Archive for November, 2009

A Conference Call Service Reflects on Your Company

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

As a business we sometimes get caught up in saving money on the things we use in the business and forget to think about how it will reflect on the image of our company.  Let’s face it.  We’ve all done it.  Save a little money by replacing a reliable service or product with a cheaper one only to find that in most case, you really do get what you pay for.  It is the same with a conference call service company.  It is okay to switch to a new conference call vendor to save some money, but you do need to be careful about the service you are getting as the participants on the conference calls you run will see the conference call service you use as a reflection of your company.

You see, you are going to invite customers and prospects to attend meetings you hold via a conference call or web conference.  And it is important that the meeting have the kind of quality and reliability you expect.  After all, you would not invite your guests to a roadside motel where the lights don’t work for a meeting, right?  With a conference call service company it is not always so apparent to see the differences in the companies, but if you know what to look for, at least you will have a chance.

First of all something for free is rarely free.  In some way or another you are paying for the service.  Many times there are advertisements associated with free conference call service that the company is putting in front of your audience.  And invariably, the conference call service is not as good as a fee based service either.  Free conference calls make the participants pay to connect to the conference call because they have to dial a long distance number to connect to the call.  And the conference call service company can’t afford the latest equipment or services, or the best connections tot he telephone network either.  And they might not even have the conference call capacity to support your call when you need it.  All of these things cost money and free doesn’t pay for them.

Some of the conference call service companies are now offering unlimited capacity and rates that are less expensive than a long distance phone call.  How do they do that?  Well, they are probably offering a service based on VOIP technology.  Don’t get me wrong, VOIP has come a long way in the past 5 years, but would you trust your business to it?  Again, if it looks too good to be true it probably is. 

In the end you should be looking for a conference call service company that uses the latest conference call equipment, solid connections to the telephone network, back up network provisi0ns and provides service to back up their conference calls like Zip Conferencing.  Because when you hold an audio or web conference, the conference call service company you choose will reflect on your company.

www.zipconferencing.com

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Conference Calls in Agriculture

Friday, November 20th, 2009

Just to help make the point that conference calls and now more than ever, web conferencing can help any business save money and be more productive I have decided to talk about another industry who you would not think uses conference calls.  Certainly when you think of agriculture you think of a farmer who raises a crop or livestock and then sells to a market.  What use could agriculture possibly have with conference calls and web conferencing?

Well you would be surprised.  Agriculture is just another business, a big business in fact, that is always looking for ways to reduce cost and improve productivity so naturally they use conference calls.  The market that buys the crops or livestock is having conference calls with the farmers it buys from to keep them informed of prices and stock levels and other market factors.  By having one conference call with all of their suppliers they are saving time from calling each farmer individually.  The farmers are able to speak amongst themselves and share tips on how to better manage their farms.  If the farmers belong to a cooperative, the cooperative is using conference calls to better communicate between all of the farmers in the cooperative and share information.  And up the supply chain the distributors are able to talk to all of the markets and give them information on demand and pricing and so forth.  The level of communication in the entire supply chain has improved with the use of conference calls.

And all of the vendors that touch this industry have also found that conference calls and web conferencing are helping them communicate with their audience faster and more effectively.  The companies that make farming equipment are holding regular seminars on the latest equipment and its uses.  The companies that make the feed for the animals and the seed for the crops are holding conference calls with the farmers to discuss the availability of their goods, pricing and effective uses.  And all of this communication via conference call and web conferences is saving everyone a lot of time and money.  Farms by their nature are spread out over vast areas and it is very difficult and time consuming to have personal meetings with each farmer.  The use of conference calls and web conferences in agriculture is a natural fit!

www.zipconferencing.com

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Conference Calls in Healthcare

Thursday, November 19th, 2009

There is a lot of talk surrounding healthcare these days, so I thought I would point out some of the many applications for conference calls in the Healthcare industry.  Although healthcare is a largely one on one experience ina local surrounding, the healthcare industry is actually a large user of audio conferencing and web conferencing.  Just like any other business, the Healthcare industry tackles many of the same issues on a daily basis as any other industry and is always looking for ways to reduce costs and improve productivity.

