International Conference Calls and the Hospitality Industry

Hold International Conference Calls with VIPs depending on the VIP’s requirements, your conference calls may include participant’s from around the world.

International Conference Calls and the Hospitality Industry

The hospitality industry uses international conference calling for a variety of purposes including internal brainstorming sessions, formal training, contract negotiations, procurement, guest relations, and even as a service offered to guests. The possibilities are nearly limitless! Below are a few ways that you can use global conference calls to communicate internally and externally to collaborate with regional managers, employees, vendors and suppliers, event planners, and guests from around the world.

Six ways to Host Virtual Meetings with participants around the world

International conference calling allows you to hold virtual meetings with participants from around the world in a private, voice-only “conference room.” In order to access the virtual meeting, each of the global conference call’s participants uses a standard or mobile phone to call in. There’s no need for computers or software. In addition, each caller receives an access phone number that is local to their country which avoids unnecessary dialing confusion or concerns about the call’s potential cost.

You can use global conference calls for meetings with:

Your executive team – Is it hard (or expensive) to get your executive team together for routine meetings? Teleconferences are a low-cost way to keep everyone informed of both routine and major events.
Regional managers – With facilities around the globe, international conference calling is a must to ensure that each regional team feels connected to the larger organization. Use global conference calls to support, encourage, train, and troubleshoot facilities around the globe.
Employees – While it may not be necessary to hold companywide conference calls on a regular basis, occasional group conference calls can be used for a variety of purposes such as for making major announcements or holding training sessions. You can also record your group calls, allowing employees to listen in at a later time and date if desired.
Lawyers, publicists, and other professionals – Need to strategize with external partners such as lawyers, publicists, or consultants? A global conference call allows you and your executive team to connect with professionals from around the world in a private, convenient teleconference. Get your questions answered and brainstorm your next move without having to arrange flights or hotel accommodations.
Suppliers and vendors – You can also use international conference calling to hold procurement teleconferences, negotiate better deals with vendors, coordinate projects, and much more.
Event planners – Global teleconferences are also useful when working with event planners who intend to hold conferences, exhibitions, banquets, trade shows, sporting events, and other events at your venue. Because global conference calls are so convenient, your meetings can include crucial personnel involved in planning an event so that the event planners can get all of their questions answered in a single session.

Hold International Conference Calls with VIPs

Whether dealing with an agency or celebrities, politicians, and high rollers directly, global conference calls allow you to quickly and easily connect all relevant parties to a group call. Depending on the VIP’s needs, your conference calls may include participant’s from around the world including:

Hotel managers
Food service managers
Transportation coordinators
Security managers

You can even add participants to the call as needed. For example, if the agent has questions about your security detail at a specific property, you could use the moderator dial out tool to call the head of security at that facility and bring him or her into the conference call.

Offer International Conferencing as a Service

Not only can you use international conference calling for all of the above, you may also want to offer international conference calling to your guests or as part of your meeting room services. For example, if your facility has a standard business center with computers, Wi-Fi, fax machines, and standard phones, adding international conference calling could set your facility apart from its competitors. Using your international conferencing plan’s account management dashboard, you will immediately know the total cost of each global conference call your guests make. Thus, you can bill them accordingly. Low per minute international rates allow for a healthy markup. Meanwhile, your business guests will appreciate being able to stay in touch with their teams around the world.

Not only can you offer international conferencing via your business services center, your concierge could easily coordinate global conference calls for guests as needed. Guests can even participate in their conferences from the privacy of their rooms.

Whether you operate a chain of hotels or a small bed and breakfast inn, signing up for an international conference calling plan allows you to stay connected to partners, suppliers, agencies, and VIP guests and their representatives from around the world. You can even get a pay-as-you-go plan with no contracts, allowing you to offer global conference calls as a service without any upfront costs. If you do business with others outside of your country, as most hospitality businesses do, access to international conference calling makes perfect sense.

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Host a Successful Netherlands Conference Call

Check our legacy and expanded plans to view the per minute rates for more than 150 network global access points supported.

Hosting a global conference call from the Netherlands, or with participants located in the Netherlands, is a great way to control business costs yet communicate with a geographically diverse group of people.

However, there are a few logistical challenges you’ll need to overcome in order to host a successful group audio call. Here’s what you need to know in order to get the most out of your international teleconferences.

Netherlands Conference Call Access Numbers

Netherlands Toll-Free 080026#####

Amsterdam Local 02070#####

Sign up for the right international conference calling plan — Various global conferencing options are available, but you’ll want to make sure you have a quality connection among all participants and that everyone, including those in the Netherlands, can easily connect to your conference. Check our legacy and expanded plans to view the per minute rates for more than 100 countries currently supported. Our pay-as-you-go international conference calling plans provide you with everything you need for a successful group audio call in the Netherlands and beyond.
Plan your Netherlands conference call — Time is a precious resource, and your participants will appreciate a concise, logical, and well-run agenda. If you would like other attendees to present specific agenda items, make sure to let them know well in advance what they’ll be responsible for sharing with the group. Think about time differences and schedule the call with them in mind. It’s not always possible to avoid late night or early morning calls for some participants, but do your best to keep disruption to a minimum.
Invite the right attendees — Determine who should attend the Netherlands global conference call as it happens live and who might be able to benefit from listening to an MP3 audio recording after the fact. For example, is it necessary for every single team member to attend the call live or would it be smarter to have a representative from each regional office attend the international conference call and then later share the recording with their teammates? Not only can this strategy keep the group audio call from becoming too large, you’ll have fewer participants, and therefore, lower international conference calling costs.
Issue country-specific international conference call access numbers — For example, attendees in the Netherlands would dial a Netherlands access number in order to join your international conference call while those located in other countries would dial an access number local to their own countries. Our international conference calling service includes support for more than 65 countries — and more than 100 countries on our extended plan.
Use the live conference call viewer — Our live conference call viewer puts several global conference calling tools at your fingertips. At a glance, you’ll be able to see the status of each participant as well as be able to: mute participants, put a caller on hold, lock the conference, record the call, dial a participant directly, and more.

