Posts Tagged ‘Long Distance Call’

Is a Free Telephone Conference Call Service really Free?

Tuesday, October 25th, 2011

So here you are searching for a conference call service provider and there are companies advertising a free telephone conference call service.  Free is good, right?  Why shouldn’t you use a free telephone conference call ervice?  Let’s examine how a free telephone conference call service works and see if you are still interested in trusting your business to a free conference call service.

  • A Free telephone conference call service is not really Free – The Free conference call service companies are advertising on the internet and other places so if they are truly free how are they making money?  These companies make money by working out a deal with a local phone company to terminate calls within their equipment.  That’s because the local phone company makes money when a long distance call terminates on their equipment.  It doesn’t pay a lot but when you consider the volume of calls that can be generated it does add up to enough money to pay for the equipment over time.  The problem is they don’t make enough to provide all of the services a regular conference call service provider does and they are usually a little thin in other areas of their business as well.  The main problem is that you are the one paying the bill.  Because you and your participants are dialing a long distance number to join the conference call.  So it appears free until you get your long distance bill or cell bill and see all the minutes on it.  And if the local number connection was so good why do all of the “Free” conference call companies offer toll free access?
  • Quality – A Free telephone conference call service is not concerned with providing a reliable and quality service to its customers.  It doesn’t have to because it is free.  It is hard to argue with free so people put up with capacity issues, unavailability and noisy connections.  Do you want to trust your important business calls to a free service where quality and reliability are not assured?  Also you will find that many of the features you expect to have on a conference call service are not there on a free telephone conference call service.  They can’t afford the best equipment with the latest features.
  • Support – Lastly, probably the biggest hole in the services for a free telephone conference call service is the support you will receive.  You will find that support is given to their customers that pay for the upgrade to toll free service but little is provided to the free conference call customers.  Its free so who can complain.

If you will look at the free telephone conference call service companies you will see they all offer a toll free service option but at rates higher than Zip Conferencing.  So why fool around with a service that will cost you anyway when you can get a toll free service that is highly reliable and high quality from the start for less money?

Posted in Conference Call Service | Comments Off

Conference Call Quality

Monday, July 18th, 2011

What are the factors that make up conference call quality?  After all, isn’t the ability to interact with the other participants like they are in the same room the most important factor in any conference call service?  At Zip Conferencing the quality and reliability of the conference call is the top priority.  Here are some of the steps we have taken to insure you have a quality conference call.

  • Network Quality – The most important factor in determining the quality of a conference call is the network it is connected through.  Just like any other long distance call if you have a bad connection it doesn’t matter how good the equipment is on the end of the call.  To insure our conference call quality is the best we have direct digital connections to our long distance provider’s networks.  Eliminating other switches eliminates additional trouble areas and pieces of equipment that can introduce noise as well.  We also only use top tier long distance providers for our conference call services.  We may be able to save a little money by using a smaller provider but since their networks are not as large as a top tier provider it introduces other networks to the equation further introduces trouble points.  We also use multiple carriers so that our network has a back up in place in the event of a major outage with one of the carriers.
  • New Equipment – Since our conference call company is fairly new, we have put the latest equipment in place to process the conference calls.  The newer equipment delivers a higher quality conference call and also is less prone to outages itself.  In addition, our conference call equipment has the latest features incorporated into it.  We also employ back ups of our conference call equipment so that we have full back ups in the case of an outage with the equipment.
  • Back Up Systems – Now that we have built out a network that delivers high quality conference calls we have also installed measures to insure the reliability of the network.  We have battery and generator back up systems in place to make sure that our network has power in the event of an outage.  As mentioned, we have back up long distance provider connections in the event of a major outage at the network level.  And we have back up equipment in the vent of an equipment outage.

When you do a conference call you just assume it will work, but as you can see, it is up to the conference call service provider to make sure there is conference call quality.

Posted in Conference Call | Comments Off

Go International with an International Conference Call

Wednesday, April 6th, 2011

The worldwide marketplace has really opened up with the Internet and many small businesses are finding themselves with the prospect of being able to sell their goods and services internationally.  But many of these businesses hesitate because of the expense of trying to sell to companies overseas.  With an International Conference Call you begin to forge relationships with companies overseas without ever leaving your office.  An international conference call can bring you together with customers and prospects around the world at a minimal cost.  Zip Conferencing offers several ways to have your international participants connect to your international conference call.  You can choose the method based on where your participants are located and the cost of the connection.

