We have all been on a conference call where someone does something to either disrupt the call, embarass themselves or both. I am going to point out things that will help make the difference on your conference call between a success and a failure whether you are hosting the call or jsut a participant.
As the Host or Moderator of conference calls
- Give participants plenty of notice about the scheduled time of the conference call. Even if you are the boss and can make them attend at a moment’s notice, if the participants are harried or have to reschedule to make the call they will be distracted during the conference call.
- Send out an agenda with the conference call meeting invitation. I know that this is not done in many cases but having your audience prepared for the call allows particpants to be ready for the discussion. Even if it is not a formal agenda a simple listing of topics to be discussed on the conference call really helps.
- Start your conference calls on time. Even if a participant is late if you become known as someone who starts on time your participants will learn to be oon time as well.
- Take a roll call at the beginning of the conference call so that everyone knows who is in attendance. This will get everyone participating right away and make people more comfortable.
- Even though everyone takes the technology for granted, try to not use a cell phone if you are hosting the conference call. It is one thing for a participant to be on a cell phone, they can mute their line if they have to, but the Host needs to control the meeting and have a clear, consistent connection.
- Put yourself in a quiet environment. Background noise can be a real nuisance on a conference call.
- Treat it like a meeting. Take notes, assign tasks, etc. Where most people struggle on a conference call is being aimless in the way the meeting is conducted.
Good practices for Moderators and Participants
- Introduce yourself when you speak every time. Many times the participants have a hard time determining who is speaking.
- Learn to use the mute button. Especially if you have to join the confernece call via cell phone you should use the mute button whenever possible. Any noise you produce or background noise will be on the entire conference call.
- If you are using a speakerphone and own a PDA like a BlackBerry, make sure the PDA/BlackBerry is nowhere near the Speakerphone. The transmission and reception of messagtes into the device will make noise across the conference call.
- Don’t ever put your phone on hold while on a conference call. Any hold music or messages will play across the entire conference call the entire time you have your phone on hold.
- Just like an in person meeting take care of any bathroom needs prior and after the conference call. No matter how familiar you are with your mute button, inevitably everyone will hear the flush.
Finally you are ready to close the conference call. Thank your participants for their time. Whether an in person meeting or a conference call, people’s time is valuable and should be recognized. Participants will be more willing to give you their time again.