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What is Communications Software?
Communications Software is a set of web applications that make it possible for team members to exchange data and discuss corporate operations in real time. You can use it to transmit information from one system to another, exchange files in various formats, or simply discuss sensitive corporate data in a protected, internal environment. Show more
Popular communication software types are messaging apps, live chat systems, FTPs (file transfer protocols), VoIP, and email providers which make it possible to communicate at low to no cost. If looking for the best communication system on the market, consider our leader RingCentral, and other popular performers we listed in this category.Show less
How was this ranking made?
To come up with this ranking of best Communications Software we have checked 794 popular applications currently available on the market, studying their features, how easy are they are to learn, customer support, offered integrations with other systems and mobile support with our exclusive SmartScoreTM rating algorithm. This ranking has been created by Jenny Chang, our software expert responsible for the Communications Software category.
List of Top 15 Communications Software
Order by:
Sponsored
- Sponsored
- Score
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1. RingCentral
Our score: 9.7 User satisfaction: 99%RingCentral Office won our Best Phone System award as well as the Expert’s Choice Award. It's a perfect cloud phone system designed to make business communications easier. With RingCentral, you can use just one phone solution for engaging in voice communications, as well as organizing online business meetings and conferences.
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2. monday.com
Our score: 9.4 User satisfaction: 99%An industry-leading collaboration app for on-site and remote work teams. This leverages tools such as Kanban boards, Gantt charts, and workflow automations to help teams handle any type of project. It also seamlessly integrates with third-party apps to ensure easier adoption and extend its capabilities.
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3. Wrike
Our score: 9.7 User satisfaction: 99%A collaboration software with user-friendly navigation and flexible project views for easier project management. It gives you a bird's eye view of your projects to get a better feel of the progress of your efforts. Moreover, its powerful reporting and analytics tools also help you generate accurate reports with actionable insights.
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4. Glip
Our score: 9.0 User satisfaction: 92%A free unlimited video meetings platform with built-in messaging offered by RingCentral.
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5. iFax
Our score: 8.9 User satisfaction: 97%A secure, cloud-hosted faxing service that allows users to send faxes through computers and mobile devices. This versatile platform lets users send a wide variety of files, including documents, PDFs, and image files. Transmissions are also protected by military-grade encryption and compliant with regulatory standards like HIPAA and GLBA.
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6. Zoho Meeting
Our score: 8.3 User satisfaction: 99%Zoho Meeting is designed for companies with teams in different places or countries so they can collaborate in real time and closely together.
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7. GoToConnect (formerly Jive)
Our score: 8.8 User satisfaction: 96%GoToSoftware (formerly Jive) is a unified, seamless platform combining voice and video services. Rich in features, the software gives businesses an effective, polished, and cost-efficient way to communicate and collaborate.
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8. GoToMeeting
Our score: 9.0 User satisfaction: 96%Designed for online business meetings and deployable from the desktop app, mobile app or via browser. The app allows for up to 3,000 participants, among the biggest capacity in the niche.
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9. Messente
Our score: 8.8 User satisfaction: 94%A mobile marketing software that lets you reach out to your clients and prospects through 800 mobile networks from over 190 countries. It offers adaptive routing for faster and reliable delivery of messages, all while applying top security features to protect confidentiality and privacy.
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10. GoToWebinar
Our score: 8.8 User satisfaction: 91%GoToWebinar is the simple, self-service webinar tool that makes it easy to host large-scale online events. This web conferencing platform has a wide array of applications all geared towards the planning, managing, promoting, and analyzing of effective web events.
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11. Speakap
Our score: 8.8 User satisfaction: 96%A secure communication platform that allows organizations in different verticals to engage with non-desk employees. The software provides organizations with the right communication channels to reach underserved segments of the workforce. Newsfeeds, chat, and timelines also ensure that companies can keep open lines of communication among team members and departments.
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12. Mobile Text Alerts
Our score: 8.6 User satisfaction: 94%An affordable and easy business SMS service that lets online enterprises reach customers in seconds. Designed for small and medium-sized businesses, it allows them to communicate with their clients through messaging.
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13. Squaretalk
Our score: 8.5 User satisfaction: 97%Offers various communication tools to help businesses engage with customers. A cloud call center and predictive dialer ensure teams provide improved customer support and that customers are connected to agents with the right skills. Seamless integrations with third-party software also help automate workflows to further improve productivity.
