To make a conference call, you need no special equipment other than your telephone.

1. Search the internet to locate a company that provides conference calls.

• Ensure that the selected provider offers the features, as well as the reliability, you desire.
• Consider whether you desire a toll free (e.g., an 800 number), or whether you prefer that those participating incur a fee for calling long distance. The cost of the call will vary.

2. Plan a time for the teleconference.
You will receive a telephone number to call in order to begin the teleconference. This number may or may not be toll free. In addition, you will receive two PINs, or Personal Identification Numbers. The first is the code for the call leader, and the second is the code used by the participants to access the conference call. These are the only necessary items to begin the conference.

For example, a company wishes to use an 800 number to set up a teleconference. The leader, Sam Smith, will locate a conference company and sign up with it. He will then receive the conference number and PIN numbers from the conference company. These numbers will be used for all conference calls he chooses to make using this company.

The calling number: 1-888-987-6543
His PIN number (used by the leader): 12121#
A PIN number for all participants in the call: 34345#

3. Invite participants to the conference.

• Send them notice that the teleconference is being held on a certain date at a certain time. Include the time zone if this is relevant or necessary.
• Advise those participating to call the conferencing number and enter the participant PIN.

Sam desires his call to take place at 11:00 A.M. Eastern Standard Time on Thursday. He emails all those involved in the call, and ensures that they receive the number, 1-888-987-6543. He also relates to them the PIN # for participants. He explains why the call is being held and emphasizes the importance of punctuality.

4. The leader dials the number and enters the leader’s PIN.
He should call shortly prior to the scheduled start time and initiate the conference by entering the leader PIN code. Each participant then dials the conference number and enters the participant PIN code. The conference has begun.

5. All participants should dial the conference number at the time the call is scheduled to begin.

6. Each participant enters the provided PIN number at the prompt.

7. When everyone has joined, the call can begin.

Note: Because the call does not require reservations, the assistance of an operator is not needed. This type of call costs approximately 50 percent less than a call that requires an operator’s assistance. Leaders can begin making conference calls immediately after receiving the conference number and PIN. The leader uses the same access number and PIN for every conference. This conference calling system is referred to as a self service system and it helps to connect people rapidly at a lower cost.

The flat rate conference operates in the same manner with one exception; the number is not toll free and all participants must pay any applicable long distance toll charges.

When your team uses business conference call services, it’s important that everyone obey the fundamental rules of telephone conference call etiquette. These rules apply as the conferencing etiquette that all participants should maintain to make your teleconference a success. 

A lot of the rules which apply to regular meetings also apply when meeting on a phone conference call, so they will probably not be too surprising.  By respecting conference call etiquette, and handling the business meeting on the phone just as you would a face to face business meeting, you will get the most value from your corporate conference call.   While, it is true that no one can see the other teleconference participants, it would be wrong to take advantage of this situation. Also, please take note that everyone will realize that your attention is diverted away from the teleconference.

Keep in mind that after your conference call is over, you will leave an impression.  Make the best of your phone conference calling time and make the presentation of yourself,

It is imperative that everyone on the conference call observe these ground rules for the teleconference meetings, and what you should or should not do. You must be able to draw the attention of the participants by following the right teleconferencing manners. You need to make sure that you make a good impression on others. The basic rules for maintaining conference call etiquette are as follows:

• Set up the teleconference in advance and provide the dial in number, pass code and other important points
• Inform everyone of the time zone that your conference call start time is being provided in.
• Be on time to attend someone else’s conference and start your own phone conference call on time, just as you would in a face-to-face meeting.
• Be prepared with all relevant documents and the subject matter.
• Pay attention to what others say.
• See that you participate actively in the conference.
• Realize that you will be speaking in front of a group without any visual cues or feedback.
• Use a phone with a mute button in a quiet, undisturbed room.
• Do NOT use a mobile phones or a phone that will pick up all sorts background noise. Calling from the middle of an open office like trying to have a meeting in a bar. If you can’t find a quiet place, mute your phone until you need to talk.
• Remember to UNmute yourself when you need to talk. No matter how salient your points are, when no one hears them - nothing happens.
• Treat the business conference call just like it were any other business meeting. You know the drill - have an agenda, take minutes, minimize tangents, etc.
• Make sure each caller introduces themselves - at least from the perspective of good minute taking.
• Say your name prior to talking. Don’t presume that all teleconference attendees recognize your voice. This is especially helpful for the scribe or minute-taker.
• When helpful, use guest speakers. Have a special or important member of the team or company deliver a few words at the teleconference’s onset. They can safely slip away without anyone being the wiser, and everyone will be acting at their best from then on out.
• Keep the conference call on-topic. If people talk go on and on, or talk at the same time, use your facilitation skills to get the teleconference back on track.
• Solicit input directly, using the audio conferencing participant’s name. Rather than being embarrassed about needing a question repeated, you will condition the attendees to give the conference call their undivided attention.
• Don’t drag chairs across the floor, crunch on carrots or chips, shuffle papers on the desk, clack away on the keyboard, tap your pencil on the table or anything else which will drive the other teleconference attendees insane.
• Make sure to formally bring the meeting to an end. Thank all of the conference call attendees for their time.
• Avoid rubbing on vinyl, leather, or pleather during the conference call. Every time you do, a sound very much like a certain type of bodily function is transmitted over the phone to the ears of everyone on the conference call.