Hosting a global conference call in the Netherlands is both easy and affordable with our pay-as-you-go international conference calling plans.

There are no contracts or usage requirements. Host as many Netherlands international conference calls as you’d like, and cancel at anytime. Sign up for an account today and pay only for the group audio calls you host.

International Conference Calling for Human Resources

When an employee is transferred to a different region, international conference calls can aid in the transition at various stages including the interview stage as well as before, during, and after the move.

Whether you are part of a large organization or a small one, international conference calls can help you tap into an international talent pool as well as expand your knowledge without incurring excessive costs.

Below are just a few of the many ways that human resources managers are using international conference calls to their advantage.

1. Virtual job fairs

Virtual job fairs are online events where employers and job candidates come together to learn more about each other. While a virtual job fair typically starts in an online environment, several channels are commonly used in conjunction with the event itself including chat rooms, instant messaging, and teleconferencing. One option is to host an international conference call as part of the event and invite job seekers to call in to learn more about your company, its culture, and current opportunities. Depending on which countries are involved, you could order toll-free access numbers for each country you are targeting.

2. Prescreening recruitment calls

International conference calls are a cost-effective tool that you can use during the interview process. Early in the process, you could hold an international conference call with a job candidate and various decision makers located around the world. Each participant simply dials a local access number, enters a PIN, and joins the conference call. This is a fantastic way to get acquainted, learn more about the candidate, gauge how well the candidate responds under pressure, and share more about the job opening. The cost of international conference calls is minute compared to flying candidates to your headquarters at this stage of the process. As you narrow the field of candidates down through prescreening, you can then bring in only the most qualified.

3. Virtual orientation meetings

International conference calls are also a cost-effective choice once you’ve hired a group of new employees. Use an international conference call in conjunction with other tools to help your new hires get started. For example, you could hold an international conference call focused on your company’s employee assistance and wellness program or other benefits.

4. Training classes

International conference calls can also play an important role in your training program. For example, you could use an international conference call to deliver training or as a live enhancement to video courseware. Since you can record your international conference calls, you may be able to repurpose a single call multiple times.

5. Relocations and transfers

6. Exit interviews

When a key employee leaves the company, it may be useful to hold an international exit interview. This allows managers from various regions to get their questions answered even if they are located in different countries.

7. Virtual leadership retreats

You can also use international conference calls as virtual leadership retreats.

For example, instead of sending executives offsite for a few days of leadership training, schedule a series of international conference calls that cover the same topics. Again, these training sessions can be recorded and reused as you see fit.

These are but a few ways that international conference calls can be used in your human resources department. With budgets tighter than ever, using an international conference call allows you to accomplish the same thing but at a fraction of the cost.

International Conference Calling – A Team Collaboration Tool

If a team leader would prefer to preschedule an international conference call, this is easy to do.

When it comes to collaborating with international team members, you have a number of great choices including instant messaging, web conferencing, online file-sharing tools, interactive whiteboards, and more.

Teleconferencing has long been the gold standard for team collaboration, and it continues to deliver.

Teleconferencing is especially helpful when teams are geographically dispersed as the entire group can come together to brainstorm in a real-time, voice centric environment.

In a world filled with technological marvels and the latest apps, the humble international conference call may not have the wow factor of its competitors but it shines in its simplicity. For example:

Just about anyone can easily participate in an international conference call. All you need is a telephone, mobile or landline or even Skype. There’s no special software to download or equipment to buy.

With a voice call, you can hold dynamic group conversations and gain a deeper understanding based on verbal cues such as tone of voice, pauses, and pacing. With instant messaging, email, and threaded discussion boards, nuances are often difficult to catch and misunderstandings all too common.

You can call into the international conference call from virtually any location on earth. Whether you’re assigned to a remote outpost or traveling on business, a quick phone call immediately connects you to your team – even if you do not have Internet access or a computer.

As with other team collaboration tools, international conference calling is only effective if teams are empowered to use it.

With this in mind, many worldwide companies make it as easy as possible for team leaders to hold scheduled and impromptu global conference call. One way to do this is to set up easy-to-use international conference calling accounts for your teams.

Reservation-less conference calls can be held at the spur of the moment, allowing your team leaders to hold a group conference call any time the need arises. If a team leader would prefer to preschedule an international conference call, this is easy to do.

You can even set up the conference call so that the system automatically dials each participant if desired. Using automated dial-out is a great way to reduce the per minute cost of the call as well as help ensure that each participant is promptly connected. =

Many international conference call service plans are available including pay-as-you-go so no prepayment is required.

Help your team leaders choose the right collaborative tools for the task at hand by holding a basic collaboration training session. For example, your design team may find that using an online collaboration tool is best for task management and file sharing but cumbersome for requirements gathering, brainstorming, and problem-solving. You may find it helpful to create a matrix detailing the various collaboration tools available and when to use which one.

Finally, the golden rule of choosing a worldwide team collaboration tool for any given situation: When in doubt, you can’t go wrong with an international conference call!

Mind Your International Conference Call Manners

If you are the moderator of the call, you will have more features available to you; make sure to learn them before the international conference call and not during it.

When it comes to participating in an international conference call, it’s important to follow basic rules of phone and professional protocol.

After all, you want to come across as polite and professional, right? An international conference call brings with it a few additional challenges including some that are unique to the medium such as muting and unmuting the line as needed.

Use the tips below to mind your international conference call manners.

1. Learn how to use the international conference calling system in advance. In general, international conference calling involves using regular and mobile phones, a telephone number, and an access code or PIN.

You don’t need any fancy software or equipment. However, you should be familiar with how to mute and unmute your phone line so that you can block out any distracting noises from your environment while someone else is speaking. If you are the moderator of the call, you will have more features available to you; make sure to learn them before the international conference call and not during it.

2. Remember that you represent your entire organization. Whether you are hosting an international conference call or participating in one, you may be the only person representing your organization.

Your demeanor reflects the entire organization. Even if your role in the call is minor, how you present yourself is of utmost importance.

3. Use professional, clear language. One of the biggest problems associated with international conference calls involves language. After all, participants come from around the globe.

