How Did Video Chatting Become So Popular During Covid?

The day we were told to stay at home was the day our lives changed completely.

Empty streets, the omnipresent silence, the sense of separation, and the drive to stick together as a community – these were some of the things we quickly got used to. Life transformed, and we transformed with it.

Video chatting played an enormous role in that transformation.

What Is Video Chatting?

Video chatting refers to speaking with people online while you have your computer or mobile camera and microphone turned on.

Unlike texting, video chatting adds a human element to the interaction, which is one of the reasons we naturally opted for it during the Covid-19 lockdowns—if we couldn’t hug, shake hands, or even stand in the same room, at least we could see each other.

As the most valued sense, it’s no surprise that sight is what makes video chatting so very popular.

The Boom of Video Chatting During the Covid Era – How the World Has Changed

Video chatting wasn’t always popular. After one of its first public uses in 1927, many considered it to serve no real purpose.

Oh, how wrong they were! They obviously didn’t have to deal with being stuck at home all day for months on end.

During the Covid pandemic, social distance has given rise to the popularity of video chat platforms. No matter if you used it to chat with friends online, attend university seminars, or have work meetings, most of us became accustomed to video chatting.

The number of people who started using video chat apps has increased exponentially since the start of the pandemic, and already in 2020, six in 10 Americans reported using video chat platforms to socialize or work.

What’s more, 75 percent of people said they will continue using this style of online communication after the pandemic is over.

This is likely because talking to people with your camera and microphone turned on is simply a whole different level of experience when compared to regular texting.

Ninety-three percent of communication is nonverbal. The way people use the tone of their voice, their facial expressions, the gestures they make with their hands—this all matters more than we may realize.

When you video chat, you’re participating in all social interactions much more directly, which then alleviates loneliness and helps with feelings of separation.

Not to mention the cute cats we’ve all seen on video meetings!

4 Reasons Video Chatting Was Absolutely Key During Lockdowns

If it weren’t for video chat platforms and apps, most of us would have had a much harder time getting through the pandemic.

Here are four reasons why that’s the case.

1)   We could keep in touch with family and friends

In a 2020 survey, 73 percent of participants said they largely used video chatting to see their family and friends.

It’s one thing to send a few texts to check on someone. It’s a completely different game when you can sit down for a cup of tea together and chat the day away.

Loneliness due to social distancing was one of the biggest struggles we all had to face during the Covid lockdowns, and seeing our friends’ faces in a setting that comes as close to reality as possible saved many of us from going crazy.

What’s more, video chatting gave us a great way to check in on the vulnerable members of our society and speak to our grandparents, laugh with them, and remind them of how much we care about them.

It’s hard not being able to see your loved ones for months or even years on end. Interacting on video calls has largely made this separation easier for us, bringing the people we love and cherish straight into our living rooms.

When the pandemic is over, hopping on a quick video chat can still remain an amazing way to reconnect with a busy friend you haven’t seen in ages.

2)   Offices moved to thousands of living rooms, and workplaces didn’t collapse

After the pandemic, work will never be the same again.

Thanks to our quick readjustment to working from home, remote work is now something more and more people opt for because of the freedom, flexibility, and lack of distraction it offers.

Without video calls, however, workplaces wouldn’t work as efficiently as they have during the pandemic.

This is because it’s quite easy to dissociate words on the screen from a real person, which would make the work environment harder to navigate. Social interactions and non-work-related conversations are often what grounds you in the workplace and motivates you to be part of the team.

Not to mention that workplaces are often the main source of socialization for many of us. If you’re stuck at home every day, and you can’t even see and hear your own colleagues, you can quickly get overwhelmed by a sense of loneliness.

Video chatting not only saved many workplaces from falling apart but also helped fulfill the social needs of many employees. Moreover, it’s opened the door to working remotely in the future.

3)   Children were given a simulation of the school environment

Let’s be honest.

If a child sees homework instructions in their e-mailbox every day, it’s extremely easy to just … skip the homework. Copy it from someone else. Go play video games.

If you provide them with a close simulation of a real classroom, however, children will be more likely to cooperate, learn, and get their daily dose of social interaction.

Thanks to video chatting platforms, schools have had the chance to completely move online and continue teaching.

While nothing is ever as beneficial as providing children with a real educational environment, having them turn on their camera and microphone was a good way to keep some semblance of normality amidst the chaos.

Being able to see their friends’ faces, giving presentations, and completing tests in a video classroom setting were all excellent ways of helping children cope with the changes happening in the world.

4)   Finding new friends online has never been easier

The whole world’s been in this pandemic together, and the internet has given us all an amazing chance to connect even further and find new friends online.

Thanks to various video chatting apps that connect you with people from across the globe, we could talk to strangers online, learn about different cultures, and stop feeling so alone.

From hobby groups to chat rooms to direct one-on-one calls, video chatting has brought us closer than ever before.

Feeling lonely? Why not invite a fun stranger right into your living room where you can safely sip a cup of tea together and connect without worrying about catching Covid?

Video chatting is the perfect solution when you want to adhere to social distancing rules and find new friends at the same time.

The fact that you can see and hear them on a camera only strengthens your connection, fulfills your social needs, and lessens the feelings of separation from the outside world.

It’s quite ironic—the moment the world shut down, video chatting gave us the excellent opportunity to connect with people from around the globe.

The best part? All the amazing friends you’ve made during the pandemic won’t go away, because video chatting is here to stay. No matter if you want to keep in touch with long-distance friends or find new ones, there will always be some amazing video chat apps for you.

How To Start Video Chatting with Camfrog Today

The Covid-19 pandemic is hopefully coming to an end—most social distancing rules have now eased, many of us are back to work, schools have reopened, and we can now go for a cup of coffee with our friends anytime we want.

This doesn’t mean the end of video chatting, however. Working remotely, keeping in touch with friends who live far away, having quick conference meetings, or talking to strangers online  are just some of the reasons video chatting is here to stay.

With Camfrog, you can video chat with strangers and friends alike. Choose from thousands of chat rooms, connect with over 240,000 members, and meet fascinating people on every video call you make!

Download CamFrog for free and discover what the world of video chatting has to offer.

The world may be slowly going back to normal, but once we’ve discovered the power of video calls, we’ll never be completely the same.

The pandemic is when it all began. Now is when it continues.

 Get video chatting with CamFrog today!