Thanks to the advancements in communications technology (mostly the internet), it is easier than ever for people in different parts of the world to connect and do business. In today’s global economy, international conference calls are common and very simple to set up. Now, before you go off to arrange your next international conference call, here are 5 international business etiquette tips to help ensure your call goes smoothly and successfully.
It’s good to be able to schedule an international conference call anytime, but that doesn’t mean anytime is good to schedule an international conference call. When scheduling a conference call between parties in different parts of the world, be sure to keep time zone differences in mind so that no one has to be up at 2 AM in the morning. If you’re setting up a meeting with paying clients, try to accommodate their schedule—even if it means you end up calling outside of your normal working hours. Fortunately, we have our own time-zone management tool here in FreeConference.com that makes it easy to find a suitable time to schedule conference calls between people in different time zones!
Although your dedicated dial-in comes in handy for last minute calls it would be nice to provide your participants with a list of dial-in numbers so they can choose one that is a domestic number for them so that they can avoid paying international calling fees from their carrier. This is one of the most important business etiquette tips! As a guest of your conference call, I would gladly call in if you go that extra step and help me save money.
FreeConference provides free and premium international dial-in numbers for over 50 countries including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, and more. See our full list of dial-in numbers and rates here.
As you may already be aware of, people from various parts of the world tend to express themselves differently. While being direct and upfront is normal in some cultures, it is not so in others. Taking time beforehand to learn about some of the cultural norms of those you will be speaking with can help avoid any potential misunderstandings and could make for a more successful international conference call.
A universal rule of business etiquette tips is that you should never keep others waiting. We recommend being prepared and ready for your call at least 5-10 minutes prior to the scheduled start time of your conference. While some cultures value punctuality more than others, “my time is more valuable than yours” does not translate well in any language.
I can tell you first hand as a person who holds frequent international conference calls, the "I'm in another time zone" excuse does not fly.
Conference calling platforms like FreeConference are easy to use and intuitive by design, but it’s always a good idea to take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with the various features and moderator controls available. This can help you appear more prepared during your conference call and might save you from the potential embarrassment of looking like you don’t know what you’re doing. It could be distracting (and sometimes embarrassing) when you fumble through the controls during the beginning of the conference call.
When in doubt, FreeConference.com’s dedicated Customer Support team is always ready to help and just a call or email away.
We as a population have undertaken many studies lately, in the efforts to find out why meetings work - or don’t.
Often, we've been labeling them an inefficient tradition; usually seen as a waste of time (unless people actually came prepared) and it’s safe to assume we have all come to at least one meeting unprepared. So what gives? Why are meetings so hard to care about? Why are they so difficult to manage? Why do we keep having them?
Using FreeConference software means that you’ve chosen to take full advantage of some of the world’s leading virtual conference technology, and that you’ve done so at no additional business costs. However, in choosing a Freemium service, you also know that some companies leave much to be desired.
Luckily for you, the affordable nature of FreeConference software upgrades means you don’t have to sacrifice your life’s savings to access quality, premium features, or useful upgrades.
Many businesses have incorporated elements of artificial intelligence, both to stay on top of current trends and to facilitate their day-to-day operations. If you’ve ever had a conversation with an automated reply service online, you’ve interacted with artificial intelligence. These developments have provided a myriad of benefits to those using them. Here's a few avenues that you may have been overlooking.
We know that you probably already want to get out of your meetings. They aren't always run in a smart fashion. But have you considered trying to get more from them?
It’s easy to get jaded when certain studies cite that meetings take up around a third of your time, but some meetings are important - that’s why we keep having them.
Since communion is essential to collaboration, and no business is built alone, FreeConference has been developing some impressive features looking to improve the way we interact with our colleagues and with our data. The main concerns we have been looking at addressing are issues of time, clarity, continuity and accountability.
The new year is a time when we set goals for ourselves to help us look better, feel better, and be more successful. If you are involved with a business or nonprofit, the start of 2018 is the perfect time to rethink the way your organization conducts meetings. In today’s new year blog post, we’d like to share with you some ideas that can make your group or company meetings better and more productive in 2018.
