Tips for Your Web Conference

As more businesses expand their customer and employee base beyond their own physical location, online interaction and web conferences become the norm for communication. Here are a few tips on how you can make your web conference more successful, whether you are meeting with distance employees, independent contractors, partners or customers.

Before the Conference Call

Get familiar with the equipment you will be using for your conference call. If possible, practice setting up the call with staff in your office. That way, you will be less apt to drop a caller or have other issues common with first-time use.

Know what equipment or programs you are going to use. Some conference programs allow you to share your computer screen and enable others to type questions or responses as you are speaking. Know what features are available and how to use them.

Choose a leader for the call, and create an itinerary. Follow the schedule and provide a copy to everyone ahead of time so they know what to expect. Consider recording the call in case someone is unable to make the appointment.

During the Call

Adjust your camera so you can be seen. Make sure you don’t go off-camera when you’re talking. Use a headset with a microphone, which will help eliminate outside noise. Silence phones and other sounds to prevent distractions.

Have others mute their microphones when they aren’t speaking to reduce noise. Close blinds, which may interfere with lighting or cause a glare. Wear clothing that is not too bright or dark so you can easily be seen. Look into the camera when you’re talking. Speak clearly and not too fast. If you have an accent, you may even want to invest in a business speech reduction coach to help you enunciate without relying on your accent. This ensures that people from other regions or countries can understand you with no

problem.

Don’t speak too loudly or too softly. You should try for a natural tone that others can hear without needing words to be repeated. Ask throughout the conference if everyone understands what you’re saying or if they need something repeated.

If others will be speaking, make sure everyone takes a turn with no interruptions. Avoid talking over others, so that there is no confusion or misunderstanding.

After the Call

Once the call is complete, send a copy of the main points of the conversation in email to each participant. Ask for feedback about what they liked and what could be improved. Review the feedback so you can make changes for the next call. It may be the time of day or issues with the technology as well as the points presented in the call. Use all feedback to make the next web conference call even better.

Thanks to modern technology, you can conduct business from anywhere and not have to travel to different locations. Use this technology to enhance your business, but understanding how it works and what participants need to benefit from the conference calls.

Claudette Roche is an accent reduction in the Vero Beach, FL area. She teaches foreign and American accents to actors and business persons/executives. In 2010 she was named as one of The Top 5 Voice Coaches by Hollywood Weekly Magazine.