Archive for the ‘Conference Calls’ Category
Friday, March 5th, 2010
I have never been a fan of the word cheap. I think in general the meaning I derive from the word is something of inferior quality not just inexpensive. But that is not how every0ne views it. A lot of people think of cheap as simply the cost of an item. And there are some huge companies that have made a living at selling good stuff cheap. And in most cases the goods they sell are the same goods or services you may find in another store but they simply find a way to sell them cheaper than their competition. And that is the case with Zip Conferencing’s conference call service. I have proved to myself that you can sell cheap conference calls and stioll provide the same or better quality than other conference call service companies.
I am often asked, “How can you sell conference calls at such low rates?” People think that the calls themselves may be inferior in some way because cheap conference calls can’t be as good, right? Well, there certainly are some costs in providing a high quality conference call service that you can not escape but there are areas in the conference call service business where you can reduce costs and pass those saving on to your customers. And these areas have no impact on the number of features or quality of the service. Cheap conference calls can be as good as expensive conference calls and here are the areas where Zip Conferencing has been able to reduce their cost without affecting the quality of the conference call service.
- Self Service Ability- Although Zip Conferencing offers personal service 24/7 we also provide our customers the ability to service their own accounts. The interface is easy to use and available to our customers 24/7 so they can get immediate service whenever they want without having to contact our customer service department. Like an ATM machine is to banks, our online account management tool provides a way to do business with us that is more convenient to use and so the number of customer service agents we need is less than most conference call service companies.
- Online Marketing- Unlike many conference call service companies our marketing and advertising is strictly done online. Since we don’t have to pay a large number of salespeople to produce our sales, our sales cost is less.
- Reduced Office Space Requirements- The lower number of personnel needed means we don’t need as much office space as other conference call service companies.
- Fully Automated - Our provisioning, billing and other back office processes are highly automated which means we need fewer people to perform the normal business functions needed to run a conference call service company.
So, you see, you can get cheap conference calls that are as good as more costly conference calls, just use Zip Conferencing!
Tags: cheap conference calls, Conference Call, Conference Call Service, Conference Calls
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Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010
Over the years the number of conference calls being held has exploded. It is not hard to imagine why since conference calling saves a company money and time. But can there be such a thing as too many conference calls?
Let’s face it. If you work for a company that has integrated conference calls into their culture then you have had those days. Days where you are jumping from one conference call to another with little break in between. Such is the nature of conference calling. You can simply sit at your desk and attend meeting after meeting without leaving your desk. A conference call saves you the travel time, even if it is down the hall to a conference room, so you can schedule an audio conference back to back with another audio conference and stay on schedule. One of the reasons companies have adopted conference calls is because they are increasing your productivity without you realizing it. You can attend more meetings in a day if they are via a conference call and you are saving any travel expenses as well. But for you the increase in productivity translates into more work. Not only can’t you get anything done while you are in a meeting whether it is a conference call or in person meeting, but inevitably you get more work to do while in the meeting as well.
So maybe conference calls are too convenient and too easy to use and too inexpensive because if you are on too many conference calls you can’t get anything done. So even though you have saved all this travel time you now are so loaded with work to do and no time to do it you are struggling and tomorrow there is another slate of conference calls to attend. Even as a conference call service provider I have to admit that you can have too many conference calls. But let’s face it. A conference call is easier to deal with than an in person meeting and after all you just need to say no. Time management is something everyone can improve on and using your time wisely is all about using all your time as effectively as possible. And without conference calls time spent travelling to meetings would be completely wasted. Conference calls are great, just try to tone it down a bit.
Tags: Company Money, Conference Call, Conference Call Service, Conference Call Service Provider, Conference Calling, Conference Calls, Culture, Desk, Face, Imagine, Little Break, Nature, Productivity, Slate, Time Management, Travel Expenses, Travel Time
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Tuesday, February 9th, 2010
Washington, DC has received a record amount of snowfall this winter and there is more on the way. Places like Boston and Chicago are used to getting lots of snow and dealing with it. Washington, DC not so much. The government and private businesses in the area have been forced to shut down their offices while they try to clean up after the storm. For most businesses, taking days off for a weather emergency is just not that practical. Conference calls provide the means to continue to conduct business during a weather emergency.
The benefits of conference calls are evident when the weather is good and people can travel to work and attend face to face meetings. You get the benefits of saving time, money and increasing your productivity whenever you do a conference call. But when you have no choice to do an in person meeting, a conference call can really save the day. I have no doubt that all conference call service companies have seen a rise in usage over the past week due to the weather emergencies experienced from the recent winter storms. Zip Conferencing certainly has seen more conference calls being conducted. Conference calls provide the much needed link for companies to continue to conduct regular business during these types of situations.
