App Review: Slack

(Author Rating)

 9.5/10

9.5/10

Cost

9/10

User Experience

10/10

Tools & Features

10/10

Setup

9/10

Basic App Info:

Name: Slack

Cost: Four Plans:

Free
Pro ($6.67/person per month when billed annually, $8/person per month when billed monthly)
Business ($12.50/person per month when billed annually, $15/person per month when billed monthly)
Enterprise (contact Slack sales team to get sales price)

Availability: Android, Apple

Who Is It Best for?

Any team or organization that wants better collaboration internally and externally with other organizations. With several channels, features, and integrations, Slack makes it easy to organize conversations across multiple projects and with different businesses.

All screenshots are from the Slack Media Kit.

Intro

Slack is a collaboration hub that strives to bring the right people, information, and tools together to get work done. Millions of people around the world use Slack to connect their teams and unify their systems to drive the business forward.

Slack has over 2,500+ apps and a robust API. It works constantly with partners and developers throughout the world to streamline work through a variety of apps and integrations, automate mundane tasks, and bring context into conversations.

Slack is simple. Sign up for a plan (free, pro, business+, or enterprise), connect your team, and start chatting! Organizing projects and conversations has never been easier.

The App

Features

The Free, Pro, and Business+ plans include a single Slack workspace for companies both small and medium-sized. Although it has some limitations, the free version of Slack can easily be upgraded if you ever need to access more features.

Messaging vs. Email

Email, as great as it is, can easily bury anyone. Immediate tasks can fall between the cracks and finding information on a particular project can require sifting through emails. Slack’s channel feature saves time and puts the discussion and all the files about a project in one place.

With real-time conversations with your team or an individual, it’s easy to grab team members’ attention with a notification when you need a quick response. Email also isolates information—you can only see the conversations you’ve been included in. Everyone in a Slack channel sees the same messages allowing everyone on your team to know who’s responsible for what and how to move work forward.

Apps and Integrations

Adding the apps and tools you use every day is extremely easy to do with Slack’s App Integration feature. By default, any member of a Slack workspace can install an app, and once it’s installed, every member of the workspace can connect their accounts. With that being said, workspace owners can turn on app approval, requiring admin approval for any app installed in a Slack workspace. To top it all off, Slack has published which apps have been reviewed for user experience and security by their team in the Slack App Directory. Any app not listed there displays a banner stating that it hasn’t been reviewed by Slack before you install it.

Customizing Your Work

If you have internally built solutions and processes with external apps, Slack is designed to work directly with these operating procedures. Every week, people use over 650,000 custom apps with the Slack app. With the “Workflow Builder” and “Slack APIs” teams can turn routine processes into automated workflows and build custom apps that integrate these internal tools, processes, and work data. Slack’s number-one goal is to help you save time and avoid context switching. With these specialized customization tools, an entire team can join video calls, manage calendars, and collaborate on files without switching contexts.

External Collaboration

Everything you can accomplish with Slack internally can be done with external third parties outside your company, allowing for a level of organization that email simply cannot provide. Communication and collaboration are pinnacle skills of professionalism. Being able to sort and stay organized with contractors or external teams keeps frustrations low and productivity high.

Likes/Dislikes

Likes

Quick messaging allows for tasks to get done and stay top of mind.
Slack channels ensure everyone on a team or project knows all aspects of a task.
Slack’s App Integration keeps internal processes readily available and accessible.
All of Slack’s features can be used externally with third-party organizations.

Dislikes

With seamless integration, it can be hard to turn work off when the workday is done.
People can treat Slack like email, slowing down productivity on time-sensitive tasks.

Additional Thoughts

Overall, Slack is an extremely professional and clean app that has revolutionized collaboration as work and processes have increased online activity.

App Ratings, Size, & Category

RATINGS

3.9 / 5
3.8 / 5

SIZE

240.3 MB
Varies by device

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Backstory

Slack’s website says, “We live by our mission, and improving people’s working life starts with our own company. We’re building a platform and products we believe in—as well as a strong, diverse team of curious, creative people who want to do the best work of their lives and support each other in the process. Our Leadership includes some of the most inventive and experienced executives in the technology industry. Our partners include the world’s largest SaaS companies and 1000+ products that are shaping the future of work.”

Bottom Line

A large part of most companies’ operations are done online and across multiple organizations, both internally and externally. The ability to effectively and efficiently communicate time-sensitive tasks is becoming a vital aspect of success. Slack is not looking to disrupt and replace any processes that companies have found beneficial to their operations but rather to harmoniously add seamless value.