Skype Video Chat & Group Calls

Staying In Touch Over Summer Vacation

I have discussed Skype Mother’s Day video greetings and how much easier my life became during a Skype Only 7 Day Challenge over the last 2.5 months, but I have just one more idea and experience to share with all of you for the summer.  How are you keeping in touch with your loved ones over summer vacation? Are your kids traveling or away at summer camp? Have you considered Skype video calls to keep in touch and connect with friends and family members as they travel, or while you are traveling yourself?

Skype products are an excellent tool for keeping in touch with friends and family year round, so our summer vacations should be no different! We are all traveling, out of school, attending sleep away camp, or just too busy to see all of the people we would like to see. The alternative this summer has been Skype and I am so grateful for the variety of options available for our family. 

Although I have been using Skype for several years, I learned a lot about the company and their products over the past few weeks. The greatest lessons came to me during the Skype Only 7-day Challenge, which forced me to find a way to keep in touch with my family and send messages to my friends using Skype products – only! It was far from difficult and wound up being a lot easier than I would have ever imagined. 

I took the Skype challenge nearly 1-month ago and decided to continue on whenever possible. I am finding myself turning to my Skype headset much more than I did ever before. Now that it is summertime, I have a few cousins away that are studying abroad. My International rates through my cellphone carrier are very high, so Skype video calls have been the best answer for our needs economically and technologically.

The old days of using just a phone to call your friends and family are over!

We want to SEE who we are talking to and feel like we’re in the same room, which is a Skype luxury!

In addition to wanting to chat with one of our friends, I thought it would be even better if I connected several long long friends using Skype Group Chat! One of my girlfriends hasn’t been able to come home in nearly 2-years due to a strenuous work schedule. I knew she was homesick, so I decided to organize a Surprise Skype Party with a few other participants.

We all decided to ‘meet‘ online around 10PM Eastern Standard Time since she is currently in California with her fiance. Both of their schedules are very hard to work with, but he was a huge help and ensured us that she would be home at 7PM (Pacific) so that we could surprise video chat!

Moments before her expected arrival, I sent over a call to her laptop so that her fiance would accept our Group Chat. Thereafter, I had him close the screen just a few inches and tell her the computer was making "really annoying sounds" and ask her to "make it stop, please!". 

We heard our girlfriend walk into the house, her fiance tell her the laptop was driving him nuts, and then her reaction as the three of us sit on her screen and shouted out "Skype Surprise!". She appeared to be in total shock and speechless, but her smile was ear to ear and she started babbling on and on before we knew it! Everyone had a great time and we planned to host a Skype Group Chat at least once a month from now on – and I will hold them all to it, or I will just have to throw another Surprise Skype Party! 

Connections made through Skype create a much more personal and emotional connection than the cellphone or an email, which is agreed upon by 53% of moms surveyed through Mom Central Consulting.

We are turning to technological advancements for everything in our daily routines, so why stop now? Why not continue on this path towards the future and build a comfort zone into the video chat, group call, and Internet telephony world of communications!?

Are you up for a Skype Only Seven Day Challenge?

Would you be able to turn in your cellphone and landlind phones for one week and rely on Skype to keep in touch?

What Have I Learned?

The past few weeks have been a great experience for my family, friends, and reconnections that were long overdue. Will I continue to use Skype as much as I have, or did in the past? No. I will be using it a LOT more. I have learned that these great advancements in technology are doing more than we can see. Tools such as Skype are allowing us to stay in touch with family around the world, friends down the block, and conduct meetings with colleagues – just because we can. 

After reviewing the infographic above (see Summer Travel with Tech), I realized that a lot of us (moms) are turning to Skype. However, I also discovered that there are more moms out there that need to start challenging themselves with Skype. We all seem to agree on the idea of using technology to connect with family members at any time, but are we utilizing Skype as much as we can, or should? 

Instead of considering Skype when you have no other choice, I would like to challenge you to use Skype because you have a choice. Don’t wait until there is no other alternative to reach out to a friend, but rather use the tools available instead of your normal service. Why do we normally turn to our cellphone to call a friend when we can use Skype video chat and create a real and much more personal experience?

Oh – and for all of us afraid of the video camera, I give you this piece of advice (which helped me overcome my own fears): Why are we comfortable talking in person, but we shy away from the idea of a webcam? Your friends and family love you either way (messy hair, makeup or no makeup!), so give the next phone call a twist and setup a Skype call! It’ll be worth it.. I promise!

Disclosure: I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Skype. I received Skype credits to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for participating.