1. 3
R E P O R T
How Data, Security & Support Should Influence
Platform Decisions for Tech Decision Makers
3 Key Considerations
for IT Teams at Small to Midsized Firms
Presented by Sponsored by
Web Conferencing for SMBs

2. Web Conferencing For SMBs: 3 Key Considerations For IT Teams At Small To Midsized Firms
Web Conferencing For SMBs:
3 Key Buying Considerations For
IT Decision Makers
Web conferencing over the past decade has grown
from a niche market to a mission-critical business
tool: According to a 2012 Frost & Sullivan study, 62%
of companies now consider Web conferencing a “very
important” business technology. 1
1 http://www.slideshare.net/FrostandSullivan/web-conferencing-stays-strong-in-a-down-market
of companies now
consider Web
conferencing a
“very important”
business technology.
2
There are a number of reasons for this trend. Travel
costs, combined with the growing prevalence of
remote work and distributed, virtual workplaces,
make Web conferencing essential for collaboration
and business productivity. This is especially true for
small and midsized businesses (SMBs) with tight
budgets and limited resources.
Technology vendors have been quick to capitalize on
the growing popularity of Web conferencing services
within the SMB market: Currently, at least four dozen
vendors offer Web conferencing tools. 2
These include
a large number of free or low-cost services that vary
widely in terms of their functionality, security and
customer support options.
2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_conferencing#Software_and_service_providers

3. Web Conferencing For SMBs: 3 Key Considerations For IT Teams At Small To Midsized Firms
Web Conferencing:
The SMB Dilemma
These Web conferencing providers, and the vast
array of services they provide, represent both an
opportunity and a dilemma for SMB information
technology organizations.
At first glance, many of them deliver significant value
by combining low cost (or no cost) services with
adequate feature sets. In the long run, however, many
SMBs discover that these services create long-term
security, reliability, management and support issues
that offset any short-term cost savings. As a result,
these businesses’ IT decision-makers must decide
whether to migrate away from their current Web
conferencing provider – and then decide how to select
a cost-effective alternative vendor.
This white paper will look at three issues of particular
concern to SMB information technology professionals
weighing the pros and cons of a new or different Web
conferencing solution:
• Data and application security
• Management and administration
• Support, service and customer care
This paper will discuss how and why each of these
issues plays a role in the Web conferencing vendor
selection process, and it will also highlight specific
features or capabilities in each area that distinguish
best-in-class Web conferencing solutions.
Other factors than the ones discussed here will play
a role in the selection of a Web conferencing vendor,
including platform support and the availability
of specific features. Yet for SMB IT professionals
weighing a solution’s long-term total cost of
ownership, these three factors play a decisive role
— especially given the inability of many providers to
meet basic service standards in one or more of
these areas.
3

4. Web Conferencing For SMBs: 3 Key Considerations For IT Teams At Small To Midsized Firms
Security: A Vital Concern For
SMB Technology Decision Makers
Most SMB technology professionals agree that
security is a critical issue. In fact, according to a
2010 Symantec study, SBMs rank data loss and cyber
attacks as their most serious business risks. Today,
IT organizations spend an average of two-thirds of
their time on information protection, yet
problems persist: 42% of the companies surveyed
have lost confidential or proprietary information to
a security breach, and 74% are concerned they will
experience such losses in the future.3
These are sobering statistics, and they emphasize a
fundamental truth: Every SMB technology purchasing
decision must consider the security impact of the
product or service being purchased.
Web conferencing tools vary widely in terms of their
security capabilities, and it is not always clear how
a particular provider deals with security issues.
Therefore, transparency is the first trait that defines
a best-in-class Web conferencing solution – a
willingness to explain to customers precisely what
measures are being taken to secure customers’ data.
The second trait that defines best-in-class Web
conferencing security is a sophisticated, multi-
layered approach to data security. This includes the
following capabilities:
3 http://www.slideshare.net/symantec/2010-smb-information-protection-survey
Physical security. Every cloud-based
service, including Web conferencing,
depends upon its ability to protect
customer data against physical intrusions
and possible disruptions due to accidents
or natural disasters. Key features to
look for include the use of ISO 9001:2000
certified data centers; 24/7/365 staffing
and monitoring; multiple layers of physical
security; and the use of redundant
power-grid connection points and
backup systems.
Data security. Web conferencing
users frequently upload confidential
documents, session recordings,
presentations and other information that
is subsequently stored on a provider’s
servers. This data should be protected
in transit by the use of appropriate
standards, such as SSL/HTTPS network
encryption. In addition, data stored on a
provider’s servers should be protected
using the strongest possible encryption,
such as the AES-256
bit standard currently
recommended by the U.S.
National Security Agency.
Web Conferencing For SMBs: 3 Key Considerations For IT Teams At Small To Midsized Firms
74%
42%
of the companies surveyed
have lost confidential or
proprietary information to a
security breach, and
are
concerned
they will
experience
such losses
in the
future.
4

