Identifying the Best Online Whiteboard Software for Your Needs.
Every office has a whiteboard that’s used by teams to brainstorm ideas, devise plans for projects, keep track of their to-dos and make a note of any important information that everyone on the team needs quick and easy access to. However, with many employees around the world now working remotely and spending less time in the office than ever before (and this being unlikely to change anytime soon), a physical whiteboard no longer cuts it. Instead, whiteboard software has become an essential tool for distributed teams who need to stay connected.
When a team works together, strong communication is vital for ensuring that everyone stays on the same page and avoids mistakes being made, such as work being replicated or simply not done altogether. This is something that is even more important for remote and distributed workers as it also helps to keep them feeling like a team – even if their only form of communication is virtual.
Fortunately, whiteboard software now enables every worker to take their office whiteboard with them anywhere, so they can easily share information with their team and avoid disruption to their work. With the fast-growing popularity of remote working in recent years (even before the pandemic), there now are a number of options for online collaborative whiteboards available on the market today, so it can be tricky to find the right one for your team.
Here’s everything you need to know about the new generation of digital whiteboards, as well as our top tips for choosing the best online whiteboard software.
What is online whiteboard software?
For those working remotely, whiteboard software easily replaces your physical office whiteboard as it provides the same functionalities, giving teams a blank canvas to plan, brainstorm, make notes, and generally share information with each other. However, unlike the physical version that most of us are familiar with, online collaborative whiteboards can be accessed from any computer with an internet connection (as these apps tend to be cloud-based), meaning you can stay informed and provide updates to the rest of your team from any location.
Many apps offer multiple boards, rather than just one whiteboard you can edit, so you can have one for various uses – such as conducting an in-depth analysis of a previous campaign you’ve worked on, organizing a meeting, planning a new project or keeping track of any tasks that will need to be completed as part of it. These boards can then be easily shared with anyone that needs to be kept in the loop.
Any changes you make to a board will also be updated for all users in real-time – as if you were writing or rubbing out information on an actual physical whiteboard!
How does online whiteboard software work?
As we’ve already explained, the best whiteboard software will allow you to create multiple online collaborative whiteboards that can be easily shared with other members of your team. This can help you to stay organized by having everything related to a specific project or task in one digital workspace.
In fact, many whiteboard software options incorporate task and project management features for this reason. This means you can easily turn the plans and ideas you devise into tasks that can be assigned to other members of your team, and set due dates and reminders to keep whoever is working on the task on track.
Ayoa, an all-in-one collaborative whiteboard app, combines mind mapping, task management, and other features to help remote teams stay connected. This enables you to manage your tasks in dedicated task boards, as well as organize any whiteboards, mind maps and task boards into specific project folders.
Additionally, like their physical counterparts, digital whiteboards actively encourage collaboration by letting everyone contribute their ideas.
Choosing the best whiteboard software
The question of which whiteboard app is best is a hard one to answer as this depends entirely on what you’re looking to achieve and the features you need. However, with whiteboards having a multitude of uses in a typical office environment, you may want to look for a flexible solution that offers a range of features to help you stay connected with your colleagues when working remotely, as well as manage other aspects of your work in one place – and without the need for constant app-switching.
Ayoa is one of the best options currently available due to the unrivaled flexibility offered by its diverse range of features. If you opt for its Ultimate plan, it will provide a digital workspace for teams to provide quick updates on what they’re working on via the team pulse dashboard and let everyone know when they’re available thanks to user statuses. They can also stay in constant contact through its built-in instant messaging tool and hold virtual meetings through its video chat features.
Another benefit of Ayoa over other whiteboard apps is that they have an extensive template library – so whether you’re conducting a SWOT analysis, taking meeting notes, or putting your to-dos into a monthly planner, you’re sure to find one that makes the process as quick and simple as possible.
Ayoa also enables you to easily put your ideas into action, thanks to the ability to turn any sticky note on a whiteboard into an actionable task by opening a task board alongside it and dragging and dropping your notes into it. You can then assign these tasks to others, add due dates, notes, and other helpful details.
Whichever whiteboard software you choose, any distributed team can reap the benefits of using online collaborative whiteboards to stay connected as remote working continues to shake-up the working world as we know it.