For physicians, using a conference call is mainly done as a participant.  Doctors regularly are being trained on the latest techniques and therapies to assist their patients and many times these trainings are done remotely using audio conferencing and web conferencing.  Not only are the doctors incented to attend these training seminars, but the companies that are vendors in this industry are also incented to conduct the training seminar.  Pharmaceutical companies for instance need to promote their drugs and what better way then to hold a free seminar for doctors that describes the drug, its uses, efficacy and side effects.  That way the doctors are getting the information first hand from the experts on the drug.  And by conducting the training seminar using a conference call and a web conference, the drug company is able to reach more doctors in less time and much more cost effectively than if they attempted an in person meeting.  In addition, the drug companies have found that getting a doctor to attend a remote meeting via a conference call is easier than trying to get them to take the time to meet at a location.  Even as a participant, the doctors benefit from attending the seminar via a conference call by reducing their cost and increasing their productivity.

Another user of conference calls and web conferencing you may not expect are the hospitals.  Many times hospitals are regional in nature and have affiliations with other hospital location in an area.  The administration offices are often shared to reduce their overhead.  So, you have a business that has multiple locations where employees need to share information and meet on a regular basis.  The perfect scenario for the use of conference calls and web conferencing.  Similarly, physician and nurse staffing organizations exist that supply personnel to hospitals and healthcare clinics across a regional area and also need to communicate with their employees via conference calls.  And another maybe obvious example is when there is a company that owns multiple walk in healthcare clinics across an area.  These are basically small outlets for healthcare that are part of the same company spread across a region.  Like any other business, the managers of the locations are in need of regular communication with headquarters and are big users of conference calls and web conferencing.

Yes, like most industries, the Healthcare industry finds many benefits by using conference calls and web conferencing.

www.zipconferencing.com

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Our Conference Call Service offers Service Beyond the Call

Monday, November 16th, 2009

I am sure there are several conference call service companies that offer a good conference call from a technical point of view.  What I mean is that you can call into the conference call without too many problems and the conference call quality once connected is decent and so forth.  But what happens if you need help?  Is the conference call service company there for you when you need them to be?

At Zip Conferencing we pride ourselves on not just providing the highest quality audio conferencing and web conferencing services available, but we also want to make sure that your needs are taken care of as well.  That is why we provide customer service 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.  And, because we know that people like to communicate in different ways we have supplied many different ways to communicate with us.  You can call us on the phone to speak to a representative or if you prefer, you can also chat with one of our representatives 24 hours a day as well.  The representatives that are available by chat are the same representatives that answer the phones and are well schooled in all of services and features of Zip Conferencing.  Or you can send us a Support Request Form via the web site to get an answer to your conference call question if you do not need an immediate answer.

In addition to the people behind the scenes at Zip Conferencing that are ready to assist you, you will find a helpful knowledge base of important conference call and web conferencing information.  The information is organized between conference call FAQs, How Tos and Billing questions.  You can even search the plentiful knowledge base or ask a question. 

We believe that just providing a conference call is not enough.  Standing behind the audio and web conferences that we provide with service is one of the important differentiators between us and other conference call service companies.  And if you ever have a questions about your conference call service I am sure you will agree.

www.zipconferencing.com

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Conference Calls make the World a Smaller Place

Wednesday, November 11th, 2009

A conference call has the ability to bring people together from great distances so that they can meet when it otherwise would be impossible.  And today, with the globalization of many companies there really is no better option than a conference call to keep your organization going around the world.  And with Zip Conferencing you can even have your participants around the world dial into the conference in their country.  We routinely have customers who will have participants on a conference call that are in Europe, Asia and the US at the same time.  There is not an easier more cost effective solution to hold a meeting with participants in these locations than a conference call.

There are currently 40 cities where you can dial a local number in that city to connect to a conference call with Zip Conferencing that can have participants on it from around the world.  Any size company can look like a large company when you have the ability to have your customer in Paris dial a local number to get on a conference call with you in the United States and you can also share a presentation by using web conferencing as well.  The way it works is there are 40 cities around the world that have a local access number that transports the participant to the United States conferencing center through our network.  So, what looks like a local number to them is actually a connection all the way back in the United States to the conference call. 

Another way to connect from around the world is by using an International Toll Free access number that is available in over 30 countries around the world.  If someone is in France but not local to Paris they can still join the conference call by dialing a toll free number in France and they will get connected to the conference call in the United States with you.  The Toll Free access is a little more expensive but certainly impressive when your customer or prospect is dialing a toll free number outside the United States to join your conference call.

