Conference Call Services Online - The Benefits To Using An Online Conference Calling Service

For those familiar with the concept of conference calling, telephones have always been the way to conduct a conference call. Truthfully, a telephone is rather easy to use, you dial some numbers and await an answer. What could be easier? Well, easy isn't always better. As time goes by, the world of telecommunications gets more advanced. Now instead of using a phone for a conference, you can use the internet to have conference call services online. "So, whats the big deal?" Well, the big deal is that not only will you be able to talk to each other, but you will be able to do so much more.

Have a conference online, or web conference, is not just about an extra video feature during the conference. Conference call services online offer a number of things that a regular telephone based conference calls can not. As with telephones conferences, you have to get your point across using only words, and that can be tough at times. However, if you were to illustrate your point, using pictures, videos, or presentations, the participants would understand your point more clearly.

These online conference call services allow the host to share video, pictures, slide shows, presentations, documents, etc. to everyone in the conference. Of course, video without any audio would not be very user friendly. Although the people would see the information, without a means to communicate, they might not understand it. Luckily, there is more than one means of communication with these services. Participants will usually have the choice to talk aloud via microphone/headset, or type via an IM, instant messenging, board.

Another large bonus to using online conference calling services is the cost. These services are rather inexpensive when compared to a phone based conference call. As usual, there will be a difference in price between service providers and the features they offer. Most of these service providers will also offer a free trail so you can test out their software and overall support. This way, if you are unhappy you don't have to pay for anything and you can continue to look for an online conference call service provider.

Before you make your decision about a particular service provider, you should at least try a few out. As long as they offer a free trail you really have nothing to lose. Simple try out the service, cancel, then try another. Although you may fall in love with the first one or two you try, try a few more and don't be too impatient, its not like the business is going to come crashing down over night. Its easy to see that web conferencing is a very affordable, not to mention better, option than simply using a telephone. If you need to host a conference call, host an online conference call, you won't regret it.

Free Trial Conference Calls – Try Before You Buy

There are many consumer products that we are allowed to try out before purchasing. We test drive cars, we try on clothing and footwear, and we can even taste small samples of food at the grocery store. So why not do the same for conference calling solutions?

Fortunately, most conference call services provide a free trial for their services. Many others provide demos. However, there’s really no substitute for using a service as you would in an actual business setting.

One thing to be aware of is that many of the free trial conference calls require that you provide your credit card information when signing up for the free trial. They will not charge your card during the free conference call trial period. However, you then will need to cancel your subscription before the trial period expires or your card will be charged for the next billing cycle of the conference call service. This usually isn’t a problem provided you remember to cancel the service if you don’t wish to become a long-term subscriber.

Once subscribed to the free trial conference call service, you should take advantage of the opportunity. Put the conference calling service through its paces. Spend some time on the vendor’s Website learning about the features of the service. Then recruit some participants from your organization to help evaluate the service by taking part in a conference call.

It helps to have a checklist of the features you want to test out. If the service allows you to share applications over the Web, then make sure that the participants are set up for this. Make note of how intuitive the user interface and instructions for using the service are.

Also observe how responsive the data stream is, especially if using video as part of the conferencing service. Of course a great deal depends on the bandwidth of your connection to the Internet, but the load on the conferencing service’s servers will also influence responsiveness. Time of day and demand will also impact throughput.

In order to keep things manageable you should probably take on one free trial conference call evaluation at a time. It may prove helpful to setup several conference call sessions with each service to get used to the service and try out all of its features. Of course, if after the first session you realize that the service just won’t work for you, then by all means, cancel your free trial and move on to the next free trial conference call evaluation.

As more businesses look to increase opportunities for collaboration with employees and partners and to better connect with prospects and customers, they will be turning to conferencing solutions. It pays to make the investment in time and effort to evaluate potential conferencing solutions. The service provider offers the free trial conference call, but it’s up to you to take advantage of it.