Loom Updates Video Collaboration Platform to Support Asynchronous Work
Loom, a San Francisco-based video communication platform, has launched early access to the latest edition of its video platform, Loom HQ, with a redesigned user interface and new capabilities.
Video has taken on a primary role in many areas of the workplace, from team meetings to employee training to internal communications. It's also become an increasingly important part of how companies collaborate to get the work done when employees are in different locations and working at different times. This model for asynchronous, hybrid and distributed work has become a pain point for many organizations.
Anique Drumright, vice president of product at Loom, told Reworked that Loom HQ's primary goal is to ensure that everyone has access to the information they need to do their work more efficiently. With Loom, users capture videos with their webcam and send them to others through a link. Sharing rapid comments or extensive dialogue, users can convey their message in a compelling manner, she said.
New Features Make Video Content Searchable
According to the company's self-reported statistics, 14 million users at 200,000 companies use Loom to share quick video messages with one another. That's only scratching the surface for how video can be used at work, said Loom CEO Joe Thomas in the press release announcing the news.
The new updates to Loom HQ aim to improve information discoverability and allow users to turn videos into documented knowledge that others can search out and find. Search capabilities include finding videos by person, tag or through a video transcript. For example, users that want to re-use a recruiting video can search for it, and customers can search IT demos or video of all-hands meetings, Drumright said.
Loom also introduced Home, a personalized page of videos, in a product beta. On Home, customers will be served Loom videos that help keep users' finger on the pulse at work, something that is hard to do in hybrid and remote worlds, according to Drumright.
Related Article: The Future of Video in the Virtual Collaboration Market
Benefits of Asynchronous Video Communication
Loom enables organizations to interact more effectively at a large scale via asynchronous work, Drumright said. Core users are the modern knowledge worker, she added, and anyone that is doing their work in front of a screen such as designers, product managers, software engineers, salespeople, marketers, business operations, and HR and people operations managers.
Learning Opportunities
"It makes it easier to communicate anything, and explain ideas with more context and clarity than writing – in a fraction of the time," she said. "These users can get more done without a meeting by sharing async updates, feedback and ideas to keep work moving while giving their calendar space to breathe."
The market is yearning for improved solutions to link distant enterprises, Drumright said, as more firms begin to reopen offices and commit to a future of hybrid work. Video is the answer to the challenges of collaboration and communication in the workplace because employees are able to see and hear the subtleties of the speaker's voice and facial expressions, she said.
Related Article: 7 Video Conferencing Improvements to Consider
A Growing Market for Video Communication
The Loom news comes amidst a surge in demand for video conferencing and communication due to remote work and geographically dispersed businesses. The emergence of new technologies such as IoT, cloud computing, VR, improved video compression and AI are helping to boost the market.
According to data from French technology firm ReportLinker, the global market for web and video conferencing SaaS was estimated at $3.5 billion in 2020, and is projected to reach $7 billion by 2026. Corporate, one of the segments analyzed in the report, is projected to grow 13 percent, to reach $4.1 billion by the end of the analysis period.
Loom aims to carve out a part of the market focused on making video messaging a part of how companies collaborate and work. In June 2021, the company released loomSDK, a software development kit that developers can use to add a video record button within their own apps. Work management apps like Trello, Miro MarkUp and Linear have integrated Loom's "record button for the Internet."
The Loom Starter option is free, but comes with a 50-person limit as well as other limitations on the number and length of videos allowed. The Business plan is $8 per user each month, and includes unlimited videos as well as transcriptions and closed captions. Enterprise plans are available that feature enhanced administrative and security features.
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About the Author
Gabrielle Rodgers is an editorial intern for Simpler Media Group, joining the team in the fall of 2021. Gabrielle is currently a digital media major at Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina and expects to earn her Bachelor’s in 2022.
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