Slack Software

What is Slack Software?

Overview

Slack is a cloud-based project collaboration software designed to help businesses streamline communication and enhance team productivity. The platform offers a wide range of features, such as direct messaging, group messaging, file sharing, video conferencing, and integration with other tools and services. Teams can also create channels on Slack, which serve as centralized communication hubs for specific projects, topics, or departments.

Over the last several years, teams across organizational verticals and industries have consistently ranked Slack software among the top digital communications tool available within the project management space.

What is Slack best for?

Slack is widely acclaimed for streamlining efficient organizational/team communications within one incredibly easy-to-use interface. These interactions are best categorized/understood along the following conceptual tiers:

Direct Messages

A direct message comprises a one-to-one conversation between workspace members. These are private messages privy only to the interactors.

Engagements on Public and Private Channels

Public Slack project management channels are open for all members of particular Slack workspaces to join. Anything posted in them is searchable by others, making it easy for team members to find information and stay up-to-date on important topics. In this way, public channels are great for sharing general announcements, company news, or updates on ongoing projects.

Private channels – enabled by the platform’s advanced identity management protocol – can only be accessed by people who have been invited to join them. This makes them ideal for discussing sensitive or confidential information that shouldn't/cannot be shared with everyone in certain workspaces or the entire team. Private channels are also useful for smaller groups within a team who need to collaborate on specific projects or tasks/send private messages (or engage in direct message prompts; inclusive of screen-sharing and video calls).

Slack Workspace Arrangements

A Slack workspace is a digital hub where team members can communicate and collaborate in real-time. It's a platform that brings together all the tools and resources needed to get work done efficiently, from messaging and file sharing to project management and app integration. Here, teams – under the oversight of workspace administrators – can organize their conversations into channels based on topics, departments, or projects, making it easier to find information and stay up-to-date on progress (even spanning multiple workspaces). 

Additionally, Slack offers advanced security features to protect sensitive data and ensure compliance with industry regulations.

Slack Teams

Slack Teams make for the best platform approach for facilitating both paired team-member and broader team communication interactions. Whether it’s a workspace tailored for small teams or a company-wide setup customized for large teams to work in unison, this software offering – with its unique offering of features – is the reason why the interface continues to best its niche competition.

Slack Pricing & Trial

Slack offers four different pricing plans, ranging from a free plan to paid plans with advanced features and support. These offers are designed to meet the needs of teams of all sizes, from small businesses to large enterprises. 

Free Plan
This free version introduces you to the best of everything Slack with basic functionality (inclusive of ‘general channel’ conversations). 
Pro Plan 
Suitable for small teams; complete with a range of sophisticated communication tools to facilitate routine tasks.
Business+ Plan
Tailored for larger teams/entire, multi-layered, business operations; packed with advanced features, Slack messaging app functionality, data-loss prevention, and priority support (along with everything in the Pro tier). 
Enterprise Grid Plan 
Ideal for companies looking for a custom plan arrangement pulled from Slack's large repository of communications and project management tools; requires individual appraisals of organizational requirements (with differing price tags).  

Slack project management tool free trial versions, for each of its paid subscription deals, are also available.

To get quick, custom Slack price figures suited to your organizational setup/needs, please click Get Pricing. You can also view Slack cost ballpark figures in the table below, along with a more thorough overview of each Slack paid subscription plan.

Slack Demo

The Slack demo offers a novel – highly recommended – opening for buyers interested in a paid subscription to see the platform in action/determine how best they could integrate it into their existing workflows. This can also help them in identifying which of their favorite apps could work well, concurrently, via the Slack integrations option (discussed below).

To start screening our Slack software demo feed, click Watch Demo.

Slack Integrations

Slack integrates with a wide range of third-party services/apps. The vendor also provides a variety of APIs, which enable users to build 'custom connects' with the platform. 