Not only should you use professional language and avoid profanity and slang, you should also try to be as clear as possible. Your international colleagues may not be familiar with expressions and colloquialisms common to your culture.

4. Avoid humor and controversial topics. Humor is hard enough to pull off with participants from within your own country, and even more so with an international crowd.

It is too easy for a seemingly harmless joke to turn offensive or insulting. Politics and religion are also extremely touchy subjects and should be avoided.

5. Be on time – if not early. Being on time shows other participants that you are prompt, reliable, and respectful of their time. Ideally, you should be dialed in, connected, and ready to begin several minutes before the official start time.

Go ahead and dial in five minutes before the conference begins and enjoy some light reading while you wait. This ensures that you’re on time and ready. In addition, you may have the opportunity to chat with other participants before the international conference call officially begins.

This is a great way to build rapport with other participants with whom you may not have the opportunity to speak with one-on-one.

Another reason to be on time is that you don’t want to miss anything. If you’re a participant, the international conference call will start with or without you and you’ll miss out.

On the other hand, of you’re the call’s moderator and you’re not on time, your participants are likely to be upset and unlikely to hang around for more than a minute or two for you to arrive. They may not give you another chance to coordinate a global teleconference. Even worse, they may question your ability to meet deadlines or serve their needs.

6. Be prepared. If you’re the moderator of the international conference call, then you should have an agenda prepared and you should be prepared to keep the call on track. As a participant, you should know what your role is in the call and prepare accordingly. For example, if you’ve been asked to share feedback about a certain process or product, you should gather information well in advance of the call and outline the key points that you’d like to discuss.

7. Use mute and unmute. Teleconferences have multiple participants, each calling in from their own potentially noisy environments.

When you’re not speaking, make sure to mute your line. That way, any background noise will not interfere with the international conference call. When you need to contribute to the conversation, simply unmute your line and speak freely.

8. Pay attention to the clock. If you are the teleconference moderator, it’s up to you to manage the clock and moderate the discussion as needed to ensure that the teleconference stays within its scheduled time allotment.

If you are a participant who has been allocated a certain amount of time to speak, you’ll also want to be mindful of the clock. For example, if you’ve been allotted 5 minutes and you’ve already spoken for 10 minutes, you may need to wrap up your presentation or ask the moderator if it’s okay to speak a little longer.

Moderating or participating in an international conference call requires advanced preparation

Hosting or attending an international conference call needs some advanced thought, professionalism, and attention to detail. Be prepared, polite, and mindful of others and your next international conference call is sure to be a success.

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International Conference Calls for Import Export Businesses

When you use an international conference calling service provider, your calls are routed over a high quality PSTN telecommunications network.

Several types of businesses make up the import / export industry ranging from merchants who sell products and services in foreign and domestic markets and export trading brokers to export management companies. No matter where you fall in the import / export spectrum, your business relies on your ability to communicate with people both inside of and outside of your country. International conferencing call can play an important role in facilitating communication with your suppliers, clients, and partners around the globe.

The Difference between Domestic and International Conferencing

While you may be familiar with making conference calls domestically, adding international callers to a teleconference adds a new layer of complexity to the mix. With most domestic conference calling plans, callers are given either a local or toll free number to call to enter the conference call. Unfortunately, international callers may be shut out of these domestic calls.

For example, if the access number is not a toll free number, international dialing costs could be a significant barrier; at the same time, domestic toll free numbers do not work internationally. Even if you gave out a toll free number to international participants, they would not be able to connect to the call. For this reason, you need an international conferencing plan designed specifically for a group of geographically diverse participants.

With an international conference calling plan, each participant is given a local or toll free access number that is specific to their own country. For example, if you have one supplier based in Hong Kong, another in Malaysia, another in Mexico, and a partner in Singapore, each participant would receive a country-specific access number to use to connect to your teleconference. In addition to overcoming connectivity problems, local phone numbers are familiar and comfortable to dial. As the international conference call host, you can even opt to give out toll free numbers to your participants which eliminates concerns about the cost of the call.

Why Use International Conference Calling Instead of Other Options

Using international conference calls to communicate with suppliers, manufacturers, vendors, customers, trade officials, and partners is an easy way to hold a group discussion. While other options, including email and Web conferencing do exist, international conference calling is one of the easiest communications available for groups. After all, all of your business contacts have easy access to a phone. There’s no special equipment to buy or configure. Each participant simply dials a local number and an access code.

That said, a few challenges can arise due to time zone differences. Fortunately, most of these challenges can be solved. For example, if it is not possible for a vendor to attend your international conference call in person, you could still hold the conference call with other participants and record the call. After the conference call is complete, you could then email the absent participant an MP3 recording of the call to listen to later.

Benefits of Using an International Conference Calling Provider

Using an international conference calling service provider to host international conference calls allows you to connect with your import / export contacts in a group environment. Whether you need to coordinate manufacturing, arrange a shipment, or provide bidders with background information, a global teleconference can bring all interested parties together in a voice environment.

International conference calls can also be an inexpensive choice. Plans vary by provider but are typically extremely competitive. For example, if you opt for a pay-as-you-go international conference calling plan, you would pay a competitive per minute rate for each minute of the call (per participant). These rates are often significantly lower than traditional long distance calling rates – even for toll free access. When compared to coordinating a live meeting or adding in travel expenses, international conference calling is a real bargain.

Additional bargains can be found if desired. For example, if you would like to cut the overall cost of your global conference call, you could set up automatic dialing. With this option, you would need to preprogram each participant’s phone number into the software. When the scheduled time arrives, the software then dials each participant automatically. This usually results in lower per minute rates for each participant.

When you use an international conference calling service provider, your calls are routed over a high quality PSTN telecommunications network. This means that callers from countries with poor telecommunications networks can bypass their local, substandard networks and experience crystal clear audio calls.

You can also hold either scheduled or impromptu conference calls. Need to coordinate an emergency shipment with multiple suppliers and logistics companies? An international conference call could be the perfect medium to getting it done. This could result in less fingerprinting and greater accountability.

