Zoom is venturing into social media. The latest update to Zoom Events allows you to set a profile, make connections and contact fellow event participants.
Zoom faces a deciding period. The past two years were a golden age for video conferencing, but remote working has come to a halt. The demand for videoconferencing is on the decline while competition rises. Microsoft (Teams), Cisco (Webex) and Salesforce (Slack) are fighting for a smaller target audience.
Zoom is vulnerable due to its relatively small product portfolio. The organization is built on videoconferencing. That’s a risk, because videoconferencing is sensitive to trends. Zoom tackles the challenge by investing in new products. In recent months, the organization launched solutions for events, analytics and whiteboards. With the latest introduction, Zoom is venturing into social media.
Virtual Networking in Zoom Events
Virtual Networking is now available in Zoom Events. Zoom Events is a solution for event organizers and participants. Virtual Networking consists of several tools for participants. From now on, participants can create a profile with images, videos and links to websites. The profile is public for fellow event participants. Participants can establish connections with each other, comparable to Facebook and LinkedIn. Connections can contact each other via mail, phone and social media. Lastly, participants can start one-on-one conversations during events.
User profiles aren’t entirely public. Users can only view a profile if the profile’s owner is participating in the same event. When making a connection during or after the event, the profile remains accessible. If two users never have or will participate in the same event, there’s no way of finding each others’ profiles. In this respect, the platform is incomparable to LinkedIn and Facebook.
Networking
According to Zoom, the update makes it easier to network at digital events. Essentially, users no longer need to switch to another platform to connect with participants. The problem is that Zoom Events doesn’t have all the functionality of other platforms. If you frequently work with LinkedIn, you’ll still want to add participants on LinkedIn. The names of fellow participants are already on display, which leaves little reason to use the system. If you prefer not to work with LinkedIn, or find it important to be found across the web, the update is an interesting feature.
3 hours ago