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14. Cloudli
Our score: 8.0 User satisfaction: 96%Cloudli offers a stack of business communication solutions for phone systems, messaging, faxing, and more.
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15. 8x8 VoIP Phone Service
Our score: 9.3 User satisfaction: 91%8x8 VoIP Phone Service is a system that provides advanced capabilities such as web conferencing, internet faxing, and smartphone integration. It uses hosted VoIP phone services and also provides a cloud-based call center solution that’s ideal for unified communications. Other notable features include 3-way calling, automated attendant, and directory assistance.
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Table of contents
Industry Report - Communications Software for 2022
CloudRank™ system is a unique algorithm that our research team uses to evaluate Communications Software solutions in a detailed and accurate way. The Winter 2022 edition of the ranking was prepared by Jenny Chang, our leading expert in the field of Communications Software, who has authored 1380+ product reviews in this category. The goal of CloudRank™ is to present an unbiased, multi-layered perspective on Communications Software, considering a wide range of metrics and factors, and educating potential customers about both opportunities and challenges associated with each piece of software.
In order to achieve full objectivity the position in our CloudRank™ is based on:
- Expert Score: which involves extensive analysis by our internal team which carefully examined all key elements of each software and testing it in real-life situations
- User Score: which involves an aggregated opinion of actual users of each product whose identity was properly verified
- Market Position: which involves general recognition of a given vendor on the market and reflects its overall popularity and reach
What do the tiers in CloudRank™ mean?
We’ve calculated a score for each product based on the average experience shared by our users in their product reviews and arranged the list in three tiers. You can see the methodology below on how the calculations were made.
- Leaders: those with a User Score of 8.5 or higher; this tier includes products that are currently leaders on the market and are appreciated by both experts and actual users. They always represent the best of what the Communications Software market has to offer and are all worth trying out if you’re looking for a reliable solution.
- Contenders: those with a User Score between 7.5 and 8.5; this tier includes high-quality products that still have some minor drawbacks that prevent them from becoming leaders on the market. They always represent well-designed tools that, over time, will most likely develop into market leaders as the missing features are added.
- Rising Stars: those with a User Score between 6.5 and 7.5; this tier includes products that have high-potential but still lack some crucial features or services expected from a leading solution. They are products with solid foundations and a vision that makes us eager to see what they will become as their solution improves in the future.
Regardless of their tier, all products included in our CloudRank™ are popular, quality products considered top-performers by our team of experts. Make sure you read a more detailed review of each solution to find one that will work best for your specific needs and budget.
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MARKET POSITION
A score between 1 and 10 based on popularity and market reach of each product.
TOTAL score
A score between 1 and 10 based on the average of our Expert Score and User Score.
How does CloudRank™ work?
Market Position
A score between 1 and 10 based on popularity and market reach of each product.
Total Score
A score between 1 and 10 based on the average of our Expert Score and User Score.
CloudRank™ tier
Based on product's total score.
