to those. If this OCS system has IM in it, then we could lose even more productivity!”
(I”m paraphrasing. He was a bit more flustered.)
Danger, Personal Use, Danger!
There’’s a lot of truth in his concern. Instant Messaging can be a distraction to workers. People get sucked into conversations (recall the infamous water cooler), time drains away, nothing gets done…
However, this is really an issue with people interacting. Not the technology they use.
The one technical concern everyone SHOULD worry about is users sending confidential information over IM. OCS has security in place to protect messages. But if an employee IMs a friend outside the company, someone could eavesdrop on that message.
So long as the “no confidential information” rule is respected, there’’s really no reason OCS Instant Messaging can”t be another useful office communication tool. Set some rules for usage and let everyone do their work.
3 Ways Instant Messaging Helps Out Business Communications
IM is pretty straightforward - one-on-one real-time discussion. The question is, when is it the best choice? These are a couple of those times.
1. Too Short for Email, Too Long for Phone. Use IM as a phone/email alternative. When you need input now, and you cant/don”t want to use the phone.
2. When You Need a Record of the Conversation. When you can”t wait for email, but you”ll need to refer to the conversation again? Go for IM. (See our OCS Components - Conversation History post if you aren”t sure logging’’s turned on!)
3. Off-Site Communication. Telecommuters love IM. They get real-time project updates. Also, IM can save you if you make a lot of international calls to suppliers and partners. Using IM helps to smooth timezone differences. And the phone bill.
Remember Your Presence!
In case certain employees DO abuse IM for personal conversations, here’’s something to remember. Your Presence status doesn”t change if you”re using IM. If it’’s set to Available, you”re still Available. So if a couple co-workers don”t have any work to show for those 2 hours they”re Available…well, has someone been chatting too much?
I should re-emphasize the importance of IM security before I finish this. As a general rule, NEVER send confidential information (credit card numbers, bank account details, compromising photos of yourself) over IM. Use encrypted email for that if a phone isn”t available.
But once you get past that, IM is pretty handy. Try it out. You may be surprised. (We sure were!)
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