More and more businesses are turning global in scale, whether introducing products and services to new markets, opening foreign hubs, sending employees abroad, or working with international partners across the world. This growth happens quickly, and you need technology to keep up with it to support seamless day-to-day business communications.
How do you accommodate international guests on your phone or web conference? With the right conference calling service, this can be an easy feature to integrate into your regular services, or one you might already have in place.
Here are a few options and tips to get you started on a flawless international conferencing experience.
International phone conferencing
A phone conference can be the simplest way to contact people all over the world, as the only thing one needs is a working telephone to access the call. This is great for any participants who may not have access to a reliable internet connection, especially when traveling. With an array of options for joining in, both domestic and international attendees can have the same conference experience.
International toll-free dial-in services allow international participants to join a conference call using a toll-free phone number and the same access code as everyone else on the call. This option allows international guests to join the call for free, with the fees picked up by the conferencing host. Many consider this to be a great option for offering a generous and easy way to accommodate important overseas audiences.
International dial-out is an option that allows the conference call host or a call operator to call any international participant directly and connect them to the conference. This is another accommodating service that does not require international attendees to pay any fees, or even dial any numbers. It can be a great option for a call with just a few international attendees—perhaps a VIP partner, or regular employees who may be traveling at the time.
International toll dial-in is a service that provides every conference participant with the same number and access code, which are permanent and can be used in the same way by everyone. Participants pay their own toll charges based on their location. This is a great option for mobile participants who are traveling country to country or an attendee list that changes frequently, as the number is easy to remember and the access instructions stay the same no matter where you’re calling from.
All three of these phone conference options are all available through Conference Calls Unlimited. Click here to learn more.
International web conferencing
Web conferencing is a very popular way to hold online meetings, collaboration sessions, and other day-to-day communications in any business. It also has the added benefit of being accessible to attendees from all over the world, with no further set-up besides a reliable internet connection.
Take advantage of features like video conferencing and screen sharing to interact with your guests. Sharing a PowerPoint or other presentation slides with translated text is a great way to accommodate international guests that may not speak the same language as the main conference speaker. You can also make sure overseas participants can give you feedback throughout the call by using chat and polling features, as well as file sharing to exchange relevant media.
Web conference recording is also a great way to make conferences more accessible to international attendees. If the time difference just won’t work with someone’s schedule, he or she can access the recording of a live call at a later time that’s convenient to them. Plus, you can even transcribe or provide closed captioning on a recorded video, which would allow for translation to other languages.
Audio streaming is also a great way to get large audiences from anywhere in the world to access the same information. Participants can watch or listen into a webcast available from any webpage, where they can stream the audio or video file either live or on-demand, depending on how you choose to share it.
Prepare your international guests
Ensure that each of your international guests has specific and detailed access instructions based on their location, if applicable to the type of service you’re using. You’ll want to make sure email reminders for a web or phone conference are personalized with information unique to each guest’s location, whether they’re required to login, dial in, or wait for a call.
Perhaps the most important personalized detail to include is time zones! It can be disastrous to forget to specify the time zone in your communication with international conference guests, and have them miss the call. Some hosts may simply specify their local time zone and leave it up to participants to make the appropriate conversion to their own. However, it’s very helpful and reduces mistakes to provide the time zone equivalents of any participating countries in an email, or even create personal emails with the local time for each international participant.
Then simply help your attendees know what to expect. You may have been conducting the same format for a virtual meeting every week in your company office, and everyone knows the drill. But when you have an international guest come on board, you should remember that they’re not familiar with your team’s routine of doing things, or perhaps even how a conference call works in your country. Provide a detailed agenda and be open to answering plenty of questions.
Once you’ve made the choice on the type of conference experience you’d like to provide and done these few simple things to prepare your guests, you’ll be hosting international conference calls like a pro! We think you’ll find that it can be an effortless addition to your regular use of conferencing. To start hosting the best quality calls with international participants, chat with us here at Conference Calls Unlimited!
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