When everyone must work together no matter where in the world they may be, international conference calls can help facilitate that collaboration. Signing up with a no-contract international conference calling service plan is an excellent choice for any import / export business.

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International Conference Calls for Talent Management

Obviously, you can’t manage talent until you’ve acquired it. Global conferencing can play an important role in the recruiting process.

Today’s talent pool is wider than ever. Whether you’re recruiting workers from overseas or need a convenient communications method to connect with a global team, international conference calls are an affordable choice.

Below is a quick overview of what global conferencing is along with a few ideas for using international conference calls as a talent management tool at various stages of the talent management process.

What is Global Conferencing

Global conference calls are much like the conference calls you make domestically in that each participant dials an access number and joins the teleconference by entering its unique PIN code. International conference calls open up the teleconference to callers from around the world. These callers are typically shut out of domestic conference calls due to dialing restrictions or excessive costs. With global conferencing, each participant dials a local phone number (or a local toll free number) which is then routed to the conference call.

Recruiting International Talent

Obviously, you can’t manage talent until you’ve acquired it. Global conferencing can play an important role in the recruiting process. Not only can you use international conference calls to collaborate with human resources managers located in regional offices around the world, your human resources team can hold group interviews with international applicants in a global conference call.

Using international conference calls to prescreen international candidates is also a smart choice as far as controlling costs goes. For example, if you have numerous applicants from around the world, you could fly each applicant in to your main office for a formal, face-to-face interview. However, that approach is extremely expensive. By holding an international conference call, your entire hiring team can have the opportunity to get acquainted with each applicant before deciding which candidates they should to meet in person.

In addition, it’s possible to record each international conference call. If one of your colleagues was unable to attend the group interview in person, he or she could simply listen to the MP3 recording after the fact.

You could also use global conferencing to hold informational meetings where candidates could find out more about the position before applying for it. This can reduce the volume of individual phone calls your HR team receives as well as provide candidates with a forum for getting their questions answered. It also can narrow the field of applicants as they will have the chance to gauge whether or not the position is a good fit for them. If you use international conference calls for this purpose, consider recording the call and making it available to future applicants.

Training

Attracting talent is just the beginning of any talent management strategy. After attracting and hiring the best people, you need to retain them. Companies often use training and professional development as part of their talent retention strategies. While you’ll likely use a number of training methods including live trainers, Web-based training, and training videos, you can also deliver some training using international conference calls.

For example, you could hold a live session led by a motivational speaker using global conferencing. All participants, including the speaker, would join the conference by calling an access number and entering the conference’s PIN code. Depending on your preferences and how you structure the call, the speaker could deliver the training with all other lines muted or he or she could open the lines so that participants could ask questions as needed.

Since the speaker can call in from virtually anywhere in the world, you may be able to negotiate a reduced fee. After all, the speaker will not need to travel to your office or incur related expenses. Again (unless your contract with the speaker forbids it), you can record the global conference call, allowing future employees to benefit from the training.

Talent Evaluation

Nurturing and evaluating talent are also important. Whether several managers from various countries need to provide feedback during the evaluation process or a key team member is overseas on business, global conferencing allows everyone involved to contribute to the conversation no matter where in the world they may be at the time. International conference calls are easy to schedule both in advance or as needed. Plus, there’s no special equipment needed to collaborate.

International Talent Outreach

Many companies take a long term approach to talent development by sponsoring schools or educational programs. Whether your company wants to ensure that today’s students have the skills you expect tomorrow’s workers to need or want to help a struggling nation improve its future, international conference calls can help you coordinate your efforts. You can use global conferencing to coordinate local seminars as well as a means of delivering educational content.

With a wide, diverse, and global talent pool, talent management professionals need a convenient communications method to attract, hire, train, and retain a talented workforce. Global conferencing is one such method. Not only is it affordable on its own, it can help to reduce hiring and training costs.

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Coaching Calls Using International Conferencing

If you intend to share the conference call recording with others, keep confidentiality in mind. For example, if the call is between you and an employee who is struggling, that call should not be shared.

Coaching employees or counseling clients who have hired you as a coach doesn’t always require face-to-face meetings.

In fact, you can use international conferencing to deliver some coaching sessions over the phone.

Not only can your international conference call sessions help others develop their skills immediately, you could even record your sessions and help others do the same in the future. Of course, you’ll need to respect the confidentiality of your coachees if you do so. If you’re thinking about using international conferencing for coaching, these tips are for you.

Integrating International Conferencing into Your Coaching or Counseling Program

First, determine which sessions lend themselves to an international conferencing environment. For example, you might hold several training sessions at a live event and then follow up with monthly coaching calls via international conferencing.

Another option is to offer access to international coaching calls as an upsell to attendees at a seminar. Some coaches use conference calls exclusively for delivering coaching classes.

What types of coaching sessions lend themselves to international conferencing? Any session that does not require physical interaction or visual demonstrations is a good candidate for international conferencing. For example, if you are a fitness coach who needs to demonstrate how to perform certain exercises or stretches, international conferencing isn’t a good choice. However, if you are coaching other personal trainers on how to grow their businesses, then holding an international conference call could be effective.

Corporate trainers can also deliver personal development coaching sessions to employees as a general group. Smaller private coaching groups are also an option. For example, you could hold a coaching call for all regional sales managers around the world or you might invite only newly promoted managers to a call. The possibilities are endless.

Recording a Coaching Call

Most international conferencing plans include a call recording feature, allowing you to record the call for later. If you intend to record a call, you’ll want to be aware of some privacy issues first. Make sure to announce that the call will be recorded. Do this both when inviting attendees as well as at the beginning of the call.

If you intend to share the recording with others, keep confidentiality in mind. For example, if the call is between you and an employee who is struggling, that call should not be shared. On the other hand, a call where you discuss the latest sales techniques to a passive audience wouldn’t infringe on anyone’s privacy.

Another potential issue can occur when you have a guest or co-host on the coaching call. If you will be distributing the recording or using it for any other purpose other than for personal uses, it’s wise to have the other person sign a release form.

