One thing I find difficult in remote teams is the ability to ask a coworker a question quickly. There can be a fair amount of lag time over messenger and this occasionally blocks the completion of work.
Agreed. But the reverse is also true: it's harder for people to interrupt you.
We have been using VSee to keep a constant video/audio feed going. We both have microphones which are muted, and if we need to ask a question we just press unmute and talk away.
For smaller teams that need to communicate a lot, I think something like this is the best setup because like you said, it's not a lag from a messenger.. having to make a new phone call etc if you just want to ask a simple question.
Why is it so important that your colleague HAVE to respond quickly? Have you ever considered that your colleague may need some time alone to finish her own task before she can answer your super important question? (sorry for the mood of my answer but it is so bad on purpose :) )
e.g. I send you a message - I am trying to use 'xyzzy' which you provide. When I send it 'plover' I do not get back the response I need. Am I doing something wrong? <crickets for 3 days> WTF why can he not respond in a reasonable time frame? 1) on vacation, 2) sick in bed 3) over worked 4) a jerk 5) missed my email. In an office I can walk over and say WTF? Where I will easily find the new person who took his place, since he moved on to another job.