Workspaces have evolved in the last decade. They have moved from traditional physical offices to remote workspaces. Remote working offers convinience but does come with its own challenge of which communication is one.
But in 2013, Slack was introduced and communication has been made easy since then. Slack is excellent choice for a team chat app, but there are other options as well. In this guide, we explore five of them. Let’s dive right in…
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Slack
Slack is that team chat app designed with users in mind, and that’s why it is popular among teams. The platform is built with a general channel that houses the whole company conversations. There can be channels for specific teams and projects also. You also have threads which are conversations inside channels. You can share files and also view images and videos inside the app. The search feature is built with filters, so you can narrow down results to what you’re looking for. Slack alerts you of any conversation in a thread you engage in or subscribe to. You can also use Slack on other devices and it syncs all your data.
2. Microsoft Teams
If you’re into the Microsoft ecosystem, then Microsoft Teams may be great for you. The comprehensive app helps you collaborate effectively. An entire company is known as Org. An org is broken down into Teams, and then Channels and then Threads. The app is essentially one that is enterprise-centric and is integrated with the other Office app. Not only that, it also allows third-party integration for expanded functionalities. You can open and view files within the app. Microsoft Team audio and video call features are robust, and you can easily schedule meetings right from the app. The app can however be complex and confusing.
Download Microsoft Teams for Android
3. Mattermost
There are conversation that have sensitive information, and as such, you need a more secured chat app. With Mattermost, you get a team collaboration tool that can be self-hosted on your servers. It is an open-source app. The tool has the features you expect from a standard team chat tool. Not only does it have the basic features, it also boasts of enterprise-focused features like e-discovery, and compliance reporting. It has a robust search functionality that allows you to filter results by date, user or channel. If you need a chat platform for your team, and concerned about data protection, you should definitely go for this.
Download Mattermost for Android
4. Google Chat
If you are familiar with the Google workspace, then Google Chat may be the right choice. Formerly known as Google Hangouts Chats, the app will handle your team conversations, albeit you have to make do with its rather basic features. Rooms are used in Google Chat, similar to Channels in Slack, and threads hold conversation. You can easily have a meeting with your co-worker by tagging Meet, the person you want to call, and time of the meeting. The call will be scheduled and a Meet link will be created. Search is feature-rich, and you have robust filtering options. Google Chats also offers integration with Tasks as you have a task list in every room.
Download Google Chat for Android
5. Discord
Although Discord was built originally for gaming communities, some of its features can also apply to a professional environment. The app has features for text messaging, voice calls and video calls. It is still relevant to office teams, and it offers a powerful voice call feature to allow members of teams communicate effectively. Although the text side of Discord can get cluttered quickly, the audio call feature doesn’t lack at all and is one of the best team app that does audio calls perfectly. Integration in Discord are not robust, and it only allows you to expand functionality via bots built by third-party.
Rounding Up…
Without interaction, there’s no work. There has to be communication between diverging skill sets before any progress can be made on any team project, and chat apps provide an avenue for this. We hope you found this guide helpful? If you did, kindly leave a comment and don’t forget to share…