Collaboration methods on the internet come in a wide variety of solutions. Many are free or relatively cost-effective. The biggest problem with almost all of these tools is file size limitations. That means you may need to plan for an additional hour or two (maybe even more) for compressing your file to a web-friendly format. You will also want to test to make sure that any compressed files you send will play back on the client's computer.

You can use e-mail to send video files directly to the client. Using e-mail can be a hassle, due to file size limitations. Many e-mail accounts have about a 2GB file size limit. You'll definitely need to compress your video file. A 30-second spot that is compressed for the web will be around 2-3MB file size. That's more than reasonable for e-mail, even for free e-mail accounts from Google Gmail, Yahoo Mail! and Microsoft Hotmail. You'll send the file by creating a new message and attaching the video file to the e-mail message. Attaching a 2-3MB file might take a minute or two, depending on your connection speed. It will take roughly the same amount of time for the client to download the file using a high-speed internet connection.

If you own your own domain name and a web hosting service, you can utilize your FTP tool (File Transfer Protocol) to upload a client video to your web server. Then you can e-mail the link to the client. File-size limitations are generally less of a worry when using web servers that tend to have less-restrictive file-size limits. You should know what your data transfer limits are with your web server before putting this method to use. The FTP method requires a little bit of technical knowledge, so it might not be the best fit for you.

More simplified file transfer methods exist. Services like YouSendIt.com send relatively large files to your clients using a much more user-friendly interface. YouSendIt.com has a free trial version and tiered subscription plans for more professional features.

While doing simple file transfer using e-mail or other methods are effective, you must make sure the client can view back the video. A better method for playback compatibility is using an online video-sharing site.

Ironically, the video you are editing will likely end up on YouTube when it's finished. So why not use it for your approvals? Make sure that you do not post approval videos as public videos. YouTube allows you to make video private. You can assign which YouTube users can see these videos. You will need to make sure that the client creates a YouTube account. Ask the client to give you his username information, so you can assign it to the video. The client will need to log in to YouTube in order to view the video.

Video-sharing sites are all competing for space on the internet, and high-definition video playback is making small appearances here and there. Vimeo.com has one of the cleanest designs and consistent playback of HD video. Vimeo.com will also let you set videos to a private setting, or you can assign a simple password to the video so that clients don't need an account to view the video.

The last piece of the puzzle is persistence. Keeping communication flowing between you and the client requires that you are consistently giving the client updates at each stage. Don't overwhelm the client with too much information. Sometimes less is more, especially with clients who can do more damage to productivity with this kind of information. Use web tools that make the collaboration simple, not a technical nightmare. After all, if you are a talented editor and you've chosen your projects wisely, approvals become a fun process that captures the best of creativity. Don't let the tools get in the way of that process.

Contributing Editor Mark Montgomery is an independent video producer and editor.