Rising Star
Contender
Front Runners
25 Most Popular Communications Software
Here is a list of all 25 Communications Software solutions evaluated with our CloudRank™ analysis. We have compared their features, user satisfaction, market presence and other key factors in an in-depth analysis you can find below:
Our score and features analysis:
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CloudRank™
Score:9.09
Score:9.09
Customers company size
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100+
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:8.99
Score:8.99
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:8.89
Score:8.89
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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100+
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:8.73
Score:8.73
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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100+
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:8.56
Score:8.56
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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100+
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:8.35
Score:8.35
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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100+
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:8.27
Score:8.27
Customers company size
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100+
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8. 8×8 VoIP Phone Service
8.21
Our score and features analysis:
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CloudRank™
Score:8.21
Score:8.21
Customers company size
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100+
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9. ProjectManager
8.19
Our score and features analysis:
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CloudRank™
Score:8.19
Score:8.19
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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100+
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:8.17
Score:8.17
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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100+
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Our score and features analysis:
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CloudRank™
Score:8.17
Score:8.17
Customers company size
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12. Workplace by Facebook
8.10
Our score and features analysis:
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CloudRank™
Score:8.10
Score:8.10
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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100+
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:8.05
Score:8.05
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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100+
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:8.05
Score:8.05
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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100+
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15. GoToConnect (formerly Jive)
7.99
Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:7.99
Score:7.99
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:7.95
Score:7.95
Customers company size
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100+
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17. Grasshopper
7.83
Our score and features analysis:
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CloudRank™
Score:7.83
Score:7.83
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18. Igloo Software
7.81
Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:7.81
Score:7.81
Customers company size
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100+
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19. PhoneBurner
7.63
Our score and features analysis:
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CloudRank™
Score:7.63
Score:7.63
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:7.45
Score:7.45
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:7.42
Score:7.42
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:7.37
Score:7.37
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:7.27
Score:7.27
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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100+
Best features
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24. Cisco Unified Communications Manager
7.25
Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:7.25
Score:7.25
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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Our score and features analysis:
}
CloudRank™
Score:6.52
Score:6.52
Customers company size
No. of employees:
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51-100
100+
Best features
Worst features
Our report covered 25 most popular products from the Communications Software category. We’ve analyzed their features, performance, integration, customer support, pricing, and several other key buying factors and combined it with feedback from user reviews to come up with the current list of best solutions:
- 2022 Communications Software Leaders: RingCentral, monday.com, Wrike, Slack, JustCall, Dialpad
- 2022 Communications Software Contenders: GoToMeeting, 8×8 VoIP Phone Service, ProjectManager, Join.me, Flock, Workplace by Facebook, Vonage, Fleep, GoToConnect (formerly Jive), Aircall, Grasshopper, Igloo Software, PhoneBurner, Speakap, 3CX, Lifesize
- 2022 Communications Software Rising Stars: Chanty, Cisco Unified Communications Manager, Ytel
Founded in California 19 years ago, RingCentral has graduated from VC backing to being a publicly-traded company with more than $1 billion in annual revenue. RingCentral MVP is the number one business communications platform in the market today. It has consistently ranked in multiple UCaaS categories in the UC Awards. For 2021, RingCentral is again the Best Unified Communications Platform and Best UCaaS Provider.
The business communications platform has everything a business needs in one communications SaaS—message, video, phone—protected with seven layers of security and redundant data centers. RingCentral’s data centers have strategic geographic locations and are available with 99.999% uptime SLA.
Expanding business teams internationally is straightforward with RingCentral’s international numbers which are available for over 80 countries. Support is available 24/7 with a dedicated technical account manager and customer success manager to ensure smooth global deployment. The business communications platform has an open API platform that allows instant integration to popular business apps from Google, Salesforce, Zendesk, and Microsoft. There is also an option to create your own apps and integrations for greater business productivity.
A business can look forward to 30% or more in savings in their total cost of operations (TCO) with sourcing the features mentioned from a single source. RingCentral has over 400,000 customers and partners around the world which include AXA, Berkeley College, and Massage Envy.
Most users of Communications Software solutions confirm that in most cases these tools allow them to reach the following business goals:
- It boosted both personal and business productivity with immediate feedback and reduced expenses. [ 86.4% of users ]
- It helped to improve communication capabilities in and out of the company, and provided access to effective channels for all devices and locations. [ 86.1% of users ]
- It minimized manual intervention, and increases accuracy and exchange reliability. [ 85.5% of users ]
- It offered a secure internal network for file transfer, giving users the flexibility to communicate via their preferred channel. [ 87.0% of users ]
- It reduced administration and infrastructure costs by eliminating the need to use multiple third-party communication services. [ 86.0% of users ]
- It tracked and captured all conversations to ensure regulatory compliance. [ 86.4% of users ]
How did we select products for this Communications Software report?
The Winter 2022 version of the report includes a total of 25 Communications Software products that were compared and analyzed by our team. We selected them based on the following factors:
- Popularity of a given brand in the SaaS market (based on our own market research)
- How popular a given brand is among FinancesOnline users (based on number of mothly readers for each review page)
- Availability of statistical data generated from user reviews of a particular product (we excluded products with not enough data to draw meaningful conclusions)
- The current listing reflects the state of our database and research as of January 2022. An updated version of the report will be released quarterly to keep data fresh and incorporate information about shifts and changing trends in the market.
What are the current Communications Software trends?
