Product updates: software services and summary emails

Connect4 users will have noticed improvements to the platform on a weekly — if not daily — basis this year. We’ve been working closely with our Seed Partners to gather feedback so that we can continue to ensure that Connect4 is the best platform for client communication.

We’re long overdue detailing our recent updates, so let’s dig right in.

1. Pre-meeting device check

Something you’ll notice that’s new is that we have added an extra step between clicking ‘Connect’ and joining a meeting. Before you enter a meeting you can now double check that your video and audio settings are correct (it’s also a great opportunity to check your hair!). For people who have more than one microphone or speaker you can quickly select the device you want to use using the drop-down menus. You can even use fancy video filters on Connect4, if you really must.

Note that any changes you make in the device check panel are saved for use in your next meeting. For example, if you switch the microphone input before a meeting, next time you join any other meeting, Connect4 knows to use the same device.

2. Video and audio performance upgrades

Behind the scenes, we’ve made loads of performance and stability improvements to the video and audio feeds. We won’t bore you with the technical details but it’s suffice to say that video and audio connections are just… better. They’re more consistent and reliable, and should work a lot better on a wider range of devices (including MS Surface).

If your camera is broken and your video feed isn’t working, don’t worry: you can now also connect with just audio.

Did you know that you can use picture-in-picture mode in your browser to ‘pop out’ a video feed and place in on a second screen? Just right-click over a video and select the option ‘picture-in-picture’.

3. Upgraded agenda composer

Our customers were crying out for improvements to the agenda interface… so that’s what we gave them! We all know that a decent agenda is the foundation of any productive meeting, and now you can compose one with greater ease. We’ve introduced a new drag and drop interface so you can shuffle agenda points around to your liking. Agendas also automatically save. So you’ll never have to worry about losing your notes again.

You can also save agenda templates to use again and share them with others in your organisation!

4. Add meetings directly to your calendar

We’ve made an important and powerful change to the way in which Connect4 meetings are scheduled. We’ve simplified the process to allow the captain (our name for the meeting organiser) to quickly add a new meeting to their calendar, and invite all attendees from there. This makes it far easier to track who’s accepted the invitation and also means that rearranging the meeting time is much more streamlined. Read more about adding Connect4 meetings to your calendar.

5. Software services

Software services have been in the Connect4 product for a little while now but we haven’t shouted too much about it. We’ve recently made a few user interface adjustments and added some new services.

The ‘software services’ feature allows you to link the software that you use with each client, from within their pod. It should be super easy for clients to access their Xero or Dext login without having to dig out the information from their emails.

6. Meeting summary email notification

Ok, this one has been in the product for a little while now… but we haven’t really shouted about it. And it’s a really great feature! Once you’ve finished your meeting and you’ve composed your notes, you can now send an email directly from the app to all pod members to let them know that there is a new meeting summary for them to view.

Summary

Above is just a few of the updates we’ve made in recent weeks. There’s lots more! We’ve made lots of improvements to the design and usability of the product — you’ll notice things such as a new dropdown menu, updated profile page and new video/audio mute buttons.

We’ve got some really exciting new features being worked on right now, which will be released in just a few weeks, so keep a lookout. Think ‘meeting insights’ and ‘actions’ as a little teaser. Also, don’t forget you can always submit new ideas to [email protected].