Holding an International Coaching or Counseling Call

Whether you’re holding a coaching call with a group of international employees or clients who have signed up to receive expert coaching from you, if you will be holding a coaching call using international conferencing, you’ll need to set up and plan the call.

Setting up international conferencing requires signing up with an international conferencing service provider. International conferencing plans make it easy for all participants to join the conference using phone numbers that are local to their countries. You can also set up the teleconference so that callers dial a toll free phone number that’s local to their countries. This eliminates confusion and concerns about calling internationally.

Since the coaching call will take place with participants from around the world, scheduling is going to be tricky. Use world time zone maps to figure out which times would work best for most participants. When you communicate the date and time of the coaching call, include the date in time in each participant’s local time to minimize confusion. If you have a small group, you could communicate this information with participants individually. For larger groups, you might include a master list of times by country and instruct participants to refer to the list for local call-in times.

Next, prepare a detailed agenda for the coaching call and distribute it to attendees. This is another opportunity to remind participants of the call’s time and date, access numbers, and other details. It is also a great way to reinforce your value as a coach and help your participants prepare for the call. By sending an agenda, they’ll know what to expect and how much time to allot for the conference.

Finally, hold the coaching session. Remember to remind participants if the call is being recorded and then follow your agenda. Do your absolute best to keep the call within its allotted time so that your coachees will realize that you respect their time. They’ll be more likely to participate in future coaching sessions via international conferencing if they know that your sessions are well-run.

International conferencing is a terrific medium for communicating with others around the world. It’s also a cost-effective alternative to holding face-to-face sessions.

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International Conference Calling Best Practices

International conferencing is notoriously difficult to coordinate, and you may be asked to call in at an unusual time of day.

International Conferencing Best Practices — International Conferencing

International Conference Calling Best Practices

Whether you will be hosting international conferencing calls or have been invited to one, an international conference call’s success depends in large part on how it’s been planned and organized as well as on the etiquette of its attendees. If you are a host, avoid holding a poorly planned teleconference by following these best practices for international conferencing hosts. If you are a participant, use the best practices tips for international conferencing attendees to ensure that you can contribute to the call’s success.

Best Practices for International Conferencing Hosts

Choose a high quality international conferencing service provider. Not all international conferencing services use high quality telecommunications networks. Poor connections, noise on the line, echoes, and other sound quality issues will adversely affect your global conference call. If the sound quality is bad enough, attendees will struggle to hear, or worse, abandon the meeting.

Schedule the international conferencing with convenience in mind. This isn’t always possible, but it should be attempted when possible. Use a world time zone map or world meeting planning tool to determine which block of time falls within business hours for most attendees.

Determine who needs to attend the call in real time. Not all international conferencing participants need to actively participate in real time. Consider who will be asked to speak and whether there will be an opportunity for questions and answers or other interactive exchanges. For example, you may decide that you want your regional sales managers present so that they can provide input and get their questions answered; however, their sales teams may not need to participate in the live call and could benefit by listening to a recording at their leisure. By limiting the call this way, you could reduce the number of participants on the call while offering them a more convenient means of obtaining the information that was discussed. This also reduces the overall cost of the call.

Treat international conferencing as you would treat a meeting. It’s helpful to create an agenda for the call and to actively monitor the call as it progresses. If you’ve allotted ten minutes to discuss a new regulation, for example, and fifteen minutes have passed, your call will likely run longer than expected unless you take action to keep the meeting on track. As the host of the call, it is your duty to keep the meeting on track.

Get familiar with the international conferencing tools available to you. For example, do you know how to mute a noisy phone line if the participant is unaware of the excess noise being blasted to the group? Do you know how to quickly and discreetly get operator assistance while running an international conference call? Do you know how to record your conference call? You may even want to practice using your international conferencing plan with a friend or colleague before you go live for the first time.

Best Practices for International Conferencing Attendees

As a conference call attendee, your duties are less involved than that of the host. However, you do play a role in the success of the call. Below are a few best practices for participants.

Prepare for the conference call. If the host has distributed an agenda or outline for the call, take a look at it a few days in advance. Think about the topic and how it applies to you. What do you expect to learn from the call? What ideas do you have that you might be able to contribute? What questions do you want to ask if the host doesn’t address them? If you’ve been asked to speak during the call, gather any supporting documents you may need (such as sales reports, study results, customer satisfaction ratings, etc.) and prepare your statements. Ask for clarification if you are unsure about what’s expected. For example, if you’ve been asked to discuss customer satisfaction ratings but weren’t told how much time you’ve been allotted to speak, ask the host how much time you have.

Be on time. International conferencing is notoriously difficult to coordinate, and you may be asked to call in at an unusual time of day. Even if you’re expected to call in at midnight, you should be prompt and ready to contribute.

Use a landline if possible. In some countries, the per minute cost of a call is dramatically higher for calls made using mobile phones. While the host may provide you with a toll free number, if you have access to a landline, using it instead of a mobile phone is a courteous gesture that can reduce the cost of the call for the host.

Find out how to mute and unmute your phone line. With potentially dozens of participants on an international conference call at once, background noise is a major problem. Each participant is expected to know how to mute their phone line when not speaking and then unmute it when it’s their turn to speak. It’s usually a simple matter of pressing *6 on your phone’s keypad.

Be respectful of the group. Most international conference calls are scheduled with an agenda that leaves room for questions at the end of the call. Write your questions down and wait until the end to ask them. While it would be nice to be able to go through your list of questions one after another, make sure to give other people the chance to ask their questions as well. Because time is limited and you may not be able to ask all of your questions, determine which questions are the most urgent and ask those questions first.

International conferencing is a group effort. Whether you’re the host or an attendee, do your part to make the call a success.

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International Conference Calling for Healthcare Professionals

Conference calls for Health Care Professionals

International Conference Calling for Healthcare Professionals

International conference calling is an important tool for healthcare providers around the world. Whether you’re a hospital administrator, doctor, nurse, dentist, chiropractor, researcher, insurance professional, or lab technician, international conference calling allows for cost-effective global collaboration no matter where you, your patients and your colleagues happen to be located.

What is International Conference Calling?

