Video Conferencing has gone from a niche tool to an essential part of modern business. Mark Zoril, founder of the Minneapolis-based financial advisory firm PlanVision, wrote a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed that shows just how important video conferencing has become.

“Unless you're working with high-net-worth individuals, you need a lot of clients to sustain your business,” Zoril wrote. “And to get a high number of clients, you have to price your services competitively. However, keeping service prices low and maintaining a high client volume is ultimately unsustainable if you're running your practice with a lot of face-to-face meetings. That's why I revolutionized my practice by making the bulk of my client interactions via video conferencing.”

The biggest advantage is that Zoril can get right down to business rather than having to waste time traveling from location to location to meet with clients. The clients also don’t waste time on idle chit-chat before starting the meeting. He doesn’t lose his clients if he moves, and he can still keep his clients in turn if they move.

Zoril also finds the screen sharing functionality useful, as clients don’t have to crowd around his computer and he doesn’t have to print out documents beforehand.  They can also actively work on documents like spreadsheets to play with “What If?” scenarios.

A financial adviser like Zoril will find that the best feature of modern video conferencing systems is their low cost. Software programs like Skype (News - Alert) are free to use, and most newer computers, tablets and smartphones come with cameras and microphones, so users can use hardware they already have.

Companies looking for more powerful solutions could go with something like Yealink’s (News - Alert) desktop IP video conferencing solutions all the way to wiring up a conference room with a camera and a large screen allowing many people to participate in a conference at once.