Here are some of the many programs that Slack works with (many of which are considered among the ‘best apps’ for efficient networking within their domains): 

• OneDrive 
• GitHub 
• Zoom 
• Salesforce 
• Google Drive 
• Gmail 
• Microsoft Teams 
• Jira 

In addition to these prominent mentions, Slack app integrations for niche-specific workflow concerns are many and far between. To gain a solid understanding of these other apps, please reach out to our helpline executives at the phone number listed at the top of the page.

How does Slack work?

Slack works - technically - via a combination of programming languages, including PHP, JavaScript, and Python; responsible, structurally, for all the benefits mediated by the utility. The backend of Slack is built on top of Amazon Web Services (AWS), which provides the infrastructure for storing data and running quick applications in the cloud (with the software’s ‘acclaimed four-hour response time’, as alluded to by Business Insider and other services).

Slack APIs/Integrations Architecture

Slack also offers a range of APIs for developers to build custom bots and apps that can automate tasks or provide additional functionality within the platform. These APIs include the Web API, Real-Time Messaging API, and Events API.

In addition, the platform provides a range of SDKs (Software Development Kits) for Python, Java, Ruby, and Node.js, among other languages. These make it easier for developers to build custom integrations by providing pre-built libraries and tools.

These software-linking options also make it easy for users who may consider leaving Slack for migrating to other interfaces (via data exports).

Who is Slack for?

Slack project management tool is designed for businesses and organizations of all sizes. Its range of features and integrations, further, make it an ideal solution for both remote and distributed teams. 

Here are some typical teams and departments that tend to use Slack in droves: 

• Engineering 
• Financial Services 
• Education 
• Retail 
• Media 
• IT 
• Sales Teams 
• Project Management 
• Human Resources 
• Marketing Teams 
• Customer Service 

As such, it is difficult to provide a full list of all the other organizations that continue to use Slack, regularly, to communicate.

Slack Features

Here’s a listing (plus explanations) of top Slack features based on user accounts aggregated/narrowed for this filter:

Channels

Slack's channels feature allows users to organize conversations into public or private channel arrangements based on team, project, or topic. This streamlines communication by reducing clutter and enabling workgroups to easily find relevant conversations. Additionally, users can collaborate in real-time, share files, create new channel frameworks, deploy Slack Huddles (for informal, large-scale, conversations), and stay up to date on project progress.

Workflow Builder

This function empowers users to create custom workflows and automate repetitive tasks using an intuitive and user-friendly visual interface. With Workflow Builder, teams can automate a wide range of processes, from scheduling meetings and onboarding new employees to collecting customer feedback and more.

Sharing Files

Slack software file-sharing feature allows users to easily communicate files, documents, photos, and videos with team members. With this option, users can share files from their mobile device, computer, or cloud storage service of choice, all within the Slack app, without having to switch between tabs or windows.

Search

The search function enables users to find messages, files, and people with ease. With clickable filters, subscribers can quickly locate important information, whether it's a conversation from years ago, a comment made yesterday, or a thread deep within a particular message history. This helps streamline the process of retrieving vital data/narrowing in on searchable messages efficiently. 

Slack Connect

Slack software Connect equips users to collaborate with external partners, vendors, and customers within a single platform (via channel or direct message facilities). Through this offering, they can send direct messages, share channels, and even make voice or video calls with people outside their organization. Additionally, Slack Connect offers advanced security and compliance features, ensuring that confidential information remains secure and compliant with regulatory requirements.

Is Slack right for me?

Slack project management comes highly accredited for any organization looking for a free or paid utility that provides workgroups with the ability to communicate/collaborate without any lags.

Our review experts encourage you to sign-up for the solution via this platform for a smooth onboarding experience.

Slack Pricing Guide

Click Get Pricing to access instant, accurate quotes, the full listing of applicable Slack software offers/pricing plans, plus ‘live rep’ platform onboarding/free trial sign-up facilitation. The figures listed here are ballpark figures.