Unclaimed: Are are working at Loom ?
Loom Reviews & Product Details
Loom is a video-making platform that is designed to help businesses facilitate better and more efficient workplace communication through video and screen recording. It empowers users to use a web-based interface that supports screen recording and screen capture, shared via a link for easy viewing.
| Segment |
Small Business
Mid Market
Enterprise
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|---|---|
| Deployment | Cloud / SaaS / Web-Based, Desktop Mac, Desktop Windows, Mobile Android, Mobile iPhone |
| Support | 24/7 (Live rep), Chat, Email/Help Desk, FAQs/Forum, Knowledge Base, Phone Support |
| Training | Documentation |
| Languages | English |
Loom Pros and Cons
- Dedicated mobile apps for Android and iOS
- Quick screen recording with handy webcam overlay
- UI is clean and easy to navigate
- Loom Chrome extension has multiple recording options
- Transcripts aren’t always accurate
- The free version restricts videos to five minutes
The popularity of remote and hybrid work is increasing at an incredible rate. Since the pandemic, around 16% of companies worldwide have gone fully-remote, while 62% of companies allow their staff to work remotely on occasion.
The distributed nature of the workplace today means companies need to invest in new tools to keep their staff aligned and connected. Whether you’re sharing messages in Slack, or video conferencing in Microsoft Teams, you’re probably already investing in tools that will support the change landscape of work.
Loom is quickly emerging as one of the most valuable platforms in remote and asynchronous work. It focuses on allowing users to capture video content, screenshots, and other information for recipients to watch whenever they choose. This can be a lot easier for teams looking to communicate when other staff members aren’t available for a real-time video call.
Today’s Loom review will explore everything you need to know about leveraging this video and screen-capture tool for the age of asynchronous and remote work.
Loom Pros and Cons
Loom Features
Loom is the leading video communication platform for asynchronous work. Designed for speed and simplicity, the solution allows you to record, share, and interact with videos. Over 14 million people across 200,000 companies use Loom to work more collaboratively.
The primary features of Loom include:
- Screen recording: Record your camera, screen, or both simultaneously to share useful insights with your colleagues wherever they are.
- Chrome extension and desktop app: You can record videos with up to 4k quality with a desktop app, or leverage 1080p recording with the Chrome extension.
- Video stitching: If you need to record multiple videos for a tutorial or guidance for another employee, you can stitch them together into a full video.
- Screenshot: If videos aren’t necessary to share contextual information with a co-worker, you can take a simple screenshot and share that through the cloud instead.
- Automatic transcriptions: Using AI technology, Loom can transcribe your video, making it easier to access to a wider range of viewers.
- Filler word removal: If you’re worried about the number of “uhs” and “umms” included in your video content when sharing with a manager or supervisor, remove them with one click.
- Video hosting: Cloud-based video hosting is included with Loom, so you can store your content in an easily-searchable place. This is ideal for sharing the same video with more people, or checking back over previous videos.
- Backgrounds and frames: Add some personality and branding to your looms with custom backgrounds and designs. This can be a great way to make your videos more fun.
- Comments and reactions: Your colleagues can react to your looms with emojis, or leave comments and annotations to keep the conversation going.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/N1FPPYhZQoE?feature=oembed
How to Get Started with Loom
One of the things that makes Loom so compelling to modern workforces is how easy it is to use. It only takes a few seconds to sign up with Loom using your Google, Slack, or Apple ID. You can also create an account with an email address or SSO.
Once you’ve created an account, you can simply install your application onto your device. Downloads are available for Windows and Mac, and you can get the iOS or Android app directly from respective app stores. There’s also a Chrome extension for Loom.
_Mac OS app allows to record videos straight from the menu bar_
After installing the application, you’ll have to make sure you enable permissions for recording from your microphone, webcam, and screen. The desktop application will appear in your system tray or menu bar, so you can start recording with one click. There’s also the option to set up keyboard shortcuts.