The best thing to do for your company is to be ready for a weather emergency by enlisting a conference call service and having conference call capability in case of emergency. Most conference call service companies like Zip Conferencing offer their services on a Pay As You Go basis which means that you will not pay for the service unless you use it. That way you can have the conference call information on hand and when the emergency happens you are ready. Certainly using conference calls in your every day business helps at all times and would help you be even more ready if an emergency happens, but even if you only use the conference call service during an emergency it is worth doing.
So, don’t worry about the weather. You can do a conference call even during the worst weather emergency mother nature has to offer. Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!
Tags: Boston, Capability, Conference Call Service, No Doubt, Private Businesses, Productivity, Saving Time, Snowfall, Time Money, Washington Dc, Weather Emergencies, Weather Emergency, Winter Storms
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Friday, January 22nd, 2010
There was a time when you would not even think about running an automated conference call for 20 or more participants. If you were going to run a conference call of that size you would run the conference call with the assistance of an operator. And even today, an Operator Assisted call might be the right conference call solution depending on your application, but the conference call technology has gotten to where running a large automated conference call is manageable if you know a few tricks.
The main problem with running a large conference call is the noise the audience can introduce during the call. It is bad enough when there are just 4 or 5 participants and one of them introduces noise because they are on a cell phone, rustling papers on their desk, talking to people in their room, etc. Just imagine having 100 people on the call. The odds that someone is going to make noise during the conference call are pretty good. In fact, virtually certain. So, what can you do to hold an orderly conference call with a large audience? Here are a few tips to make for a successful large conference call.
- Turn Off any Tones - Most conference call service companies provide tones on the conference clal so you know when a participant joins the call. This is fine when you have 5 people on the conference call, but can be more than a distraction when there are 20 or more.
- Mute All - The conference calling service should provide a way to mute all participants as the Moderator of the conference call.
- Use an online interface if offered - Some conference call service companies offer an online conference call interface that allows you to see the callers and control the audio portion of the conference call. This can be very helpful, especially if you intend to open up to questions from the audience. That way you can see the callers and manage the call easier.
- Use Web Conferencing - In addition to enhancing your conference call with visual presentations, a web conference can allow you to manage a Q&A session better than just using an audio conference. With a Web Conference you are giving your participants a way to raise their hand for questions and a way for you to open up an individual line to allow them to ask their question.
- Practice - The best thing you can do to insure your success with a large conference call is to run a practice session to make sure you are familiiar with all of the conference call controls and how to use them.
If you follow these tips you can run a large conference call successfully without the need to use an expensive Operator Assisted Conference Call.
www.zipconferencing.com
Tags: Audience, Audio Portion, Call Interface, Cell Phone, Conference Call Service, Conference Calling Service, Desk, Distraction, Odds, Operator Assisted Call, Participant, Participants, People, Running, Technology, Visual Presentations, Web Conferencing
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Thursday, January 14th, 2010
First of all, let me offer my most sincere condolences to all in Haiti who have lost loved ones in this terrible earthquake. I know that the US and the rest of the world is working as fast as they can speed help to that country and I wish them all the best in this difficult time. Certainly in a disaster like this many resources have to be pulled together to muster the kind of support necessary to attack the problem. And a great deal of coordination needs to happen to have all of the resources work effectively together to speed the recovery process. Conference calls are an excellent way to pull together the various people and agencies to coordinate their efforts.
A major disaster like the one in Haiti does not happen every day, thankfully, but it is easy to see how communication is important to help provide the kind of coordination necessary between the various agencies. Conference calls allow people to connect without the need to be in person and in this case across the world. Since conference calls are accessible from around the world there is no limit to the where the people are located on the conference calls. Participants from various countries can even get together to help coordinate their efforts.
As a small business owner the ability to coordinate global efforts using conference calls probably won’t apply to you. But having a conference call service ready in case of a disaster for your company is a really good idea. Emergencies in your business could happen at any time and being able to communicate with the rest of your staff and do it quickly can sometimes mean the difference between a small inconvenience and a total disaster.
Take for example the case of the wrong price being put into a flyer for your business. You just figured out that the price that is about to be distributed says $9.99 when it should be $99.99. Pulling together the Marketing department, the printer and distributor on a conference call may give you an opportunity to head off the distribution before it goes out and determine a good course of action to rectify the situation. If you had to make separate phone calls instead of pulling together all the parties on a conference call you will lose valuable time. And in that time you might miss the window of opportunity to head off the distribution of the ad. This is but one example of an issue that could be dealt with more easily with a conference call.
Whatever business you are in you may at one point experience an emergency that you need to deal with. Being prepared for that emergency is key because time is short and dealing with the emergency expeditiously can mean the difference between a small issue and a huge emergency. It costs nothing to get a set of conference call information and keep it at hand for just such an emergency. Because when time is critical, a conference call can help reduce the time it takes to respond in an emergency situation.
www.zipconferencing.com
Tags: Conference Call Service, Coordination, Earthquake, Emergencies, Global Efforts, Haiti, Inconvenience, Major Disaster, Marketing Department, Participants, People, Rest Of The World, Sincere Condolences, Small Business Owner
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