International conference calling is conference calling for participants located around the globe. While your facility may have a sophisticated phone system with conference calling capabilities, international conference calling brings its own set of challenges that your hospital PBX is not likely set up to handle.

For example, if multiple participants are located in different countries, many will have difficulty dialing an international phone number. International long distance fees may also be a concern, potentially stopping some participants from calling. While you could give participants your toll free number, it won’t work internationally, eliminating that as an option.

With international conference calling, these issues are handled. First, you’ll need to sign up for an international conference calling plan with a telecommunications service provider. Don’t worry, international conference calling plans are available on a pay-as-you-go, no contract basis with low per minute rates to hundreds of countries.

Once you have a plan, you can set up international teleconferences easily using an online account management dashboard. Simply select a time and date and schedule the call. You’ll be given a list of international phone numbers to distribute to attendees. If you opt for a toll free international conference calling, each participant can dial a toll free access code that will work in their countries. No matter which international phone number each participant is given, all will be connected to the conference calling “bridge” where an auto attendant will prompt them to access the conference call’s PIN number (which will be provided to them with the phone number). From there, your international conference call begins.

Is Conference Calling Still Relevant in the Instant Messaging Age?

Conference calling is a tried-and-true technology that continues to be relevant despite instant messaging, email, and video chats. There’s no need for anyone to use a computer in order to participate in a teleconference. In some countries, your colleagues may have limited access to the Internet, making Web-based conferences impossible. In addition, if you intend to hold a conference with a large group, using conference calling is the easiest option that can accommodate a huge number of participants.

Ideas for Using International Conference Calls in the Healthcare Industry

There are many terrific potential uses for international conference calling in the healthcare industry. Below are just a few ideas of how you might be able to connect with colleagues in a teleconference:

Consult with specialists – Do you have a patient with an unusual condition? You could hold an international conference call with leading specialists from around the world and get your questions answered. Likewise, if one of your patients is overseas and suffers a medical emergency, you could consult with his or her doctors as needed using an international teleconference.

Hold training sessions or workshops – Teleconferences are a great way to exchange knowledge. Whether you need to discuss new medications, sales techniques, practice management concepts, or insurance billing, an international conference call could be an effective medium for bringing a diverse group together.

Collaborate with healthcare professionals around the world – Traveling to other countries and touring healthcare facilities has its value, but it also has its costs both in terms of time and money. By using international conference calling, you can continue learning about other countries’ healthcare systems in an intimate, but less expensive, setting.

Speak with other researchers – Compare notes with other researchers no matter where in the world they may be. Whether your colleagues are conducting field research or you want to reach out to other experts, holding an international conference call is a cost-effective way to connect with others.

Stay connected with your team when traveling beyond borders – Whether you’re in Haiti on a humanitarian mission or in Italy on vacation, international conference calls allow you to speak with two or more team members from around the world.

Not only can you use international conference calling for global collaboration in a variety of scenarios, you can also record your teleconferences for future reference or use. You could use MP3 recordings of the call to refresh your memory, have the recordings transcribed, or make them available to your colleagues as appropriate. Recordings are also useful for training-related conferences because everyone can hear the same material both now and in the future.

Using an international conference call is easy, cost-effective, and beneficial to healthcare professionals who need to communicate with others around the world. How will you put international conference calling to good use?

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Tips for Better Communication during an International Conference Call

Conference Call Tips for the Moderator — Conference Call Tips

International collaboration using a conference call is a cost effective choice that allows you to accomplish many tasks without the high cost of travel. For example, you can negotiate deals, conduct training, conduct creative brainstorming sessions, get feedback, conduct research, and much more with an international conference call. Just about anything you can do face-to-face, you can do on a teleconference. However, with audio-only conference calls, you may miss non-verbal cues such as facial expressions. In addition, not all callers will recognize one another’s voices. Use these tips to enhance communications during an international conference call.

Ask each participant to announce their names and departments before speaking – While you may recognize Glen from accounting’s voice, other participants might not. Asking each participant to quickly say their name and department or job role before they speak helps give context to their comments.

Use active listening techniques – Some participants may be difficult to hear or understand for any number of reasons. As the moderator of the international conference call, part of your job is to ensure that everyone is heard and understood. If the sound is muffled or a person’s accent heavy, it’s helpful to repeat what you believe was said and ask the speaker to confirm. For example, you might say, “Barbara from our San Diego logistics office just said our freight contract expires in two weeks. Did I hear that correctly Barbara?”

Allow a few minutes for questions and answers at the end – At the end of the international conference call, open up the meeting for questions and answers. As you wrap up the call, thank participants. You might even leave the lines unmuted for a few minutes, allowing for a little friendly banter which builds a sense of camaraderie.

Many international conference calls suffer needlessly because of telephone system quality issues. Many communications problems can be avoided by choosing an international conference calling plan known for quality connections.

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How Do Companies Use International Conference Calling

International Conference Call Sales Tool — Conference Call Sales Tool

How Do Companies Use International Conference Calling?

Companies use international conference calls for all kinds of purposes. For some, the international conference call is a cheap way to keep virtual teams connected. For others, teleconferences are a convenient way to share ideas with a global audience. Some sales professionals use conference calls to pitch their products or negotiate deals. The possibilities are endless. Below are a few ways that businesses of all types have used international conferencing:

School is in session – Virtual schools, charter schools, colleges, and other educational institutions often use teleconferences as part of their distance learning programs. For example, students may be required to attend weekly teleconferences where they’ll be able to hear the instructor’s lecture, get their assignments for the week, and have the opportunity to ask questions. Schools also use international conference calling for administrative purposes such as staff meetings and as alternatives to in-person meetings.
Legal proceedings – Court reporters, lawyers, and litigation support services firms often use international conference calling to conduct some legal proceedings. Not only does doing so eliminate travel, it’s possible to record conference calls and the calling plan can create an accurate record of who was present during the call.
Board meetings – From charitable organizations to Fortune 500 companies, many businesses use international conference calls to hold virtual board meetings with attendees scattered around the world. This saves on travel expenses while accomplishing the agenda items.
Mentoring and coaching – Many businesses and entrepreneurs use teleconferences to mentor and coach others. One of the benefits of using an international conference call to host a mentoring or coaching session involves recording the call for later use. Not only can the original attendees benefit from the session, future ones can listen to the call and receive the same information.

