Your company has a scheduled sales call for all team managers at 3 PM on the first of the month.  With all of your figures neatly set out in front of you, you take a deep breath and dial the number provided by the home office at three o’clock sharp.

Sales have been down this month and you’re not looking forward to reporting the news in front of everyone, especially your boss.

The phone rings once before a woman answers.  She asks your name and your reference number.  Soon, you are connected with other sales managers from your company.  Some are out of state, some out of the country.

This is how a conference calling company manages sales calls for many companies all over the world.  Conference calls are very useful for all types of companies to keep their employees connected.

Of course, with advancements in technology, there are many ways to keep the internal workings of a company connected.  However, there is no better way than conference calls to keep everyone informed.

Conference calls are almost as good as having everyone in the same room.  People can converse with each other, they can hear how other teams are doing and they can remain confident in knowing that other teams are on the same page as they are.

Conference calling has developed into a great tool for businesses, and the wide array of conference call services provided by the many companies offering conference calling can make your conference call a success.

Some of the many conference call services available are discussed below, so shop around for a service that meets your needs, as there is a large variety of services and prices available.

Toll Free Calling

The host of the conference pays for the conferencing service, but each person calling in to the conference will pay any toll charges from their phone service.

Depending on your needs, you can arrange to have a toll free line for your conference call in, making the call free to the participants.

Automated Calling

Simple conference calls can be totally automated, allowing calls to be set up at any time and conducted without advance reservations or notice to the conference call company.

These are typically the least expensive option, and can be very useful if your calls are fairly uncomplicated.

Operators

Live operators are available for larger or more complex calls. A live operator can answer each caller and handle the connection process, can handle screening of callers, can be available throughout your call to assist with technical issues, and can field questions and answers `during the conference call.

In today’s fast paced business world, sometimes meetings have to happen with people that are far across the country, or perhaps across an ocean.

Since every participant’s input is needed to have a successful meeting, choosing the right conference call provider is essential. Below is a brief discussion of the important characteristics to look for when choosing the right provider for you.

Ease Of Use

There is a general rule in the business world that the more complicated something is, the less likely it will be used by business professionals. Most savvy business people are looking for a tool that is easy to use so that their efficiency and profit sharing can increase.

A conference call provider is one such tool and therefore, it should have a user interface that is simple, easy to operate, and understandable.  In addition, if problems arise, help should be available to guide you into getting everyone in line to have a successful meeting

Security Features

Like anything else in the business world, meetings often contain information that could be considered privileged.

Because of this, the ability to control who enters into the meeting, when they enter or exit, and what they can overhear are some important security features that should be considered when choosing a conference call provider.

There is a difference between a conference call and an in-house call where a home telephone is used to call three to four other people, and the difference really is one of quality, not quantity.

When using a home telephone to call a small number of people, the caller will generally tend to experience some audio disturbances when the number of participants rises to 4 or more and so the call becomes inaudible.

With professional service providers, each call is routed through a “bridge” which is sophisticated equipment that receives and improves the quality of the signal through separate electronic lines by evening out the volume level so that the listener receives the electronic voice signal clearly.

The strength of the signal is such that it can be likened to a one on one voice conversation even when there are hundreds of people connected to a single call.

Different Types of Calling Conference Rates

Calling Conference rates are derived based on two separate parameters which are the cost of using the bridge and the cost of making a long distance call to the bridge.

The business conference call has become commonplace in today’s business world.  Companies all over the world use the business conference call to stay connected with offices and colleagues everywhere.

With a business conference call, even though the people attending the call live in different cities, states or countries, everyone is placed together. It’s almost as if everyone is in the same room, even though they may be worlds apart.

The Many Reasons for Conference Calling

The business conference call is used for many reasons. Sales forces often use conference calls as a way to report their numbers to sales managers.

Managers use the calls to report to higher executives and investors use conference calls to monitor the daily work of the business to ensure that their money is being spent wisely.

The business conference call is essentially a way to meet without having to meet in person.

Phones are Important Business Tools

Businesses have been using conference calling as a way to connect with other people for a long time now. Whether they are calling customers, vendors or other associates, the telephone has been a major tool in conducting good business.