AI chatbots as aids to improved CX experience
AI chatbots were initially feared as competition for human customer service agents perceived as replacements in the near future. This belief has now been reversed with customer service professionals seeing AI chatbots as tools that help leads upselling opportunities, curating a more personalized customer experience. Chatbot use has been steadily increasing particularly in the retail healthcare sectors but 58% of customers believe chatbots can only handle simple requests and nothing beats intelligent human interaction. The demand for fast answers and improved customer service response can be filled by AI. Huge streams of data can be assessed and insights gleaned in a shorter amount of time and with greater accuracy.
Capgemini
WebRTC increases communications options
Web Real-time Communications or WebRTC streamlines interactive voice, video, data file sharing, and collaboration without the need for additional plugins. Communications and collaboration are done simultaneously—audio and video calls, screen sharing, whiteboards, and files edited and sent between users numbering in the thousands. These interactions are done on a web browser but WebRTC also has applications for mobile devices and IoT endpoints. The end-user experience for WebRTC is simple and more accessible. It’s one of the simplest modes of access for VoIP and video conferencing. The WebRTC market was valued at 1.669 billion in 2018. Market forecasts project a CAGR of 43.6% between the years 2019–2025 valued at $21 billion.
Enlyft
The increased demand for UCaaS
Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) is a compliant and complete communications environment. UCaaS includes low-cost calling, PBX, messaging capabilities, and call analytics in a cloud setting that is fully scalable and adaptable to specific business and industry needs. UCaaS is cloud-based and more cost-effective compared to traditional deployment that requires software installation on hardware which will be outmoded in a year’s time. Factors that drive the growth of UCaaS are remote work, accelerated by the global COVID19 pandemic, and the wider practice of BYOD. UCaaS deployment is growing, it had an annualized rate of 29% in 2017. The UCaaS market size is projected to grow from $15.8 million in 2019 to $24.8 billion in 2024 with a CAGR of 9.5% based on a study performed by market research firm ResearchandMarkets.com.
Statista; Synergy Research Group
Though communications tools are becoming increasingly popular, many SMEs are not aware of their usefulness and how they can help their business. Most platforms in this category have been traditionally targeted at large organizations that have their own call centers. Of late, online platforms have been launched that can be used by businesses of all sizes and types. This article details the different types of communications tools, which businesses they are targeted at, the top communications software providers in each category, the list of key features, and main benefits. You can also read our detailed reviews of the top 10 communications software.
Get to know each product with a free trial
In most instances, you should go and try out at least a few free trial plans or demo from the most popular and best communications software. With that approach you will be able to try out the major features and you should get a good comparison of the best communications software tools before you spend any money on one. The best thing to do is to try services that currently have the highest SmartScore rankings and Customer Satisfaction Rating in our communications software reviews: RingCentral reviews, 8×8 VoIP, CDMessenger, ClickDesk, 8×8 Call Center, Vocalcom, Campaign Monitor, LiveChat, Zoho Meeting, DeskRoll, and MyOwnConference.
Targeted Businesses
For Unified Communications Software and Call Center Software:
- These products are ideal for companies focused on relationship and support management and looking to add customer support and call center capabilities.
- High-volume call centers that wish to invest in desktop devices for their agents.
- Headquarters of big companies that have in-house customer service and numerous telephone lines.
- Small businesses such as e-commerce companies and marketing agencies that provide customer support over phone.
For Web Conferencing and Video Software:
Ideal for businesses with multiple branches and clients in many locations. This software can be used to reduce travel costs as it can be utilized for conference calls, training purposes, and interactions with team members and customers.
For Live Chat Software:
- E-commerce sites and IT vendors can offer live help to improve customer experience.
- Call centers can use this software to provide additional services by way of text-based communication.
For Email Management Software:
- Email management applications are perfect for small businesses that use email as their main line of communication to customers.
- Growing companies can use such applications to manage emails from their staff members.
- Enterprises can manage, distribute, and archive its large number of emails from employees and customers.
Communications Software For Enterprises
As we mentioned before, communications apps are most of the time directed towards large enterprises wishing to establish their internal communication network and to keep their large and decentralized teams connected. An elegant communications solution will seamlessly solve some of their biggest problems, including data reliability and excessive time consumption, in particular such that is scalable and well-integrated with the rest of their software architecture. Together with improved ROI rates, enterprises will get to save money communicating via third party applications and software, and will collaborate to keep all tasks in line with the firm’s long term mission and goals.