These are but a few of the many ways that businesses use international conferencing. How will you use your international conference calling plan?

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Phone Conferencing for North America

U.S. Conference Calling with Toll-Free Access

US conference call with employees, virtual team members, colleagues, and business partners scattered across the United States and Canada, collaboration becomes more challenging. While a variety of online technologies and mobile apps help facilitate collaboration, sometimes you need to connect audibly.

Hosting a conference call is a great way to get the entire team together for a voice meeting. While free and low-cost conference calling options are available, it’s important to find the right balance between features, quality, and cost. Though paid and toll-free plans may be more expensive than a so-called no fee conferencing, it is possible to get the features you want at an attractive and affordable rate.

The Problem with Hosting a Low-Quality Conference Call

Free conference calls aren’t as free as they sound. If you choose a free conference call plan with a local phone number in Washington, DC, everyone who calls in from outside of the area will incur toll charges. This option can be attractive in some circumstances but is detrimental in others. For example, some participants may have concerns about how much the call will cost them; as a result, they may opt-out of the call. If your conference call involves an interesting prospect, the prospect could be concerned about the non-local phone number or question your cost sensitivity to others or credibility.

Some free conference call providers offer free conferences with advertisements. Others use unreliable VoIP telephone networks with poor sound quality. Ads and interference may be fine when you need to collaborate with your assistants but could be disastrous when your professional image is at stake.

If your conference calls will involve customers, prospects, VIPs, or budget-conscious consumers, it’s smarter to provide them with toll-free access to the conference call or use the moderator dial-out option, if available, to call these individuals directly.

Conduct an Audio Conference with No Computer Required, just any phone.

Gain a full-featured, business-class conferencing plan with included features such as a live conferencing viewer, account code entry, sub-account for other associates, security, post-call summaries, and free session recordings.

Holding a toll-free meeting is an affordable choice that doesn’t jeopardize your reputation or subject your participants to advertisements or toll charges. It’s not necessary to enroll in a long-term conference calling contract, either. Choose a pay-as-you-go conference calling plan and enjoy low-cost conference calling as needed with no contract.

See the conference calling plan here

Using Conference Calling to Communicate with Teams

Whether you’re forming a committee, organizing a team of service providers, or need to communicate with managers from branch offices, conference calling is a cost-effective means of communication.

All you need is a conference calling plan and the desire to hold group meetings over the phone. With the right calling plan, you can hold impromptu and scheduled conferences with minimal fuss.

Why Use Conference Calling

Any time you have three or more individuals working on a team from different locations, phone communications become more difficult. Rather than holding multiple phone calls, use a conference call to keep everyone informed and engaged.

Conference calling allows you to:

Hold group meetings over the phone – Why hold a meeting in the office or a conference center when your entire team can collaborate over the phone?
Eliminate costly meeting room rentals – If you usually rent meeting space, a conference calling plan can quickly save your business a substantial amount.
Record group conversations for later review – Some conference calling plans feature MP3 recording. You can then email the MP3 file to team members who were unable to attend the teleconference.
Eliminate travel expenses – Need to meet with team members from across the country or around the world? Instead of booking flights, rental cars, and hotel rooms, plan a conference call. Just about any topic can be discussed in a teleconference.
Improve productivity – Conference calling requires much less time than physical meetings. There’s no commuting, no need to take anyone on a grand office tour, and no need for small talk before and after the meeting. Simply host the conference and begin at the appointed time.
Hold impromptu meetings – Conference calling can be used on the spur of the moment, allowing you to hold meetings with key team members during times of crisis or inspiration.

How Conference Calling Works

When you think of conference calls, what comes to mind? Complicated phone systems and speakerphones are no longer the norm.

Today, conference calling service providers make conference calling a simple process that can be carried out on any phone including mobile phones and smartphones.

Here’s how it works:

Sign up for an international or domestic conference calling plan, ideally one with low per minute rates and no monthly fees, contracts, or penalties.
Notify your participants when the call will take place.
Share the conference call’s details including scheduled time, phone number, and “PIN” number with attendees.
At the appointed time, everyone dials the phone number, enters the PIN number, and the conference begins.
As the conference moderator, you may have several tools available to you in an online dashboard. For example, you should be able to mute and unmute callers, dial participants, and start MP3 recording.
Once the conference is over, everyone hangs up. Depending on your conference calling plan, you will most likely be billed per minute, per participant.

Conference calling is a low-cost alternative to holding live meetings.

The more you use your conference calling plan, the more indispensable it will become.

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US/Canada Conference Calls. Added Local access numbers in many U.S. and Canadian cities.

Canada - US Conference Calling — Canada – US Conference Calling

U.S.-Canada Conference Calls

In addition to Toll-Free access from Canada and the US, ‘local’ access numbers are available in Canada and the U.S.

We have added numerous ‘local’ access numbers for the US/Canada conference call plan. Having more access points enables customers to provide local convenience to their participants to join a conference call or optionally use the included Toll-Free access numbers.

A customer can now host a conference call with some of their participants dialing in Toll-Free and others dialing in using a local access number at a lower rate, all meeting in the same conference room. All local access numbers for the US and Canada are sent immediately upon account activation.

New local access numbers available in the following US and Canadian cities:

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Get your Global Virtual Number for Easy Calling

Worldwide Virtual Numbers + International Conference Calls — Worldwide Virtual Numbers + International Conference Calling

Are you working within a Multinational Company looking for a feasible mode of communication that is not only feature rich but is also cost effective?

Is International conference calling with clients in diverse geographic locations a need of your business?

If any of your answers are yes then we shall discuss how you can make use of Global Virtual numbers that are meant for small, medium and large scale businesses. As a complement to international call forwarding, you can have a business class international conference call collaboration tool to round out your global communication arsenal.

Since effective communication is the need of every business, it becomes vital to have proper communication channels. With a Global Virtual Number, distances do not really matter. This all shrinks the globe and makes all geographic locations that much more accessible.