5. Web Conferencing For SMBs: 3 Key Considerations For IT Teams At Small To Midsized Firms
Application security.The purpose of a Web
conferencing solution is to share information;
the key is controlling where, when and with
whom this information is shared. A best-in-class
Web conferencing solution accomplishes this in
several ways:
• Using appropriate log in and authentication
procedures, including unique user access codes, to
manage access to individual conference sessions;
• Assigning different levels of access based on a
user’s role and the meeting organizer’s preferences
(by, for example, limiting access to screen- or
application-sharing features);
• Allowing meeting organizers to assign and revoke
access privileges on the fly as required for a
particular meeting or event;
• Supporting the ability to disconnect individual
users, lock or unlock conferencing sessions, and
control user listening/audio settings as necessary
to protect sensitive business discussions.
Security management. As the following
section of this paper will discuss, a best-in-class
Web conferencing solution will support a rich set
of management and administration features. These
capabilities extend to security; administrators should
be able to disable features on a global or per-account
basis in order to:
• Prevent users from uploading slides to a Web
conferencing session
• Require users to delete slides when a
conference ends
• Disable application sharing, desktop sharing and/
or remote control of a desktop
• Disable the ability to assign a co-presenter within
a conference
On an individual basis, none of these capabilities will
ensure adequate security for a company’s data or
applications. Taken together, however, they give an
SMB technology team the ability to implement a Web
conferencing solution without sacrificing security or
placing an organization’s proprietary data at risk.
5

6. 6Web Conferencing For SMBs: 3 Key Considerations For IT Teams At Small To Midsized Firms
Management And Administration:
Lightening the Load on IT
Web conferencing management and administration
covers a wide variety of capabilities intended to
simplify an IT organization’s implementation and
support requirements. As with security, these
capabilities represent a very real source of trouble
and expense: According to Gartner, Inc., about 80%
of total IT costs occur after the initial purchase of a
product or service. 4
In general terms, Web conferencing management
and administration is relevant to an IT organization
for two reasons. First, the right set of management
capabilities empower users to do things they might
otherwise ask the IT department (or their co-
workers) to do for them. Given the time and resource
constraints SMB IT teams typically face, these
capabilities have obvious advantages.
Second, a Web conferencing service should provide
administration tools that allow an IT organization to
perform necessary tasks quickly, efficiently and with
minimal duplication of effort. They should also give IT
decision-makers an appropriate level of visibility into
service usage, billing data and other key metrics.
4 http://www.networkalliance.com/your-advantage/understanding-technology-costs
More specifically, a best-in-class Web conferencing
solution will offer the following management and
administrative features:
• Application integration. Users and IT
organizations alike benefit from Web conferencing
tools that integrate with other collaboration
and business productivity tools. This is typically
done via “one click” meeting support from within
applications such as Microsoft Outlook and
salesforce.com.
• Event tracking and management. Users should be
able to organize, manage and promote multiple
meetings or events without having to ask their IT
organizations for additional tools or application
support. This includes the ability to create and
deploy customized event registration forms;
send automated reminder email to participants;
promote events via social media platforms; and
integrate meeting data with marketing campaign
tracking tools.
• Interactive content deployment and management.
Users should be able to follow up meetings
with surveys or email; or to edit, distribute and
archive call recordings quickly and easily, without
requesting assistance from the IT staff.

7. 7Web Conferencing For SMBs: 3 Key Considerations For IT Teams At Small To Midsized Firms
• Account-level control and administration.
IT administrators, or a designated Web conferencing
service admin, should be able to add, edit and/
or delete users from within a simple, Web-based
interface. This control should also extend to the
creation and revocation or user access codes.
• Comprehensive reporting and account management
The Human Factor: Customer
Service and Support
End-user support is a familiar (and often troublesome)
responsibility for IT organizations. Given the time and
resources required to support endpoint devices and
in-house applications, the last thing an IT department
needs is an additional support burden associated with
Web conferencing technology.
This is especially true for SMB IT teams, where
resources may already be stretched to the breaking
point. According to a 2009 SpiceWorks study, the
average SMB supports 90 employees and nearly 160
endpoint devices – yet 80% of all SMBs employ fewer
than five full-time IT employees. 5
5 http://sellingtobigcompanies.blogs.com/files/state-of-smb-it-august-2009.pdf
tools. A Web conferencing solution should allow IT
staff to view and download detailed user information,
invoicing and expense-reporting data, and real-time
usage reports.
80%
of all SMBs employ fewer than
five full-time IT employees.
90 employees