  • US Local Number - The least costly way for you to have participants connect to your international conference call is to have them dial the local number here in the United States that comes with your conference call reservation.  The local number is reachable from anywhere in the world.  The only drawback to this method is that your participants will have to pay for the long distance call to reach the number here in the United States.
  • International Local Number- The next best option from a price perspective for your international conference call is to give your participants a phone number located in their country.  Zip Conferencing has local access numbers in over 40 countries around the world.  Participants in Paris, France, fro instance, would dial a number in Paris and be connected to your international conference call here in the United States.  Your participant will only pay whatever it costs them to dial a local number in their country.
  • International Toll Free Number – The most convenient way for international participants to connect to your international conference call is to dial a toll free number in their country.  That way they do not incur any charges associated with your conference call.  This is also the most expensive way to connect to your international conference call.  Zip Conferencing has toll free access numbers in over 40 countries around the world.

With Zip Conferencing’s International Conference Call service you can take your company global without much expense to you or your customers.  So what are you waiting for?  Go global with an international conference call.

Posted in Conference Call | Comments Off

Toll Free Conference Calling is Still Better for Everyone

Thursday, February 24th, 2011

Toll free conference calling has been around for a long time and hands down the most popular method of conference calling. The reason has always been pretty simple. No one hosting a conference call wants to subject their participants to having to pay to get on to their conference call. Toll free conference calling means there are no charges to dial into the conference call from your long distance provider. The only person that incurs any cost is the host of the conference call. So, the participants can dial into the conference call from anywhere and not worry about how much it costs. Who wants to think about where people are dialing in from? Here are the alternatives to toll free conference calling and their disadvantages explained.

  • Free Conference Calls – Free conference calls are not really free like toll free conference calling to the participants.  If you do a free conference call you will be given an access number somewhere in the country where you have to dial a long distance number to get to it.  That is you and your participants.  Depending on your calling plan the free conference call could easily end up costing you more than toll free conference calling.  The reason that companies can offer you a free conference call is because they get paid by the local phone company to terminate your long distance call in their facility.  And that is because you and your participants are paying someone for the ability to make that long distance phone call to connect to the conference call.  With toll free conference calling you are paying the conference call service provider to transport you and your participants to the conference call.  There is no mystery to who is paying for the call and the charges are not hidden somewhere.
  • Toll Conference Calls - Toll conference calls are similar to free conference calls only on top of paying to get to the conference call you are also paying the conference call service company.  If you are going to pay for the conference call why not pay for toll free conference calling?  A toll conference call means you are going to get a phone number somewhere in the country to dial into to access the conference call and you will have to pay long distance charges to get to the call and for the duration of the call.  Toll free conference calling means no one pays any long distance charges to participate in your conference call.  And you might think that since some people use a cell phone to dial into the conference call that they are not paying for long distance anyway.  But they are paying for long distance.  It is figured in their monthly plan which also has a certain number of minutes included.  Do you want your participants to have to use up their airtime minutes on your conference call?  With toll free conference calling the participants can dial in from a land line and not worry about long distance charges.

Toll free conference calling is still better for everyone because there are no hidden charges for people.  I am sure you would not want your participants to have to pay to get on your conference call and since toll free conference calling is so inexpensive why not give them an easy, toll free way to access the call?

Posted in Conference Calling | Comments Off

Free Conference Call Services

Wednesday, March 17th, 2010

So, you think you want free conference call services?  Think again!  Like most things in life, nothing really comes for free.  And before you risk your reputation and business you will want to understand what free conference call services are all about. 

When the first free conference call service was introduced everyone in the conference call industry kind of shrugged and figured everyone would understand the deficiencies with the service and steer clear of them.  Well, free conference call services have survived because everyone likes something “free” so its attraction can not be underestimated.  But, is it truly free?  And what is the difference between free conference call services and paid conference call services?  Here are the details behind free conference call services.

  • Free Doesn’t mean No Cost- True, after the conference call is over you may not owe the free conference call service provider anything, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t cost you anything.  That is because all free conference call service providers give you a local number to access your conference call.  That “local” number is usually not local for anyone on the conference call which means you and you participants have to make a long distance call to connect to your conference.  Do you want your customer or prospect to get long distance charges on their phone bill for attending your conference call?
  • Will it be available when you dial in – The way a free conference call service company makes money is by getting the termination fee for having you call into a location where long distance providers pay the local telephone company to terminate the call.  The amount they are paid is very small so they can’t afford the best conference call equipment and have a limitation on capacity.  There is no guarantee that when you call in for your conference call that the capacity will be there for you.  Do you want to chance having the conference call available?
  • Toll Free at a Price – You can usually get a toll free access number for your conference call, but you will pay for it.  And if you find that if you shopped around the competition you could find a better toll free conference call rate from a company with better features and more reliable conference call equipment.
  • Support is Not Free – And if you need any support, how much support do you expect if the service is free? 

