ARTICLE

How to organise the perfect conference call

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.