An audio conference call can be difficult for participants to fully absorb. Research into human communication styles tells us that adults do better at remembering information when it is received in more than one way.

This is a challenge for a speaker in an audio conference call, because people remember only about 20 percent of what they hear, 50 percent of what they both hear and see, and 80 percent of what they hear, see, and do.

Therefore, here are some tips you can use to prepare for a successful audio conference call.

Pay Attention To The Sound

First, be sure that your audience can actually hear all of what is said.  At the beginning of the call, ask the participants to verify that the call is clear and has a high enough volume.  If there is a problem with the quality of the sound, get it corrected before you continue.

Second, be conscious of speaking clearly and slowly. Without visual clues to help them, listeners will miss words that are slurred or buried in a swiftly moving sentence.

There is plenty to choose from when searching for a toll free conference calling plan and this has led to increased sales productivity as well as lesser traveling expenditure for companies.

A personal toll free number (sometimes called an 800 number) is a type of service through which the person receiving the call pays the call charges and not the caller.

This is especially useful for children, family and friends to call home without having to pay any charges and is a viable alternative to calling cards and pay phones.

Some useful toll free conference calling plans have the facility to receive calls on cellular phones, fax machines or a dorm phone for as little as 3.9 cents per minute. There are separate plans for home users, companies and travelers.

The toll free conference calling plan chosen should be one that fits your needs since toll free conference calling providers can now, because of reduced overheads, provide more cost effective plans.

It makes sense to check out the different features that each service provider is offering before settling on the one that has the best solution.

For years, businesses have used conference calls to keep their businesses connected.  Before certain advancements in technology, they were forced to use phone conference calling. 

This allowed them to connect other business associates who might not be in the same city, state or even country. It kept people connected without having to worry about distance or proximity.

Audio vs. Video Conference Calling

Now, with certain technological advancements, there are new ways to connect with others.  Computers and video technology has enabled the use of video conference calls.  Many people still don’t like the new version, however.

Video conference calling brings different aspects to the conference calling.  With video, the person has to worry about being judged on what they look like or how they’re dressed.  With phone conference calling, business can be conducted professionally and without prejudice, exactly as it was meant to be.

Phone conference calling is still prevalent among businesses even though other forms of conference calling exist.  Phone Conference calling is often cheaper than other conference call counterparts.

Businesses can conduct a conference call with other business partners or potential partners and only have to worry about the phone bill.

Where to Hold an Online Conference Call

Online conference calling has become possible when you conference online from a conference room that has been set up to suit either the needs of a single person or multinationals having hundreds and thousands of users.

Finding an online conference calling service provider may seem daunting, but finding the right service provider may not prove to be such a difficult task as there are so many players in this sphere.

Online conference calling should be both private and secure and ought to have recording facilities with the ability to play back recorded conversations at a later time.

Once a dedicated service room has been set up it is possible to record a welcome announcement that will be heard by all participants as and when they enter the conference.

A welcome announcement helps create a friendly atmosphere within the conference room as well as impart confidence in the participant’s mind that they are indeed in the right place.

Once you select a six digit number or accept the random room number you are well on your way to holding an online conference calling conversation which is dedicated to your sole use.

An interesting feature of Internet conference calling is how web-enabled conferencing adds the power and punch of the Internet, turning the conference call into a combined web and audio experience that enhances the impact to a conference and adds flair.

With the click of a mouse button, the customer gains complete control of the conference. Internet conference calling allows the user to conduct, arrange, lead and be in charge of the audio conference straight from their computers.

Different Features that Enhance Internet Conference Calling

There are a number of features that enhance the Internet conference calling experience and these include data conferencing, streaming, online scheduling and notification, phone and Web participation list, polling, viewing questions, post conference reporting and keeping their own phonebooks.

All these feature rich aspects help enhance and sort out all the various requirements that Internet conference calling requires. Web presentations may cost as little as 25 cents per participation per minute and an additional charge of US$10 may be levied for uploading per presentation.

As for streaming and live or archived conference calls, the charges are the same at 25 cents per minute per participation and slides are not an additional charge.