Current technology has created many new ways of communicating.

Where people were once

restricted to writing letters, using landline phones and speaking in person, there are now a
variety of other methods of communication that use technology to increase their speed, range
and accuracy. Business communication is more than just verbal and written correspondence -
- it also includes person-to-person interactions and visual presentations. Recent trends in
technology have enhanced communications through both software and hardware. Hardware
innovations such as multidimensional mobile phones and interactive tablet PCs have helped
employees to stay productive in remote locations. Software technology is changing the way
employees interact and how meetings are conducted.

Phones
Phones are an interesting manner of communication that uses technology because they
are not as "new" as the other forms. Telephones have been around for more than 100
years; however, it is only in the last 10 years or so that they have become portable.
Cell phones have changed the way people communicate by giving them the ability to
make phone calls when they are on the move. A phone and its number are now attached
to a person, where previously they were associated with a household. This means that
phone calls are now much more commonplace, and they take place in all kinds of venues,
not just in the home.
SMS
Cell phones have also created a new form of communication -- the text message. This is
often cheaper and easier than calling someone, and it is a form of communication that
has risen with cell phone use. Texting (or SMS) is a communication tool that has
shortened communications between people and delivered information far more
efficiently than a phone conversation can.
Text messaging has also changed the way people communicate. Since text messages are
limited in their length, users often shorten words and phrases to meet the character
limit.


Internet
The Internet is an enormous communication tool that affects both of the other two
mentioned above, in addition to providing its own sources of communication. The
Internet provides the ability for peoples' computers to interface with one another via
phone lines.
The Internet's applications are wide-ranging, from email, which allows people to send
messages instantly rather than wait a day or so like they would with standard mail, to
instant messaging, which is a form of email that takes a faster, more conversational
route.
There are also websites themselves, which, broadly defined, are simply pieces of
information that companies put on the Internet for people to browse. They range from
static, information-giving websites to dynamic new media websites.
New Media
New media is a broad-based term that describes social media websites. They differ from
older websites because they encourage participation from and interaction with the
viewer; rather than have the company that runs the website put content up for users to
passively take in, new media encourages users to put content up themselves.
This means that companies can engage with their customers more effectively by giving
them a voice. By allowing them to interact with one another through the company and
with the company itself, customers have more of a stake in the website, and more reason
to visit it because it is distinctly theirs, not simply something that could be of interest to
them.
Fax
Fax machines are a combination of a photocopier and a phone. Users scan documents,
which are then encoded and relayed through phone lines to another fax machine. This
makes it possible to quickly send documents that are not available in digital form. An
excellent example is employee time sheets -- since the hours and signatures are generally
written, not typed, a fax machine is necessary to quickly deliver them.
Faxing is also substantially cheaper than sending things through standard mail, as it's
the price of a phone call rather than the price of physically moving a document.
Tablet PCs
Interactive flat-screen monitors were developed in the 1980s, but were made more cost-
effective, touch-sensitive and scalable in 2006. The technology was then translated into
devices from digital cameras to computer monitors. One of the more recent applications
of the technology is the tablet PC, a flat, touch-friendly portable device that allows the
user to view and display multimedia presentations among other things.
This interactive tablet has changed the way business development managers interact
with clients. Because a large part of client interactions is based on visual presentations, a
multidimensional hand-held presentation can further drive home pertinent selling
points.


Cross-Device Operating Systems
Operating systems have been designed to work well across multiple platforms, such as
mobile phones, mini-computers, tablet and power PCs. Any two devices that share an
operating system can be synchronized to increase productivity.
Advances in operating systems have helped to enhance communications in mobile
phones and other portable devices, keeping communication applications running
simultaneously. These applications include web browsing, instant messaging, video
conferencing, email, word processing and telephone. For example, a well-functioning
operating system enables a manager to simultaneously talk on her phone and send an
email.
Social Media Applications
Companies with over 1,000 employees are more likely to use social media for internal
communications, a survey by "Social Media Today" indicates. Though social media is
most commonly used to connect with customers, it can also help employees
communicate with each other.
Social media is slowly replacing the paper memo in some offices, as interoffice instant
messaging, blog posts and productivity threads (long strings of emailed conversations)
can help keep a record of important briefings as well as inform personnel of
departmental changes. Additionally, internal webcasts and blogs can be used for
training, briefings or announcements.
Video Conferencing
Managers are using video chat and video conferencing to connect better with employees.
A Citrix survey showed that workers in their 30s and 40s are integrating video
conferencing into everyday business communications.
Video conferencing is used to enhance communications, helping people to cross physical
barriers and meet on important business matters. And because not every business
situation warrants a mass meeting, managers and employees have begun to see the value
in video chatting with individual team members. This software can help to quickly
alleviate problems that could take longer to iron out with other forms of communication.