When you’re fully setup, you can start recording your videos instantly. By default, the app records your screen with a webcam overlay, but you can also choose to record your face or screen individually. The iOS version of Loom does not allow for recording both your webcam and your screen at once, however.
Before you begin recording, you’ll be able to reposition and resize the webcam overlay, and choose whether you want to capture a portion of your screen or the whole thing. You can also decide whether to record system audio alongside your voice.
When you’re done recording, the entire video will automatically upload to the Loom cloud environment, and be accessible through your account. Here, you can edit the video in various basic ways, such as stitching different pieces of content together, cutting out the parts you don’t need, and adding “call to action” buttons which popup for users after the video finishes.
_‘Looms’ are stored in the cloud making them easily available for your team_
Notably, every video created with Loom is automatically made “public”. You can share the link to anyone, and they’ll be able to watch it without signing up for an account. The share button also offers one-click sharing for social media, and access to code for embedding videos on a website. The Chrome Extension will also automatically convert videos into embedded content for Google Doc, JIRA, Gmail, and GitLab.
Users viewing your video can speed up playback, react with emojis throughout the viewing process, see an automatic transcript, and leave comments.
Get started with Loom for free
Loom Pricing
Loom’s pricing structure is relatively straightforward. There are 3 primary plans to choose from, starting with an attractive free package.
Options include:
Starter
Price: Free
The Starter plan is free for anyone who wants to record quick videos (less than 5 minutes) and share them with colleagues quickly. You can use this package with up to 50 creators, and create 25 videos per person, with access to features like:
- Privacy controls
- Viewer insights
- Unlimited transcriptions
- Instant editing and gif thumbnails
- Screen recording and cam bubbles
- Personal, shared and team libraries
- Video quality of up to 720p
- System audio, with background noise suppression
- Recording canvas with virtual backgrounds
Business
Price: $8 per user per month
The Business plan comes with all the free features of Loom for unlimited creators, and 50 Creators “Lite”. You can create as many videos as you like with unlimited recording lengths. As well as the features in the Starter pack, you also get:
- High-def recording up to 4k
- Drawing tools and mouse emphasis
- Custom recording dimensions and branding
- Filler word removal
- Embedded links for videos
- Removal of Loom branding and custom colors
- Video archiving and uploads
- Viewer insights and engagement insights
- Closed captions
- Security and password protection
Enterprise
Price: Custom
Designed for companies with specific recording needs and privacy requirements, the Enterprise plan gives you more advanced admin and security settings. You can also set up unlimited members, videos, and record for as long as you choose. Along with all the features in the Business plan, you’ll also get access to:
- SSO (SAML) and SCIM (Okta) security
- Advanced privacy features
- Custom data retention policies
- Salesforce integrations
- Activity log reports
- Restricted viewing and access
- User roles and management
- Priority dedicated support and account manager
Loom for Education
If you’re a teacher in the digital world, you can access a specialist plan specifically for education. Loom offers qualified educators access to premium features and unlimited recordings for free. You also get advanced HD videos, up to 45 minute recording lengths, and unlimited viewers.
Password protected videos, call-to-action buttons, search functionality, and system audio tools are also included as part of the package.
Loom Alternatives: Your Other Options
Loom is an excellent tool for rapidly creating and sharing video content and screens with your colleagues. It’s easy-to-use, packed full of useful features, and relatively affordable compared to some other options. However, there are other solutions out there.
Some of the most compelling alternatives include:
Slack Clips
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Slack Clips is the native screen recording feature built into Slack. If you’re already using the Slack service for asynchronous collaboration, it might make sense to choose this product over Loom. With Clips, you can not only capture screen information, but also add voice overs to something, and implement your webcam too.
The Slack Clips feature doesn’t work outside of Slack, so you will need an account to start using the service. Clips can also only be shared in channels or through Slack direct messages. There’s also a five minute limit with no way to increase your recording options.
You’ll also need a paid account with Slack to access this service. Clips is not included as part of the Slack free package.
