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How to organise the perfect conference call

Admin 8th May 2014

If you are in charge of hosting a conference call, it is a great opportunity to put your organising and managing skills to test and suitably impress the participants with what you have up your sleeve. And it’s dead easy to do! All that you need to do to host the perfect teleconference is a bit of preparation and conferencing services provided by a conference call service provider with the right kind of technology.

There are some best practices that teleconferencing participants follow to ensure that the call is a great one. A voice conference is not like a face to face meeting. It has its own peculiarities. There are certain things that you need to address before, during and after telephone conferencing to ensure that the call is a success.

Before the Call

No matter how well you prepare, if the teleconferencing service provider does not offer reliable services, you may not be able to get the right output. Ensure that you opt for the right conferencing solutions that suit your business needs. Phone conferencing does not start the moment someone picks up the phone to dial into the conference bridge. Preparations must be underway well before that.

Circulate the agenda for the scheduled conference a few days before the meeting. It allows participants enough time to prepare.
Send them all the details required for call conferencing. Include the number they need to dial, the pass code, alternate number to call in case there is any trouble etc. in the invite itself.

During the call

Join the call from a quiet room.
As a host, you need to login a few minutes earlier than everyone else. This will allow you to figure out whether everything is in proper working condition. As a host, it is also proper etiquette to greet each participant as they dial in and join the call.
Allow time for everyone to introduce themselves.
Moderate the call by giving enough time for each participant to speak. Lay down the ground rules right before the meeting starts.
Summarise the call when it is about to end.
Decide on a schedule for the next call.

After the call

Treat the conference call lie any other important business meeting. Ensure that somebody has taken notes during the call. Or you could also use the call recording facility. Take the minutes of the call and send it across to all the participants.

If you follow the above, you are well on your way to organising the perfect conference call.

Should you hold conference calls or a video calls?

Admin 12th March 2021

A lot of us often wonder about whether to choose conference calls or video calls. There are big benefits on both sides, and some shared across the two. After all, there’s no doubt that advancements in call technology have paved the way for new communication methods at work. They allow us to host keynote presentations from across the world, offering inclusivity to those with accessibility needs. Any type of group phone call also provides a sense of connection when teammates are working apart – something particularly valuable through COVID-related lockdowns and social distancing.

But while jumping on a video call has become a knee-jerk reaction for many, it’s not without its drawbacks. Video brings some complications that traditional conference calls simply don’t have. If you’re wondering whether to organise a conference call or video call, don’t forget that sometimes just picking up the phone is the better option.

Business Conference Calls, Remote Working

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How to encourage conference call participation

Admin 2nd March 2021

With telecommuting become part and parcel of daily life, the need to encourage conference call participation is on all our radars. Whether you are a developer, manager, director or client, you will probably understand the challenges that conference call participation can pose. Meeting dynamics often solidify rather quickly, as extraverted participants take centre stage and readily express their opinions. Bolder characters may be excellent for producing new ideas. Unfortunately, though, it can cause participants who are more reserved to fade into the background. If you want to enhance your team’s productivity and unity, implementing some of the following solutions can work wonders. After all, we all want to learn how to have more effective conference calls.

Both the call’s leader and its participants can make a huge difference in encouraging conference call participation. Read on to discover some tips and tactics to improve your team’s conference call participation.

Business Conference Calls, Business Tips and Advice, Conference Call Tips, Remote Working

How do you make a conference call more fun?

Admin 11th February 2021

It’s Tuesday afternoon and you’re already four conference calls into the week. Of course, conference calls are important for so many businesses. But making conference calls more fun should be a bigger priority. Otherwise, they can become tedious and repetitive, and morale and productivity will drop.

Whether you’re working from home and need to catch up with colleagues, or you’re calling clients, these tips will help to make your next conference call more fun.

Conference Call Tips, Remote Working