As technology progresses the world continues to get smaller and with an International conference call you can help make the world a lot smaller for your company.

www.zipconferencing.com

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Conference Call Recordings can Save the Day

Monday, November 9th, 2009

Once you begin to use conference calls in your everyday business you quickly find that they are indispensable.  A conference call is able to bring people together who otherwise may be able to meet due to time or distance constraints.  And as you begin to rely more and more on a conference call for your meetings you will undoubtedly find yourself in a situation where someone is unable to attend your conference call and it is important that they hear the content of the meeting.  In a physical meeting you can usually only rely on someone to take good notes of the meeting to share with the participant who missed the meeting.  With a conference call you have another option.  You can record the conference call and allow the participant who missed the conference call the opportunity to listen to the actual meeting when they can.  With Zip Conferencing there are a couple of ways to provide the recording to the participants who did not attend the live conference call.

  • Digital Playback – First, you can record the conference call and then provide anyone who missed the conference call the ability to dial a toll free number and enter a passcode and listen to the meeting when their schedule permits.  The advantages of this method are that the participant can dial in from anywhere to listen to the call and control the pace of the recording.  You can fast forward, rewind or pause the recording using touch tone commands on the telephone.  The recording is available shortly after the completion of the conference call and multiple people can access the recording at the same time.
  • CD Copy – You can also order a copy of the conference call on a CD in several formats.  The CD is shipped to your location and you can decide who to distribute the CD to and when, controlling the dissemination of the content.
  • Transcription – You can also order a complete transcription of a conference call.  That way you have a full documentation of the conference call for missing participants or just to retain for your records.

So, if you find yourself in a situation where an important participant is going to miss your conference call there is no need to cancel the meeting.  You can simply record the conference call and allow them to hear the entire conference call after it is completed.  Now that is a clear advantage to holding a meeting in person!

www.zipconferencing.com

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Conference Calls can Help Gauge the Economy

Friday, November 6th, 2009

I heard that it is a good thing that the Yankees won the World Series because the stock market has an average gain of 10% in the year following a win by them in the World Series.  Well, as a Red Sox fan I have a hard time feeling good about them winning it all but at least there is a fringe benefit.  And we can’t win it all every year after all.  ;)  The point I wanted to talk about today was how you can get a read on the economy by the usage of conference calls as well.  And it is probably a little more reliable than the connection between a baseball game and the economy too. 

Over the eyars of being in the conference call industry I have noticed a couple of interesting things that can help indicate how my day is going to go.  The first thing I notice is the traffic on the way to work.  If it is a busy traffic morning there are going to be a lot of conference calls held that day.  Now, in some respects you would think just the opposite.  If people stay home they would need to hold meetings remotely and a conference call is a sure bet.  But actually, most of the conference calls are being attended by people in their place of business and when people are staying home they are probably on holiday and are not doing conference calls.  So, as business traffic picks up, so do the number of conference calls.

The other thing I notice is the type of businesses that sign up for a conference call service is a good indicator of the health of that segment of the business.  And when I see a greater number of sign ups than business in that area is probably picking up.  Lately I have seen a number of real estate offices and associations signing up for our service.  And after speaking to some Realtors I know it appears that the real estate market is picking up some steam after a tough couple of years.  That is good news for all of us since that is one of the leading indicators in the economy. 

Beyond the signing up for a conference call service I also notice the amount of conference calling done by my customers in general is a good indicator of the economy.  And certainly over the past year the financial sector has been especially hard hit.  So, companies that do mortgages for instance, just aren’t writing as many mortgages so they are not doing as many conference calls with their offices and vendors to talk about mortgages.  And so forth.  But again the good news is that the volume of conference calls is starting to pick up in a number of industries that have suffered over the past year or two.  It has a ways to go, but in general based on the number of conference calls being done it appears that the economy is on the mend.  Maybe we can thank the Yankees and conference calls for the good market over the next year!  

www.zipconferencing.com

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Web Conferencing System Compatibility