The above are essential to a smooth and successful conference call.  Send a link to this article to your team if you think they might benefit from understanding better teleconference etiquette.

The audio and web conferencing business is booming with growth rates of over 30% per annum being reported. With all this activity, it’s becoming increasing hard for you to compare ‘like with like’ and choose a supplier which is right for your needs. To put it bluntly, some people are being ripped off. This article gives you tips to avoid expensive mistakes and get the best deal, whichever service provider you choose.

1. Claiming conference calls are FREE when they are not

RIP-OFF: Advertising services as being free when they can actually work out more expensive than paid-for services.

This is probably the most common trick in the industry. A Google search will return a myriad of so-called ‘free’ conference call services. They are not really free at all.

This is how it works: The conference access number is what’s known as a Non-Geographic Number (NGN). NGNs normally start with 08 or 09 and often cost more, sometimes much more, than calling a normal landline number. The reason they cost more is that the telephone company gives some of the money for the call to the owner of the NGN - the conference call company. This is how conference call companies make money on these services. So, although the conference call company does not charge you for hosting the conference call and therefore claim it to be free, you pay your telephone provider for the call so it’s not really free. A more accurate description would be “Free telephone Conference Hosting”. It’s worth noting that calls to NGNs from UK mobile phones and calls from abroad can be extremely expensive. Also, there is no guarantee that you will even be able to connect from abroad as foreign telephone companies are under no obligation to connect to NGNs. Other disadvantages include lack of control and visibility. NGN based services are typically quite primitive and do not include the features and support needed by serious business users. Companies who use audio conferencing regularly are almost always better off using a host-paid service as the cost savings can be considerable.

Suggested Countermeasures: Ask your service provider to tell you how much your conference calls will cost including costs of the phone calls to the conference bridge.

2. Charging you for being late - or early

RIP-OFF: Charging the host for participant calls from the moment each participant dials in, irrespective of whether the host is on the line yet. Some companies start the meter running as soon as each participant dials into the conference access number - even though the conference doesn’t actually start until the host arrives. Beware: This is a great way for the audio & web conferencing companies to make money for services you haven’t actually used! For instance, imagine you arranged an 11am teleconference for 20 people. If your service provider charged 10 pence per minute and each of the participants arrived 1 minute early but the host was 2 minutes late, you’d have paid GBP 5.70 for the privilege of listening to hold music. We think this practice is outrageous but it is quite widespread.

Suggested Countermeasures: Ask your service provider to tell you at exactly what point they start charging, is it when the participants arrive or when the host arrives? Remember, even if your service provider is not billing you directly because you are using an NGN based service (see Dirty Trick 1 above) you will still be paying for expensive phone calls whilst you wait.

3. Stealth charges - What you don’t know can hurt you

RIP-OFF: Charging high rates for services and hiding them by not providing a detailed breakdown in the hope you’ll just pay the bill without questioning it. Unfortunately, this is a very common practice. The sad truth is that many large companies simply don’t have the time or resources to check every single bill. Service providers know this and exploit it. Here are just a few examples of what can happen: a) A service provider wins your business by offering you an unbelievably low rate on UK access charges and then grossly overcharges you for overseas calls. b) They levy charges for conferences which were booked but subsequently cancelled. c) They charge for participants which don’t turn up, or turn up late - or even turn up early. The list is almost endless.

Suggested Countermeasures: Ask your service provider if they are able to provide a Fully Itemized Breakdown of their charges accessible via a web interface. The web interface part is important as some companies just dump reams of paper on you hoping that you won’t get around to reading it. Invariably they’re right, you won’t. Others insist you download & manipulate data in a spreadsheet which is fiddly, tedious and hence very rarely done. It’s also worth checking if the information i s available in REAL-TIME. Some companies only show information days, weeks or months after the call. Real-Time access is particularly important if you intend to bill your clients for audio and web conferences as part of your own company’s services. It pays to shop around and ask for a full price list so you can work out the actual costs you’ll be paying. It is often possible to save 40% to 70% by doing so.