What are Examples of Communications Software?
For Unified Communications Software and Call Center Software:
- Five9: Offers many features such as real-time reporting, CRM integrations, speech recognition, IVR (Interactive Voice Response), and skills-based routing. Can be used by businesses of all sizes.
- 8×8 Virtual Contact Center: User-friendly suite that provides a pay-as-you-grow pricing model.
- RingCentral: Offers voice, conferencing, text, and fax solutions for businesses and freelancers.
- Vocalcom Cloud Contact Center: This product provides live chat, Visual IVR, and social media customer engagement at an affordable cost.
- Phone.com: Ideal for small business and medium-sized companies that can utilize its useful features such as text and fax services.
For Web Conferencing and Video Software:
- GoToMeeting: Ideal for all types of businesses and freelancers. Allows calls with up to 25 users. It allows sharing both on desktop applications as well as mobile devices, and integrates with Microsoft Outlook to facilitate scheduling.
- ClickMeeting: Web-based app that allows document sharing, screen sharing, and whiteboard presentations.
- Speek: Allows conference calling and call recording. This app is easy to use and works great on mobile devices.
- GoToWebinar: Ideal app for webinars involving up to 1,000 participants. Works both on PC and Mac.
For Live Chat Software:
- HelpOnClick Live Chat Software: Easy to install and offers a real-time website traffic monitor that can be used to invite visitors for a chat.
- RumbleTalk: Offered in over 20 languages. Websites can use this chatroom platform. The app can be utilized to offer a customized experience by creating your personal CSS skin or related themes.
For details on other popular apps and to do detailed comparisons, browse our article on the top 15 communications solutions.
Types of Communications Software
Unified Communications Software and Call Center Software: These software products are a suite that offer features such as email or telephony management tools, PBX (Private Branch Exchange), and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). They are used in call centers and companies with a huge amount of telephone lines.
Web Conferencing and Video Software: This type of software is used for conducting online meetings and webinars with video connection on desktop and mobile, and includes document and screen sharing capabilities.
Live Chat: This type of software is installed on websites to enable businesses to provide personalized customer support. It provides reports on the browsing behavior of website visitors which can be used to create customized chat and support experiences. The data can also be used to create and manage advertising campaigns.
Email Management: This type of software allows businesses of various sizes to manage inbound emails. It allows business owners to track and monitor important emails. Such applications also ensure that managers can respond to important emails in a timely manner.
Key Features of Communications Software
- Cloud PBX – Utilizes the benefits of cloud service to offer a phone system over the internet.
- Auto-Receptionist – Handles and forwards calls automatically without manual aid.
- Call Forwarding – Forwards calls accurately to the right internal unit and individual employee.
- Call Recording – Helps to record calls for future reference and training purposes.
- Video Conferencing – You can conduct virtual meetings with team members in diverse locations around the world.
- Audio Conferencing – You can chat with team members in other locations through this feature.
- Internet Fax – Makes use of internet protocol to send faxes.
- Voicemail and Greeting – Offers a bunch of greetings as well as voicemail facility to record messages when you are not available.
- Multi-level IVR – Expands the capability of the auto-receptionist feature to manage large volume of incoming calls.
Benefits of Communications Software
The best communications software for you business is supposed to offer the following benefits:
- Improve Your Communication Capabilities: An integrated communications system can help to automate communication processes so that users are able to communicate effectively with one another regardless of device, location, or media type.
- Boost Personal and Business Productivity: A scalable solution can offer quick payback and improve performance and speed in a high volume atmosphere.
- Increase Accuracy: Minimize manual intervention and boost the reliability, accuracy, and speed of information exchange between users.
- Gain Flexibility: Scale the range and number of communication channels to keep up with the growing requirements of your business.
- Improve Compliance: Use centralized rights management and tracking to capture all important communication events in accordance with regulatory requirements.
- Reduce Administration and Infrastructure Costs: Use a consolidated communications solution to minimize the cost of maintaining multiple device-specific channels.
