Yammer vs Slack

Messaging applications are the kind of applications that allows users to send and receive information using their internet connection. These are the kind of applications that are way too high in demand nowadays. With so many of messaging apps in the market, it is very difficult to know which one is best for your organization. Both Yammer and Slack are the tools used for communication between the people working in a team or in an organization. Both tools serve different purposes in their respective areas. Let us see on what aspects they differ.

What is Yammer?

Yammer is part of the Microsoft 365 family of products used for private communication within organizations. It was developed by David O. Sacks and Adam Pisoni in 2008 with the parent company as Microsoft Corporation. Basically, it is a collaboration tool that helps you connect and engage across the company.

Key Features

• One can post on behalf of other users.
• It can easily exchange files and documents for knowledge sharing and references. 
• It provides great security and privacy options.
• Customization can be done according to the wish of an individual or an organization.

Advantages

• It is lightweight and easy to use.
• It is quite easy to connect with co-workers.
• It provides consistent platform performance.
• It works with text, photos, videos, and files.

Disadvantages

• Not all external partners have this platform.
• There is no way to organize or view the uploaded files, say by alphabetical title, author, or date uploaded.
• Lack of integration with other MS Office.

What is Slack?

It is an instant messaging application for businesses that connects people all around the world. It was designed in 2013 by Slack Technologies and is owned by Salesforce. It provides the user more connected and flexible environment and makes it quite easy to contact other colleagues in an organization for work-related talks. Slack is a magnificent tool for team communication. Also, it can be used as an alternative option for e-mail.

Key Features

• It pins down the messages and references links to channels.
• It can manage and track documents.
• It has advanced search modifiers.
• To keep track of a standard workday, setting reminders is a great option.

Advantages

• It provides great security as data within the platform is always protected.
• It is quite easy to share and collaborate with someone in real-time.
• It is flexible in nature.
• Support of pre-existing platforms is there with the integration that allows users to access critical features directly.

Disadvantages

• It has a minimum file storage capacity.
• Messages of only 14 days are visible and all other messages are deleted automatically.
• To use slack’s features, the user has to pay money.

Difference between Yammer and Slack

	Yammer	Slack
Released	It was released in 2008.	It was released in 2013.
Integration	It is integrated with SharePoint, Jira, Smarsh, Hype, and Hootsuite applications.	It can be integrated with 1500 applications.
Features	It has many in-built features like External collaboration, Discovery feed, Integration, and Search options.	Many advanced features are introduced as compared to Yammer like Dual way authentication, Snippet, Data encryption, Webhook, and Synchronization.
Security	Security is provided with Multi-factor authentication and reporting if any occurrence of security breaches.	Security is provided with the factors like Data encryption and Multi-factor options.
Alternatives	Some of the alternatives that can be used instead of Yammer are Intuit, DeftPDF, and POIMAPPER.	Some of the alternatives that can be used instead of Slack are Zenplanner. Hive and Vabotu.
Clients	Some of the companies that use Yammer are DHL, Shell, Razorfish, and Capgemini.	Some of the companies that use Slack are eBay, Wall street journal, Dow Jones and NBCUniversal.
Customer Satisfaction	According to a survey, 93% of the users are satisfied with the use of Yammer.	96% of the users are satisfied with the use of Slack according to the results of the survey.

Conclusion

Both Yammer and Slack can be chosen by the organization for managing the business. While Slack is at a higher cost, Yammer charges less per month. Also, according to the survey conducted, 96% of the customers are satisfied with the usage of Slack which is again in high numbers than Yammer. Both tools have their own pros and cons and it is up to the organization to choose between them according to their requirements.