4. Charging for no-shows

RIP-OFF: Charging for participants who were booked on a conference but didn’t attend. Most enterprise level audio and web conferencing service providers offer managed event call services. A managed event call is where operators perform tasks to help the call go smoothly; examples include dialing out to participants, welcoming them to the calls and chairing Q&A sessions. As event calls involve a number of people (sometimes several hundred), they must be booked in advance. Much like traditional events, if you invite 100 people, chances are only 80 or so will actually turn up on the day - audio and web conference providers know this and some exploit you by charging for places even if people don’t show up. For the service provider, this really is money for nothing. We think charging for no-shows is grossly unfair. It can be particularly difficult to spot unless your audio & web conferencing company includes full and detailed reporting (See section 3 on stealth charging).

Suggested Countermeasures: Luckily this is one of the easiest scams to protect yourself against. Simply ask your service provider if they charge for no-shows before the date for which you have booked your event call. Don’t put up with weasel words, and excuses; the answer should be either YES or NO.

5. Overcharging YOU because of THEIR antiquated billing systems

RIP-OFF: Charging the host for participant calls at the highest call rate even when some participants are calling in from cheaper lines. This one is very difficult to spot and it never even occurs to most people to check. Most enterprise level audio and web conferencing companies offer several ways for callers to dial into the conference. The per-minute cost varies by access method. The most common example of this is the choice of freephone or local rate access. Participants can either dial a freephone number for which the host is charged, say, 8p per minute or a local rate number for which the host is charged slightly less, say, 7p per minute. Now, if you held an audio conference for 12 people for 1 hour with 10 people calling in on a local rate number and 2 calling on a freephone number you would expect it to cost you (GBP 42.00 for the 10 participants dialing in at GBP 0.07 per minute plus GBP 9.60 for the 2 delegates dialing in at GBP 0.08 per minute). You might be shocked to learn that some service providers would charge you GBP 57.60, an increase of over 10%. This is because they’d charge you the freephone rate of GBP 0.08 per minute for all 12 lines even though only 2 people were using the more expensive freephone access method. Not a massive difference you might say, but it adds up over time. To be fair, not everyone who does this is deliberately overcharging you. It’s just that some service providers have outdated billing systems which are not capable of differentiating between different classes of lines on the same call. Whatever the reason though, you are the one who ends up paying extra!

Suggested Countermeasures: Again, this is a very simply trick to foil. Simply ask them how they handle mixed rate calls. Be particularly careful to check international rates as some of these are extremely expensive.

6. Insisting you sign up for annual contracts

RIP-OFF: Offering you good rates but only if you sign an ‘exclusive’ contract for 1 year. This is often used as a bargaining tool to make you think that the audio & web conferencing company is giving you something special in return for your loyalty. In reality it is you which is giving the service provider something of value, not the other way around. By signing an annual contract the service provider can be pretty confident that you will not be looking at the competition until close to when the contract expires. Even if there is an industry-wide price drop, you probably wouldn’t notice and they certainly aren’t going to tell you. Why should they? There is no incentive to do so. They have you tied in for a year. When you sign the contract, the Account Manager makes a note to call you 1 month before the contract is up and, very often, you just sign on the bottom line and renew - at the same, now inflated, rate. Easy money. We believe that your service provider should be giving you the best deal possible anyway without trying to tie you in. Most so-called ‘exclusive’ contracts are meaningless and unenforceable any way. Check with your lawyers but chances are you’ll find you are free to use multiple suppliers. If you find a better deal, be promiscuous. Gradually migrate over to the new company at a pace which suits you. Remember, there’s no need to cancel your account with your original supplier until you are confident the new company can meet your needs.

Suggested Countermeasures: Refuse to sign an annual contract and ask for the same great rates anyway. If they refuse, be suspicious. Are they trying to entice you in with a low per-minute call rate but then rip you off using some of the tactics described in this guide? Remember, if a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is too good to be true.

7. Charging premium rates for ordinary services

RIP-OFF: Charging you premium rates for services they claim are tailored to your specific industry, e.g. Legal, Retail or Medical. As more companies enter the market, everyone is looking for a point of difference and an excuse to charge more. Some service providers charge premium prices for what they claim to be unique industry-specific solutions. In reality all they are doing is using clever marketing tactics to sell standard services - the same services which are available from competitors at much better prices. One company we know of charges over 5 times the going rate for legal conference calls and gets away with. This is because many people in the legal profession assume that there is something very special about a legal conference call which justifies the premium. I’ll let you into a secret - there isn’t. A legal conference call is simply a managed event call, recorded and stamped with a case number delivered on cassette tape. Several audio and web suppliers can provide this service at greatly reduced rates but very rarely get a chance to quote as the market is dominated by one or two expensive players with large marketing budgets.

Suggested Countermeasures: Ask your supplier precisely what extra they are giving you in exchange for their higher prices. Some companies will insist that they are the only company certificated to serve your market - or the only company allowed to do so by your professional body. Chances are they are lying. A few phone calls should establish the facts and you could save a bundle.