5 Tips for Free Conference Calls

Conference calls are one of the most useful business tools available, and there are dozens of websites out there that offer free conference call services. Before you actually decide to take advantage of these services however, you should be aware of that there are risks to using certain free conference call services. To be able to find a reliable free conference call service provider, here are a few tips you should consider:

1) Site and line security - the absolute last thing you want to do is to sign up with a free conference call service that either employs faulty, tappable lines or even worse, one that is in business to record your calls and do the tapping themselves to sell the information to your business competitors! Unfortunately there are unscrupulous scammers out there that go into offering "free" conference call ability specifically for this purpose. You'll want to go with any company that is actually registered as a business entity, with an office and a physical location as well as the usual licenses to operate. Do your background checks on the companies you canvas to make sure they aren't just a bunch of guys with phone conferencing gear operating out of a rented apartment. Avoid any companies with addresses that are simply PO boxes. Granted there are some people who go into free conference calling for public business transactions that may not require (or care) about line security, but even these groups can suffer if the company they go with suddenly vanishes if it gets busted by the feds.

2) Read the fine print - be a little cynical about this. There's always a catch. Yes, the legitimate companies that offer free teleconferencing usually do it as a "teaser", offering limited services for free as a way of letting people know that they are legit, then offering extra services that you can opt to pay for as a matter of convenience. However, these added services should be optional, not mandatory. Always look at the clauses involved in the teleconferencing service. For example, if the company claims to give you a 300 person conference limit, but actually offers free conferencing only for up to the first 50 people, you might wind up getting smacked by an unexpected bill. If the same above service gave a LIMIT, and actually blocked other people entering the conference at 50, it would be fine. But if the system were set up in a way that that other people could join the conference past the free limit and you get no warning about it, then you might wind up getting stung something fierce.

3) Conference Capability - look at the limits set by the provider. How many people can join the conference free of charge? How long can the free conference call last? Are there any restrictions on equipment, phone line types, areas in the globe covered, etc. that will keep people you want to contact from actually joining the conference? Look at the specs and make sure you get the package that's suitable for your purposes.

4) Additional Services - more often than not, teleconferencing companies which offer free services use it as free personal advertisment too. They will have other aditional services like voicemail or recording services, or offer extended time and caller capacity, for an actual charge. If you know that you may be taking advantage of these additional services from time to time, then look for a provider that will offer you the best deal on these extras which you'll actually have to pay for. Take into account how often you'll be using these extra services and balance it out with the limited services offered for free.

5) Directory Operator Support - this can be very important in teleconferencing. Any company that doesn't give this option should not be seriously considered. We've all had to sit through those inane IVRs when making phone calls to some company in the past or the other. Make sure you get a provider with actual live operators who can be contacted easily to provide you and your conference callers with assistance. Avoid any providers that rely solely on automated routing, as this can be a huge pain for both you and your callers. If the automated routing for the call is made with an inefficient IVR system, your callers will probably hang up with the sheer frustration of trying to navigate it to get to the conference in the first place.

These tips can help you choose your favorite free conference call service.