So, if you want to make sure your conference call is there when you need and not get hit with hidden charges you may want to examine what it means to be a free conference call service.

Posted in Conference Call Service | Comments Off

Conference Call Price Comparison

Wednesday, March 10th, 2010

It would be very easy to offer a conference call price comparison if conference calling prices were like long distance calling.  Long distance calling is all pretty much the same and priced the same.  A long distance call simply connects you to another location and every company prices that connection on a per minute basis, or used to anyway.  But the point is there is not a lot of difference in the service or price of the service.  For a conference call price comparison you need to understand the differences in the services so you can understand the pricing.  Only then can you do an apples to apples price comparison.  Here are the main areas where you need to investigate a conference call service companies offer.

  • Toll or Toll Free – One of the ways many conference call service companies  offer a low rate is by providing a low rate for Toll Access to the conference call.  The problem with this type of access is that you and your participants are incurring hidden charges in the form of long distance charges for connecting to this local or toll number which is not local to you.  Especially if you are inviting customers to the call you do not want them to incur any toll charges to connect to your conference call.
  • Flat Rate – Some conference call service companies offer a flat monthly rate for unlimited conference calls.  There are two issues with this type of conference call access.  The first is you are usually limited in the number of participants who can join the call.  The second is you are going to access the conference call via a toll or local number and incur those long distance charges.  Toll free access is like a long distance call and costs the conference call service company so you will not see it offered for a flat rate.
  • Monthly Subscription Plans – Some conference call service companies offer a discount if you subscribe to a monthly plan.  You should take advantage of these plans if you can but make sure to select a plan that fits your usage pattern and calculate the rate based on the minutes you will do for comparison purposes.
  • Volume Discounts – Some conference call service companies offer a volume discount based on reaching a certain amount of volume.  This is good, but make sure your price comparison is based on your usage pattern as many people do not generate as much conference call volume as they think.

The best way to do a conference call price comparison is to first determine what your usage is or is going to be and then boil down offers to a per minute rate.  I would recommend you only use the toll free rate for comparison purposes as this is the way that most people will use the service.  Conference call service companies offer a wide variety of features so you should also make sure they have the features you are looking for as well.

Posted in Conference Call | Comments Off

Conference Call Issues Unmasked

Friday, October 23rd, 2009

Being in the conference call industry for over 14 years I have seen a lot of issues with conference calls.  And many of them are directly related to the conference call service company.  The technology to make a conference call is sophisticated and involves many components that can fail.  So naturally, no matter what measures a conference call company takes to prevent a conference call issue, they can still happen.  Luckily, over the years the technology has gotten better, and the other components have also gotten better.  Today, the conference calls are clearer and more reliable than ever.  So why do people still have problems on conference calls.  Some of the issues that occur on a conference call will never go away, because the issue is caused by the people on the conference call and that will never change.  Here are some of the common issues you will find on a conference call.

  • Echo – Echo on a conference call can be caused by many things, including issues with the telephone carrier.  But these days the issues that used to occur on a long distance call have largely been reduced to the point where it is unlikely that the long distance telecommunications carrier was the culprit.  Usually echo on a conference call is caused by one of the participants having more than one connection on the conference call up in close proximity to another connection.  Sometimes someone in a conference room with a speaker phone will also have another phone connected to the conference call.  To eliminate the echo you simply need to mute the offending connection and it will go away.
  • Noise on the call – It is not impossible for the telecommunications carrier or conference call service provider to have an issue, but these days the biggest introduction of noise onto a conference call is one of the participants.  Usually it is someone on a cellular phone and they are either in a moving vehicle or in a high noise situation like an airport.  The best way to eliminate the noise is for that participant to mute their line until they need to speak on the conference call and then they can just unmute themselves.
  • Hold Music on the call – Many people do not realize what their phone system sounds like to a caller when they place that caller on hold.  So, usually what happens is a participant will step away for a minute and place their phone on hold while they are in the conference call.  This will introduce whatever is on their phone system onto the entire conference call.  The way to eliminate this issue is to use the mute function in the conference call instead of placing your phone on hold.
  • Too little or too much volume – Sometimes a connection will have a low or high volume when connected to the conference call.  This can happen for many reasons.  Conference call service equipment adjusts connections automatically to compensate for different levels but you can also adjust the volume of individual participants from within the conference call.

So, as you can see most of the issues on a conference call these days are caused by the participants themselves.  And fixing these issues is usually not a big problem.  To assist with the correction of conference call issues, Zip Conferencing has operators available 24/7 from within the conference call to help identify and eliminate these problems.  You can reach an operator anytime by pressing *0 on your telephone from within the conference call.

www.zipconferencing.com

Posted in Conference Call | Comments Off