- Transparency: Use various communication channels to keep in touch with employees working in different regions and schedules. It is perfect for those with remote or hybrid staff.
Latest Trends
- Unified Communications: Unified communication is the integration of real-time and near real-time communication solutions. This means the integration of phone, chat services, messaging, video conferencing, commenting and feedback systems, and others. Unified communications provide a consistent user interface across multiple media types and devices. The advantage is you can reduce infrastructure expenses and offer more features for a responsive experience.
- Video Conferencing: Traditionally, video conferencing was used in boardroom meetings. The new trend is the use of video-enabled tablets and smartphones that allow users to call from anywhere, anytime. Web-based video conferencing enables teams to discuss in virtual rooms to boost collaboration. The latest video conferencing systems offer collaboration features such as screen sharing, text chat, and document sharing.
Potential Issues
- Issues with Unified Communications: Unified communications makes use of a single computer-based system to handle phone, chat, video, document sharing etc. But there can be problems with this method. First, you have to purchase a one-size-fits-all service (on-premise or cloud-hosted) and then ensure all users have compatible tools to utilize the software. This affects portability, which is essential for communication.
- Absence of Unified Communications Apps on the Four Main Platforms: The need of the hour is consistent and compatible unified communications apps on the four most popular platforms: Windows, Mac OS, iOS, and Android. But, no vendor provides such an offering. Microsoft comes close with its Lync solution, but the product’s development has taken many years which has created big compatibility gaps. This means the Lync platform is not that effective if your workforce is location-flexible, multiplatform, and mobile.
Communication Tools for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses
Small and medium-sized businesses often have limited budgets reserved for business tools. While such software can help the company boost its productivity, investing in applications for specific business operations such as communication can be risky. Therefore, it is important to carefully evaluate the specific needs of the company based on its size before choosing a communication app.
Start-Ups and Small Businesses
Start-ups and small businesses have the most limited budget for tools and software. They usually spend most of their funds on developing their products and services to maximize their revenue potential. However, many enterprises are beginning to realize the importance of communication tools in increasing productivity.
Taking the budget into consideration, company owners or managers should ask themselves the following question before spending on dedicated communication software:
- How do you communicate with your clients and your staff?
- What is your primary method of communication? Is it email, phone call, or chat?
- How often do you communicate with your clients and your team?
- Are features from free applications enough? Will you need premium functionalities?
These questions narrow down the options while making sure that using the chosen communication tool will provide the most return of investment.
Medium-Sized and Growing Enterprises
Medium-sized and growing enterprises have relatively sizable funds to begin investing in specific productivity tools. Much like start-ups, emerging companies also have unique factors to consider before considering communications tools. Here are a few:
- Price flexibility – Most communication software is offered with free trials along with various price packages. These packages should be flexible enough for companies that want an affordable subscription. As the company grows, it should be able to upgrade easily for more features.
- Adaptability – Mid-sized companies experience the most changes as it grows. That said, the communication application should be able to adapt to changing business processes. For example, as the company begins to create various departments, they should be able to create channels or groups in the communication platform exclusive to such teams.
- Scalability – Speaking of changes, the company will also begin growing its staff members and clients. Therefore, the communication software should be able to effectively handle the number of users. This also includes the ability to organize messages, content, type of user, and more.
The Role of Communications Software in Remote Work
Working remotely is now being embraced by companies to provide flexibility among its employees. At the core of remote working are robust communication guidelines and tools. Here are some of the features that you should consider for your remote team:
- Collaboration – Because your team members are not within the physical proximity of each other, communication is challenging. As such, the communication tool should be built around collaboration to ensure transparency. A combination of synchronous and asynchronous channels allows team members to connect even if they have varying schedules.
- Fully-Featured – Modern communication software combines functionalities such as chat, audio calls, and video calls. It should also allow users to send files, video, audio, and other content for collaboration. Some platforms also include interfaces that mimic social media to facilitate communication between a large group of people.
- Integration – If the communication software integrates easily with the other tools used by the company, it is much simpler to incorporate it with the current workflows. Additionally, it allows users to communicate contextually. This minimizes miscommunication, especially when discussing tasks or projects.
We hope this article has updated you on the features and benefits of popular types of communications software and the top vendors in each category. Choose a suitable product based on your needs and the features offered.