Voice-mail (also known as voicemail, voice message or voice bank) is a computer based system
that allows users and subscribers to exchange personal voice messages; to select and deliver voice
information; and to process transactions relating to individuals, organizations, products and services,
using an ordinary telephone. The term is also used more broadly to denote any system of conveying a
stored telecommunications voice messages, including using an answering machine. Most cell
phone services offer voice-mail as a basic feature, many corporate PBXs include versatile internal
voice-messaging services and *98 Vertical service code subscription is available to most individual
and small business land line subscribers.
Voice-mail features
Voice-mail systems are designed to convey a caller's recorded audio message to a recipient. To do
so they contain a user interface to select, play, and manage messages; a delivery method to either
play or otherwise deliver the message; and a notification ability to inform the user of a waiting
message. Most systems use phone-networks, either cellular or land-line based, as the conduit for all
of these functions. Some systems may use multiple telecommunications methods, permitting
recipients and callers to retrieve or leave messages through multiple methods such as PCs, PDA,
Cellphones or Smartphones.
Simple voice-mail systems function as a remote answering machine using a touch-tones as the user
interface. More complicated systems may use other input devices such as voice or
a computer interface. Simpler voice-mail systems may play the audio message through the phone,
while more advanced systems may have alternative delivery methods, including email or text
message delivery, message transfer and forwarding options, and multiple mailboxes.
Almost all modern voice-mail systems use digital storage and are typically stored on computer data
storage. Notification methods also vary based on the voice-mail system. Simple systems may not
provide active notification at all, instead requiring the recipient to check with the system, while others
may provide an indication that messages are waiting.
More advanced systems may be integrated with a companys PABX, with a call center ACD for
automatic call distribution; with mobile or paging terminals for message alert; and computer
systems/data bases for delivering information or processing orders. Interactive Voice Response (IVR)
systems may use digital information stored in a corporate data base to select pre-recorded words and
phrases stored in a voice-mail vocabulary to form sentences that are delivered to the caller.
email and telecon
adv.
True Cost of Ownership
The true cost of technology to communicate when you compare it with much slower means of
communication such as mail delivery is relatively low. As technology continues to be standardized
and made more efficient, the cost of using it in communication continues to decline. While the actual
cost of a traditional communication method such as mailing a letter may be very small, the actual cost
in lost efficiency and misplaced letters should be considered carefully. In a small business, some
things can wait, while others simply cannot.
Efficiency
When communicating with technology, you can find and deliver data to your employee or customer
anywhere. When you need to contact your employee on the field, you can text message or email his
smartphone or tablet both simple and complex information rather than he being forced to wait until he
arrives back at your facility to receive it. With the high-quality digital still and video cameras available,
you can provide pictures or video quickly and in very high resolution to help your employee complete
a task. A customer can get real-time information as to the status of an appointment and can
communicate needs in a prompt manner. She can also provide helpful feedback quickly so you are
able to fill her need quickly and efficiently.
Documentation
Technology has made documentation and archiving of communication quick and easy. With the use
of databases and inexpensive storage, you can save emails and other communications and can query
them as needed for future use. Compare that with filing paper copies in an immense array of
expensive file cabinets to attempt to archive later and it is easy to see a cost and efficiency savings in
documentation. The required space to store cabinets and the employees to find the data, not to
mention the gradual degradation of ink on paper, makes traditional means of documenting
communication quite challenging and inefficient.



conclusion