ICT TOOLS USED IN BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

Information and communications technology systems include desktop

computers, laptops and tablets, fixed and mobile telephone systems,
communications networks and software – even wearables. Your business
can use ICT systems to benefit from improvements such as reducing
costs, increasing efficiency, improving decision-making and increasing
your competitiveness in the marketplace.
The Most Popular and Efficient Business Communications Tools You Can Start Using Now

 Intranet/Social Intranet.
 Chat rooms, Private and Group Messaging.
 Discussion Forums.
 Ticketing, Issue Tracking and Case Software.
 Internal Blogs, Video and Audio.

Intranet
An intranet is a private network contained within an enterprise that is used to securely share
company information and computing resources among employees. An intranet can also be
used to facilitate working in groups and teleconferences.
 Intranets increase communication within an organization by allowing employees to
easily access important information, links, applications and forms as well
as databases that can provide company records. Security can also be increased
within the intranet by establishing a database that maintains all of the usernames of
people who are allowed access to the network.

Private, group messaging, and chat tools

Employees and project teams need collaboration tools to help

them work together more efficiently. Without a platform to
collaborate, it becomes difficult for members to share ideas
and keep tabs on group progress. Emails often get lost,
unread, or threads become frustratingly long. Providing an
easy way for your teams to communicate brings members
together and helps them be more productive.
This is especially important when employees are spread across
geographical locations in different time zones. While public
spaces like Facebook Groups may work, dedicated intranet
 chat services ensure everyone is just a tap away. They can also
be used to share files (with a drag-and-drop function) and
search for contacts or past conversations.

Discussion forums

Sharing information in the workplace is vital for internal

growth and community. Veteran workers can orient new
employees on what’s what within an organization, helping
them get up to speed quickly and with fewer mistakes along
the way. At the same time, a digital workspace where
employees can ask questions, discuss projects and workplace
issues helps bond everybody within the organization.
Discussion forums disseminate internal knowledge and brings
everybody closer together. They are also great for archiving all
 organizational knowledge – sometimes conversations drives
the most valuable ideas. Now, all those thoughts are stored
and accessible for your entire organization.

Cases, issue tracking, and ticketing software

 Today's customer wants the ability to connect with you across a
variety of channels. The problem is that there are no tools that
offer a 360-degree approach to customer support and service.
Customer queries are generally lost, call volumes go up, and the
inability to assign the right employees to handle customer queries
leaves many customers frustrated.
Cases, issue tracking, and ticketing software helps centralize
customer support queries, track open issues, monitor team
productivity, prioritize the most important questions, and collect
valuable customer feedback that helps improve your products and
services.
Internal blogs and videos

The common saying is "people eat with their eyes." When your

content looks good, people will want to read it. Great content will
be the defining indicator as to whether your internal teams will be
engaged or not. If you have low engagement from employees, little
or no feedback, and an increasing ratio of lurkers to active
participants, the type of content you post is likely the problem.
Posting training videos, messages from top-level managers, or
culture videos in your company intranet will increase engagement
and retention among employees. When it comes to image-focused
content, infographics are another great way to display important
information. Particularly for data, timelines, or explaining
complicated topics, infographics will simplify information in a
catchy and engaging way.
Creating training videos, videos messages from top-level
managers, behind-the-scenes footage, and then posting
them across the company intranet is likely to increase engagement
and retention among employees.

Infographics are especially suited for marketing departments and

for demonstrating and explaining processes. They are visually
appealing and help communicate instructions quickly and easily.