Dropbox Capture
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If you’re using Dropbox for storing and managing files in the remote working world, you can also tap into one of the most recent features introduced by Dropbox. “Dropbox Capture” automatically uploads the videos you create directly into your Dropbox folder, which makes it ideal for sharing with distributed team members.
Though still relatively new to Dropbox, the Capture function offers many of the same features as Loom, including the option to take a screenshot, record your screen, or combine your screen recording with a view of your webcam. You can also record audio, or make a gif this way.
All of the content you produce will be saved to the Capture folder in your Dropbox account. You’ll also be able to hover over the capture to collect an URL to share with colleagues. The “Markup” feature allows you to draw on your content and add annotations.
Asana
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Another option for those who already have a dedicated productivity and collaboration tool in place with their team, Asana comes with a range of “add-on” features for screen recording and video. One of the most common options is the “Coview” service, which allows you to create detailed videos and screen recordings with a couple of clicks.
You can also use Coview as part of your customer service strategy, allowing customers to capture information and code-level insights into any problem they’re having. All of the content is stored to your Asana account, where you can export screenshots and recordings as Asana tasks.
While the features aren’t exactly the same as the ones you’ll get from Loom, they’re pretty straightforward, and ideal for customer service teams.
Mac and Windows Screen Recording Tools
If you want to avoid adding any more apps to your workplace, or you need to keep your budget as low as possible, Mac and Windows devices also have some of their own screen capturing options. You can capture an entire screen, window, or portion of a screen on a Mac by pressing shift, command, and 3 together on your device.
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The QuickTime player on Mac also allows you to capture video recordings of your computer screen. Simply open the QuickTime player, then click on “File”, then “New Screen Recording”. You’ll be able to control exactly which portion of the screen you want to record, and decide whether you want to include your pointer in the recording.
On Windows, the best way to capture screen recordings is with the “Game Bar”, built for Xbox consoles. You can access this feature by going into “Settings > Gaming > Xbox Bar”. From there, enable the Xbox Game Bar, and you’ll be able to start recording videos or taking a screenshot with the click of a button. You can also trigger the game bar with shortcuts.
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You should be able to record activity in most windows and applications with Game Bar, and there are various tools for allowing you to adjust your recordings, adding audio, and reducing the size of your screen.
Loom Review: Finishing Thoughts
For capturing asynchronous video messages, screenshots, and screen recordings, Loom is one of the simplest tools on the market. It’s ideal for beginners who want to be able to capture quick videos to share with colleagues in an instant. The fact that other people don’t need an account to watch your videos can make it much easier to collaborate with Loom.
Share your experiences with the Loom app in the comments below, and let us know if you prefer any of the alternative options available today.
I love that I'm able to get my ideas recorded, teach my colleagues about new features, share research, provide multi-person shared summaries, and more without having to fight with even one other person's schedule. I love that I can include clips from other people's videos as well - so helpful.
I wish the video editor was more straightforward/more features available. I'd like the ability to quickly and easily cut out portions of video that I don't want in my final copy.
The nightmare of trying to arrange a meeting across several schedules whenever a decision needs to be made on an important topic. It saves me time, effort, and keeps me ticking through my list of to-dos.
Loom is more than a solution for work from home teams. The tool is perfect for businesses and teams who are open and transparent about their work. Sharing proceses, meeting recordings and quick reviews have allowed us drastically improve communication. It gets the job done and still gives us that interaction we need.
We wish loom has more offers in the free accounts. Our teams would use but not everyone needs to record everyday. This would be a good solution for small teams.
Being able to quickly record our screen with the chrome extension and app is hands-down the best solution. We can now easily record meetings and attach videos to our tasks. It gives clear communication. Perfect for working with internal and external teams.
How quick it is to communicate complex things async. I love the control you have - audio/no audio, face/no face, adding notations in the video, uploading video.
I dislike that the feature to auto-copy the loom URL after you've filmed a video went away. Bring it back or add it to settings!