To any of the domestic or international plans available for calling; the feature for Virtual Phone Number can be added easily by making a visit to the online account.

It is here, where you need to select the area code that are available in the country where you desire to own a virtual phone line.

The prices of the Virtual Phone Number are quite reasonable and they can be seen as the perfect solution for communication needs of every business.

There are many companies that are offering the service of cheap Global Virtual Number. Among those Aitelephone is undoubtedly a brand name. This is a recognized option through which you can draw the benefit of low rates and high quality.

There are calling plans from which you can see one that matches with your current requirements. So what are you waiting for? Solve the problem of communication today by joining hands with Aitelephone.

Enjoy the Uninterrupted Services of Unlimited Conference Calls

Unlimited Conference Calls

In order to make conference calling easy and very affordable, what you can do is use a plan that offers low rates and does ‘not’ charge fees for the minutes used. Said another way, the most economic plan is the unlimited conference call plan.

Few options are offered by professional companies like Aitelephone.com that allow you to enjoy the uninterrupted services of unlimited conferencing.

Therefore if you require a conference call plan that can put money back i your budget

There are many providers who are providing monthly plans of conference calls thus there are no long term commitments that you need to meet. So check out all factors and book your affordable conference call connection now.

If you select a conference call facility wisely then you will know that how you can easily stay within your budget. There are plans in which you just need to pay only a fair fixed rent per month in which you get many free conference calls. Then as and when you make conference calls, the price of the calls shall become more and more economical. So if your monthly conference calling is high then you must check out this option as with this, you will be able to host unlimited conference calls for one flat monthly fee.

Learn more about unlimited conference calls

International Conference Call China – China 400 Local Number

aitelephone.com does offer the China 400 Toll Free access number with the international conference call plan.

Are there Toll Free numbers for use inside China? Of course there are. With all of the unbelievable commerce taking place in China over the past 20 years, China has become a highly technically advanced society. Thus, China businesses have had China Toll Free numbers for a long time.

However, there is one type of China Toll Free number that is relatively new. It’s the China ‘400’ number. Unlike a normal China Toll Free number, the ‘400’ number works from China Mobile phones throughout mainland China. Previous to the advent and approval by the China government of the China 400 number, China mobile phones could not access a normal China business Toll Free number.

Differences between 800 and 400 numbers in China:

800 Toll Free numbers are accessible to landline users only in both North and South China.

The China (400) Type number is accessible to all landline and mobile users regardless of the callers’ mainland China location or type of device used, fixed or mobile.

As mentioned, normal China Toll Free numbers cannot be accessed when the caller is using a China Mobile phone. In addition, the traditional China Toll Free numbers are geographically specific. Meaning that if the caller is in Northern China, they must use a North China Toll Free number. If in South China, they need use the South China Toll Free number.

aitelephone.com does offer the China 400 access number with the international conference call plan.

View more details about China conference calls here

Benefits of modern conference call service

Conference call service is not a new technology. It has evolved over many years and become better.

In the beginning, the services of an operator were required to host a conference call. But as technology developed, the human element was reduced to a minimum.

Conference call service has become fully automated, unless an operator is needed. It requires entering just a Toll Free phone number and an access code for the host and participants to be instantly connected together.

This collaboration tool has evolved into a very useful service for conference calls where the participants are located inside the U.S.. It is called conference call USA. For ‘international conference calls‘ it’s the International Conference Call plan.

The call quality has also seen tremendous improvements with the onset of the latest technologies. You can talk to a person present on the other side of the world and you will not notice any difference. With crystal clear sound and highly reliable connections, you can instantly connect to any part of the world without any issues. Innovations such as fiber optic cables and voice transmissions at very high speeds have also contributed in this communications revolution.

Making a conference call USA is easy. It’s automated so no operator is needed to initiate conference calls. A toll-free number is provided to all the attendees, with the scheduled time set by the host of the call. At the scheduled time, each member dials the toll-free number and enters the passcode at the voice prompt.

Conference call service is a simple and safe process which is being used by companies all across the world. Since there are no monthly fees, this makes it very cost effective as you will pay for your actual usage with no monthly fees or activation fees and no minimum monthly usage requirement. Learn more.

Benefits of international call forwarding

For companies who want to expand their presence in different countries, it is important for them to have an international call forwarding service.

By providing a customer with a local number within his or her country, you will create a local phone presence and will allow your customers to interact with you easily.

After all, what consumer or future customer wants to buy from a company that requires making an ‘international call’ to ask a question or order a product? That is why it is a superior sales strategy to offer potential or existing customers a ‘local’ access number in their country. That local phone number will then redirect their call to you in ‘any’ country and to any type of phone, mobile or landline.

For example, your company could be located in Singapore but you have customers in the UK. You can own a UK local number and the calls would be redirected to your phone in Singapore (or any country).

By having call forwarding through international toll free or local numbers for each country, you can easily create a local presence. Customers will also be happy to see a number which looks familiar to them, for example if you owned a UK virtual number the dialing syntax would be exactly the same as any other UK local number.

Using an international call forwarding facility does not require on your part to have a local office or local employees to take calls. What it requires is that all the calls are redirected to a number of your choice. This redirecting to a number can be in any form – a cell phone, voice mail, office phone or a call center even fax machine, VoIP or PBX.

Included with your call forwarding number will be a private online account login facility which allows you to change the ‘ring to’ number to which all calls are redirected in the event you need to change it. For example, change it from a landline in the daytime to a mobile phone in the evening. The changes occur in real-time.

The process is very simple – when a customer dials a local international virtual number, his call is automatically redirected to a number which you have designated to receive such calls. The caller ID is also displayed and the caller can hear a local ring tone instead of a ring tone of the ‘ring to’ country.

But there are some complications also in this which you will have to overcome, such as linguistic and time differences. Your call center may be present on the other side of the world, receiving the calls at night at your ‘ring to’ number when it may be daytime on in the callers time zone. Also, calls could be handled by operators who speak different languages. Still, having an international virtual call forwarding number is much cheaper than maintaining a brick and mortar location in another country.