Effective Telephone Conference Call Etiquette

Talking on the phone one and one with someone is a simple thing that most of us do each and every day. No matter what the subject matter, there can be moments of confusion when you both want to speak at the same time, or when something is misunderstood and the conversation takes a strange turn because of it. If miscommunication can occur during one on one calls, you can imagine how it might also happen when you have three, four, or more people taking part in a telephone conference call. This may not be a big deal for personal calls, but it could cause problems when these calls are placed for business reasons.

Many companies are saving money by doing long distance meetings and business through the telephone conference call rather than by sending someone on an airplane to meet in person. These do not take the place of all business meetings, but can be used to save money, time, and when the matter could be cleared up quickly without someone coming in person. If you want to use these to save time and money, or if you will be required to take part in these for your job, there are a few things you should remember to make sure such calls run smoothly.

When you take part in a telephone conference call, remember that you have to act as if you were in a real face to face meeting. You have to use respect and wait for your turn to speak. This can be hard in a live meeting, but it is even harder when conferencing over the phone. The best thing to do is to have someone in your locale to lead the conversation. That means they are the main person speaking to the other parties, and they will speak up if you have something to add so that one person is speaking at a time. Come up with a system to indicate that someone has something to offer without interrupting the flow of the conversation or someone else who is speaking at the moment.

Remember that misunderstandings happen, and are a huge problem with some telephone conference call conversations. If you know what you are talking about, you are ready to participate in the call, but you should always have your notes, documentations, and files with you as you go through, just as you would in a live meeting. If someone is misunderstood or does not seem to connect with what the other person seems to know, you want to have everything there so you can look things up. You do not want to have to leave someone hanging on the phone while you run out to look something up.

Also remember to have a safe and quiet conference area for your telephone conference call. Use the same meeting rooms you would use if you had people in the office for a meeting. You want something that has desk space and the quiet you need to ensure that the people on the other end of the call can hear you clearly and loudly. You also want to make sure you have a way to indicate that there is a telephone conference call going on so that no one stumbles into the room making noise or talking over your important call.