8. 8Web Conferencing For SMBs: 3 Key Considerations For IT Teams At Small To Midsized Firms
• Operator-assisted services. Most users, and
most situations, do not require operator-assisted
Web conferencing services. For business-
critical meetings, however, or for events with
large numbers of attendees, professional help
should be available to manage calls, monitor call
quality, provide on-the-spot technical support,
and perform other necessary tasks. A best-
in-class Web conferencing service will also
provide access to optional services such as call
transcriptions, closed captioning and assistance
with audience question-and-answer sessions.
• Responsive customer support. Real-time or
near-time (e.g. email) vendor support can make
the difference between success and failure for
a Web conferencing investment. Inadequate
or unresponsive support will prompt users to
turn to alternative support resources – formal
support from in-house IT or informal support
from colleagues. Either way, a SMB pays the
price, in terms of lost productivity or wasted
IT resources.
• Robust self-service support resources.
Self-directed support, including FAQs and
knowledge base articles, can provide an effective
first line of support for end users with common
or easily resolved issues. When vendor self-help
resources are inadequate, however, users will
again turn to in-house IT or colleagues
for support.
This makes it especially important for SMBs to work
with cloud-based service providers, including Web
conferencing providers, with strong customer
support offerings.
One might expect any cloud-based IT service provider
to be up to this challenge, given these firms’ reliance
on a recurring-revenue business model that makes it
easy for unhappy customers to switch providers. In the
Web conferencing market, however, the proliferation
of low-cost, no-cost and consumer-focused offerings
(a market where service and support expectations are
generally low) has turned customer support into a hit-
or-miss affair.
For SMBs seeking a more stable and supportive IT
environment, a Web conferencing solution should offer
several key service and support features:
• Comprehensive — and free — training. High-
quality training resources have a major impact on
end-user productivity and on an IT organization’s
in-house service and support burden. A provider’s
training resources should be readily available,
well-organized and comprehensive enough to cover
a wide variety of skill levels and usage scenarios.
Needless to say, these training resources should
also be available free of charge, as part of a normal
SMB subscription package.

9. Web Conferencing For SMBs: 3 Key Considerations For IT Teams At Small To Midsized Firms
Conclusion
The Search for Long-Term Value
SMBs today recognize the value of Web conferencing
tools: According to a 2012 SMB Group Study, 58% of
midsized firms and 38% of small firms say they rely
upon these types of online collaboration tools. Yet
the same companies are often searching for better
solutions, as indicated by the fact that nearly half of the
respondents to this study said they were “satisfied” or
“very satisfied” with their current providers. 6
6 http://www.slideshare.net/smbgroup/2011-smb-collaboration-study-hlighlight
58% 38%
of midsized firms of small firms
and
rely upon these types of online collaboration tools.
9
These companies face two priorities: Establishing
a clear set of criteria for selecting a new Web
conferencing provider; and ensuring that their new
provider delivers long-term business value. Using
the three criteria described in this white paper, SMB
IT groups can ensure that they are able to satisfy
both priorities – and that they are able to provide end
users with a secure, easy to manage and adequately
supported Web conferencing solution.

10. 10Web Conferencing For SMBs: 3 Key Considerations For IT Teams At Small To Midsized Firms
About
About ReadyTalk
Hosting a webinar shouldn’t be rocket science. Audio and Web conferences aren’t brain
surgery. And, customer care doesn’t include a system of beeps and prompts. It should be
user friendly, reliable and supported by a team of professionals, which is exactly what we
deliver.
From small virtual meetings to large web events, ReadyTalk provides audio and Web
conferencing services that are affordable and easy to use, so you can focus on the
substance of the meeting, not the technology behind it. And, when you do call us with a
question, afterwards we want you to hang up the phone and say, “Wow, that was good
customer service” and tell someone else.
About Demand Gen Report
Demand Gen Report is a targeted e-media publication spotlighting the strategies and
solutions that help companies better align their sales and marketing organizations, and
ultimately, drive growth. A key component of the publication’s editorial coverage focuses
on the sales and marketing automation tools that enable companies to better measure
and manage their multi-channel demand generation efforts.
R E P O R T
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P: 800.843.9166
sales@readytalk.com