Thursday, November 5th, 2009

In the early days of web conferencing you actually had to install software on the PCs that you were going to connect so that they would be compatible with each other and be able to share screens.  Then, along came services that required you to do the same thing, but only handled it a little more elegantly by doing a quick download onto your machine.  The web conferencing industry leader, who shall remain nameless, still does it this way.  Most of the other providers, Zip Conferencing included, have designed their web conferencing software using an open platform mentality using software that exists on most PCs already, Java.  By using this philosophy the users do not need to download any software, unless they are missing Java, in order to join a web conference.  And the system requirements for someone to participate in a web conference for Zip Conferencing’s service is pretty basic.  The system requirements are as follow:

  • Hardware: Pentium III+, 256 MB RAM, DSL or cable modem
  • Operating System:
    Presenters: Microsoft Windows 2000®, Windows XP®, Windows Server 2003®, Windows Vista ® , or Windows 7 ®
    Attendees: Microsoft Windows 2000®, Windows XP®, Windows Server 2003®, Windows Vista®, Windows 7 ®, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3.0
  • Browser:Internet Explorer 6.0 or 7.0, Firefox 3.01 or later
  • Java: Sun Java 1.4.2_06, 1.5.0_06, 1.5.0_10, 1.6.0_01 or later
  • Download FREE http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash
  • JavaScript and Cookies: Must be enabled.
  • Flash: Version 9.0 or higher. 
  • PresenterAppSharing test:To use the Appshare annotation feature, Presenters must be using Microsoft Windows 2000®, Windows XP®, Windows Vista® or Windows Server 2003®, with a color depth of 16-bit or higher.

To playback a conference recording:
To view and listen to an audio recording or a Web recording you must have the following:

  1. Operating System: Windows 2000®, Windows XP®, Windows Server 2003, or Windows Vista®
  2. Browser:Internet Explorer 6.0 or 7.0, Firefox 3.01 or higher 
  3. Web Conferencing Player  Download FREE http://zipdemo.conferencinghub.com/utilities/playbacktest.aspx
  4. Windows Media Player or Real Player
    Download Windows Media Player     OR    Download Real Player
Download FREE http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/player/download/download.aspx
Download FREE http://www.real.com/
Two recent developments have further extended the reach of Zip Conferencing’s web conferencing platform.  Our web conferencing service is now compatible with Mac operating systems and Windows 7.  So now there is virtually no system out there that can’t join in a web conference.
www.zipconferencing.com

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Are Conference Calls Simply a Commodity?

Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009

When I first joined the conference call service industry 14 years ago the average cost of a conference call was around $.20 per minute per participant, today it is around $.07 per minute and it is fore casted to decline to around $.05 per minute average by the year 2013.  What has driven this decline and are conference calls simply a commodity that should be judged on price alone?

The decline in the cost of conference calls has been driven over the years by competition in the industry.  The lowering of the telecommunications costs associated with providing the conference calls has allowed conference call service companies to lower their rates in order to capture business from the competition.  Also, the conference call service equipment has evolved over the years and the price of the equipment to provide conference calls has also come down in cost as the technology has gotten better.  Like the long distance call itself, as the costs have declined and competition increased we have seen a constant pressure on conference call service companies to deliver conference calls at an ever decreasing revenue.  Ultimately, as the prices continue to decline some of the service associated with conference call services will suffer unless people recognize that conference calls are not a commodity and are willing to pay a little more for the service part of it.

I have detailed in other blog posts about all that goes on behind the scenes at a conference call service company, so I won’t go into great detail here, but here is a quick summary.  First, you need high quality telecommunications connections from a large carrier that provides redundancy in their network or you risk quality issues and outage possibilities.  You then need to get the best conference call service equipment or you will not get the best results.  Your own network needs to be constructed with fail-over and back up contingencies.  And finally, you need to provide a level of customer service that provides your customers with a good customer experience.  All of these things cost money to the conference call service providers.  I don’t think that customers will be happy with a conference call service that has quality issues or doesn’t answer the phone when they need help or has an outage because the telecommunications carrier they use had a lengthy outage.  So, customers want to pay as little as possible for a conference call but certainly do not want to have an inferior service.

So here we are in the conference call service industry.  Given today’s available telecommunications rates which are not going down any more, the price of the conference call service equipment which is also not declining and the cost of personnel and I think you can see that the cost of the conference call is approaching the point where it cannot go any lower without sacrifice.  And I think if you ask the customers you will find that although they like to save money, a conference call is important enough to their business that the quality, reliability and service really do matter.  Conference calls are not simply a commodity.

www.zipconferencing.com

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