Async communication, QAing new features, historical records, introducing new features, asking questions while using a product, filming once and communicating multiple times.
Loom is a quick-to-record software that gets you up and running very quickly. The editing features are well above any video capture software standard and the could recording is seamless! They have a wonderful Chrome plugin for easy screen/video recording. The recordings use AI to transcribe and write a summary that is 95% spot on perfect, it elevates our business's brand because of the easily accessible Looms that we send them. There are a number of controls on the sharing, including link passwords and ability to create team folders for internal videos (is how we're using it). There's even more to love, but that's what got me hooked on Loom!
Nothing - their customer service is increadible and the product only continues to get updated to be better and better!
Our clients get an overview of the work that we are doing for them from the recorded screen shares. We then send those out through email/text to be able to give them an idea of how our work is doing either in progress reports or in a final review. They can then comment, replay, and reach back out to us for any needs relating to our projects. (We are in the finance and accounting business)
It's so easy to just get started with a demo or download using their Google Chrome extension. I always find myself reaching for it as soon as I realize that writing an email is not going to suffice. I know there are other products like Loom out there but I can't think of a reason why I would go shop around. It is so powerful when it comes to giving remote support and connecting with my colleagues. Completely in love with the new AI tools for summarizing and creating chapters for my Loom recordings. Super appreciate the integration with Slack that allows my team to watch Looms without having to switch apps.
There is no AI wizard to magically summarize all of my old looms. Organizing my library in the web app can be tough at times so hope it gets easier to sort videos into folders.
The two big ones are (1) wasted time composing emails for written communication that has the potential to be misunderstood or misinterpreted and (2) wasted time in standup/update meetings. The time I save is being used to rapidly accelerate growth at the startup I work for.
Loom is easy to use, and is a great way to get face time with my clients or people who do work for me, without having to both be on a Zoom or other call at the same time.
The 'automatically add link to clipboard' feature is unreliable at best. I've gone through troubleshooting with them several times and, while it's a small inconvenience, I got very used to it a while ago and no longer have access to that feature.
Loom makes it easy to demonstrate processes or give feedback at my own speed. I don't have to coordinate schedules, wait for people to join calls, etc to answer their questions.
Ease of recording - I have the desktop app so it's quick and simple and ready to go and much better than the chrome extension. I use it to share key info with clients plus I use this to record YT vids and then download them and re-upload. I like the new AI that provides transcripts, titles and chapters too - a nice touch.
Ocassionally buggy when updates happen. I got stuck for a couple of weeks of not using the desktop app and struggled to roll back. No emails to update me, I just had to put a ticket in and figure it out - an email to explain and a temp fix would have made sense. Also, better QA prior to release would help to mitigate this risk.
Screen recording and sharing videos with clients that shows them how to do key things.
I primarily use Loom to create customer-facing videos, outlining tips and best practices with our software. It's great to create bite sized, digestable content that users engage with. Often, I'll begin to write what's going to be a lengthy, detailed email to a customer. Then I remember.. I can communicate this in a quick Loom video, where I actually demo the solution / workflow to the customer! Our customers are more likely to engage with this content, and ultimately implement the recommended change/workflow/etc
Nothing currently! It's been so helpful in my role.
Providing customers with easily digestable recommended workflows. Recording training videos for new features
I like how easy it is to transition from filming to sharing. The instant upload to cloud enables such a fast turnaround. Additionally the instant transcript is really helpful in creating our SOPs, Blog Posts, and custom emails.
I wish the filing system was a bit more robust.
Capturing and documenting our Standard Operating Procedures, communicating with clients and my team. It makes me more productive.
Since it has a 5 min limit it helps me be consice and to the point when recording videos. Also it is super easy and you can share it almost instantly. A great tool to tackle work.
Not much really. I havent thought about anything that really bothers me. I think it is a great tool for every day use. Maybe I would like to have some extra options built in.
Sometimes I have to explain things to my team but we cannot have a meeting or phonecall so me recording something real quick saves us time and helps us deliver in time.
