Tips for Maximizing Your Conferencing Solution

Audio conferencing solutions can make great fiscal and productivity sense for any size corporation. For those who are operating in the non-profit sector, a solution that can drive maximum collaboration in real-time and at a low cost can be an extremely attractive solution. Here, we’ll provide you with a few tips on what you can to do maximize your conferencing experience.

Tip #1 The Moderator

Ensuring there is a moderator in place during every audio conferencing call is essential to the success of the call. The moderator ensures that everyone who is supposed to be on the call is actually on the call; that the agenda items that need to be covered receive the necessary attention; and that one caller is not able to dominate the conversation when collaboration and teamwork are the main goal.

It is certainly possible to conduct a conference call without a moderator, but call participants often find that a clear focus and a specific goal are very difficult to achieve if there is not a definite leader in the call. The role of the moderator can easily be filled by a normal member of the conference call, as long as this is clearly defined ahead of time.

Tip #2 The Agenda

How often have you been on a phone call that tends to drone on without a clear focus or direction? Conference calls are especially at risk of such haphazard activity and pointless babble if an agenda is not clearly formed and distributed to all conference call participants before the time of the call.

Keep in mind that people who view meetings and conference calls as simply time wasters that detract from their normal work duties tend to take a negative approach to their own participation. If they receive a well constructed agenda ahead of the call time and the agenda is followed during the call, that perception can easily be changed.

Tip #3 The Record Option

While the information on your conference call is important, it may interfere with pre-set appointments or present other scheduling challenges. When this happens, moderators can take advantage of the Record Option. This function allows you to record the call so that all information can be disseminated later by those who were unable to participate in the live call.

Even if all intended participants are able to take part in the conference call, the Record Option serves as a permanent record of the conversation. Whether you need to support a verbal contract, contribute to the resolution of a dispute or merely to recount specific details, recording the call will provide the backup information you need.

Tip #4 The Follow-Up

Finally, follow-up with those individuals who were able to participate in the conference call to gauge their perception of the success of the call. Note their observations and evaluate whether or not you can make changes in the future to improve the conference call experience.

Why to Use Web Conferencing and Webinars

Create Opportunity with Web Conferencing

Offering a free service is a great way to attract targeted leads to your business.  Webinars and free education classes can be formulated to target the audience you need to tell about your product. You can conduct such webinars and training sessions affordably by using web conferencing.

Demonstrate your Product

You may simply want to show customers how your product can improve their lives or solve a problem. You can demonstrate your product in a free webinar and direct them to your landing page after the presentation.

Pitch your Product

In business-to-business applications, webinars let you actively display the benefits of your product and answer questions in real time on a simple and easy to use platform. Leads will respond to your presentation and ask questions. This kind of client interaction provides valuable feedback and new ideas on how to market your product.

Generate Leads and Traffic

Such free webinars are also great traffic generators for blogs and other websites. By offering the free course in exchange for user emails, you begin to build a highly targeted email list with which you can build trust and later market your product.

Affordable Marketing Strategy

Webinars are much more affordable that PPC marketing in most cases. Rates are incredibly low and a simply fifteen minute presentation may be all you need to attract leads and traffic.

It is vital that your presentation be well thought out and be presented flawlessly. This is when you will want to be sure you use a service with 24/7 customer service available to help should any problems arise.

By combining your message with a webinar service with good customer support, you create a marketing tool for your business that attracts targeted leads, generates traffic and can ultimately lead to more sales.

Time Management for Remote Workers: Leveraging Communication Tools

Welcome to part four of our ongoing series looking at how businesses can use audio and web conferencing to leverage the benefits of remote workers while avoiding the common pitfalls of such work flow arrangements.

Time Management for Remote Workers

The biggest concern with virtual employees is how much they work. Such workers often work too much and can suffer from burn out. Some may wake up early and begin work. Without any distractions, they often find themselves forgetting to eat and working well past office hours.

This is where an afternoon web conference becomes most important. Have a quick meeting with your worker and ask about the day. Asses the employee’s emotional state and be sure they are not pushing themselves too hard. Casually asking what they had for lunch will help you be sure they are taking appropriate breaks.

Another way to help your employees maintain structure is to set up automated email reminders. Send one at break time, lunch and at the end of the day, providing a friendly reminder that it is time to rest.

 Stay Connected

 Use instant messaging to keep your employees connected. Allow a certain amount of freedom of personality in these messages. While they must remain appropriate, employees also need a way to joke about their work to release tension.

Include remote workers in company web conferences at least once a month and be sure to include a social time in that meeting where some simple game is played to encourage social interaction. You may also connect workers who live near one another and encourage them to socialize after work.

Hiring Telecommuters Over the Phone

This is the second in a series about how audio and web conferencing can help you realize the benefits of hiring remote workers while avoiding the common pitfalls frequently cited by those making such hires.

When interviewing candidate for virtual work, it is vital you look for certain qualities that will ensure you gain a highly focused and productive worker. Not only will you want to set up a web conference to assess the employee's attitudes and communication style, you will also look for particular personality traits and skills.

Personality Traits

Candidates for virtual work must understand your mission and take it up as their own calling. Look for candidates whose rewards systems are dependent on internal factors, not outside approval. Find out what types of work they truly love to do and make sure those jobs fit in with the job description.

You should also look for confidence in your virtual workers. They must be able to evaluate difficult situations and make good decisions. Be sure to find out about past difficulties and how the candidate handled those problems.

Skills

Virtual workers need superior communications skills to be effective. In order to assess such skills, be sure to communicate by all channels in separate interviews. Exchange emails, schedule a telephone interview and perform the final interview by web conference - allowing for the candidate to share past work, documents and other relevant items. During each interview, ask questions about specific workflows and motivations, and then observe the employee's communication skills.

Technology

If the candidate does not have an in-depth grasp of technology, telecommuting will not work. They must learn and apply new skills quickly. They must understand email, web conferencing and telephone communications. Find out about the employees preferences in hardware and software to see how deep the understanding of technology goes.

How to Web Conference: Using Web Conferencing for Recruiting and Interviewing

Web conferencing is still a relatively new technology, but one that companies are finding extremely valuable when it comes to organising online meetings with clients.   It is cost effective, quick, and incredibly easy to arrange.

One example of how web conferencing can help a company lies in the field of executive search and procurement.   In this field, it is not uncommon to hear of executive search consultants travelling thousands of miles to meet with and arrange interviews with potential candidates for high level positions.   Now, these same consultants can instead log on to their computer, engage in a web meeting with candidates, and find out all they need to know about that candidate and their ability within minutes.    All of this without visiting the airport, or paying anyone's expenses.   In fact, an international executive search firm recently attested to this added value.   They stated that, where before it would have cost close to $20,000 to arrange for the interview cycle for one position to be completed, it now costs nothing.   This is because it was all done over the Internet using a web conference provider.

Another great feature of a web meeting is that, while some parts of a meeting are relevant to everyone, others are not.   So with a web conference, attendees can surf the net, check emails etc. Until their part of the meeting comes up.

There are many providers of web conferencing services out there.   If you run a business, contact them and get a quote that suits your business.  It will transform the way you communicate, as well as save you money.  Please visit www.flyconferencing.com for more information.