List of Communications Software Companies
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Things to consider when you invest in a SaaS
SaaS software offers many advantages such as simple setup, access, and integration as well as data security. To pick the perfect solution for your requirements, you need to do your groundwork thoroughly. To start, begin with the following tips to consider and analyze the various products:
Know your needs: First, be clear about your organization’s needs and requirements. Why do you need to invest in a SaaS system? What tasks and objectives do you intend to accomplish with the system? If you are sure about your requirements, you can easily find a suitable solution that fulfills them.
Compare features and price: Make a shortlist of SaaS products that offer the features you need and are within your budget. Browse online reviews of the shortlisted solutions to get an idea of what each one offers.
Use the free trial and extend it if necessary: Subscribe to the free trials of the shortlisted solutions and check out their tools firsthand. This will help you to understand if the software provides what you need to improve your company’s effectiveness and productivity. Request an extension of the free trial if the time is too short to gauge the app’s effectiveness.
Talk to the vendor: Finally, talk to each provider about the assistance and support they can offer. Try to discuss the cost and get discounts. Ask about the training and consultation they provide to help you to use the application effectively.
Frequently asked questions about Communications Software
What is the best communications software?
The best communication software is RingCentral. The award-winning cloud phone system makes it easy to set up a unified communication solution. You do not have to worry about installation and infrastructure as the entire service lives on the cloud.
The platform provides an all-in-one communication solution. It combines phone, messaging, video, and conferencing. Your team can connect with one another, discuss with their team, and conduct online meetings right in RingCentral.
Furthermore, even small and mid-sized companies can easily set up an omnichannel customer service. You can improve your customer relationships through proactive engagement. Additionally, your clients can reach you through any digital channel.
What are the benefits of communications software?
Communication software serves as the backbone of your entire organization. It ensures that the entire organization is on the same page while making sure that various operations are well coordinated. Here are some of its benefits:
- Improved Collaboration: Your team members can always reach their supervisors and colleagues at any time. They can easily work together to solve problems, execute plans, and more.
- Enhanced Productivity: With better collaboration comes increased productivity. Team members can share knowledge and skills to accomplish tasks and projects in a timely manner.
- Transparency and Accountability: Managers can provide feedback right away based on the employees’ real-time performance. It is also easy to reach team members responsible for key tasks and projects.
- Better Accuracy: Since members are always on the same page, mistakes and problems can be minimized. Furthermore, errors can be easily corrected by communicating with proper shareholders easily.
What are the features of communications software?
Most modern communication software includes advanced features. This allows organizations to consolidate various communication channels and functionalities such as:
- Cloud PBX: A central communication hub without the need to set up expensive infrastructure. You can connect your employees’ devices to a central system through the Internet.
- Recording: Videos, audios, and texts of communication in various channels are stored and archived for future use. You can easily track conversations, create meeting minutes, and more.
- Voicemail: Receive and record voice calls in your absence.
- Web Conferencing: Built-in audio and video capabilities so you can conduct meetings, webinars, and more.
- Integration: Combination of various tools and third-party apps to incorporate communication with the current business workflow. It also extends the capabilities of the platform such as the ability to send files through the cloud.
What is the easiest communications software to use?
An important feature of any modern communication software is the usability of its user-interface. Users should be able to navigate around the platform without the need for extensive training. Here are some of the easiest communication apps to use:
- JustCall: Targeted towards sales and support teams, this app features a familiar phone interface integrated with advanced features. It can be used with any device such as computers or mobile phones.
- PhoneBurner: The app is an easy-to-use dialer for sales teams. Its intuitive interface ensures that salespeople can focus on their customers and revenue.
- Ytel: A contact center solution that is easy to set up and use. Functionalities are organized into various modules so agents can reach customers using various channels.
What is a good free communications software?
There are communication applications that offer free plans for small and growing businesses. Here are a few:
- Wrike: The productivity platform integrates various communication channels for your team. Its free plan is perfect for small teams of up to five members.
- Flock: The collaboration software is built around improving team communication. Its Starter plan is free of charge which includes unlimited messages, 10 public channels, 5 GB of storage, and more.
- Slack: Slack is a popular team messaging platform with a powerful free plan. It provides 10,000 searchable messages, 10 app integrations, and one-on-one video calls.
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