The 10 commandments of video conferencing.

(From Israel Business Arena)

Byline: Michael Neuvirth

Due this year's airline tragedies, more and more of us are either very reluctant or downright afraid to fly. This can be highly problematic for those of us in the high tech industry in general and for start-ups in particular. We need to fly constantly to meet with investors, strategic partners, customers, etc.

In addition to the potential dangers inherent in flying today, flying is expensive, time consuming, usually a pain and it takes you away from your family. I used to believe that there is no substitute for face to face meetings and that I had to fly and meet face to face. Now, after participating in video conferences, I firmly believe that video conferencing can be a viable substitute for face to face meetings.

I am not alone in my thinking. Video conferencing is becoming more and more popular. To help you conduct the best possible video conferences, today's Enable presents the 10 commandments of video conferencing.

Video conferencing can be a substitute for face-to-face meetings. This is only the case if everyone is properly prepared. Do your homework and focus hard on your objectives.

Have a backup plan ready. Prepare a PowerPoint presentation and email it to all of the participants in case the video technology fails. At worst you will have an audio conference with the other slide viewing your slides as you give the presentation.