Which Phone Should I Use For My Audio Conference?

With so many different phones and phone services on the market today, I am often asked what type of phone is the best to use for an audio conference.  Other times, after a conference call a client will reach out to me with questions on how to achieve better sound quality.  The quickest solution is to change which phone they are using, or even just how they are using it.  This afternoon I will cover the best phone setup to use in a couple of different scenarios, what phones to avoid, and how to adjust your settings for the best possible sound quality using what you have available.  I will also touch on some of the customizable settings that our conferencing services offers to help you achieve crystal clear sound quality.  After all, no one likes a barking dog, ambulance or subway platform interrupting their conference call.

1. Presentation - Single Speaker

One of the most common forms of conferencing today is a presentation or "lecture" style conference.  This is when you have one speaker that is presenting to an audience of attendees on their conference, and these calls can also be combined with a web conference for best results.  The first rule in this type of meeting is to have your attendees muted to eliminate background noise.  At times it can be a bit eerie for a presenter to not hear anything from their audience, but the trade off is that you will not be inundated with obtrusive sounds (that can also ruin a recording).  

It is best for the presenter to use a headset on a POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) phone so that the audience can hear them clearly.  The rule of thumb is that the closer you are to the microphone, the better your audience will hear you.  Headsets also give the presenter more freedom to use their hands, or even walk around if they are using a wireless headset and presenting to a live audience.  

If your presentation calls for one or more Q&A (Question and Answer) sessions, you have a couple of options.  The best way to handle this is by integrating with a web conference.  When a web conference is used, if a participant has a question they can simply chat it in a message box.  This gives the presenter ultimate control because they can pick and choose what questions to answer and when.  Also with web conference integration, the presenter can choose to un-mute individual participants that have a question (signaled by the participant using a "raise hand" feature).  

If using an integrated web conference is not an option, the presenter can simply ask the participants to un-mute themselves when they want to ask a question.  The last option is to un-mute all of the participants at once, however this can degrade the call quality depending on how many participants there are.  

Q&A Sessions are often the toughest part of this type of call, but if you are able to integrate with a web conference and use the chat method you can achieve a great sounding Q&A session that flows extremely well.

2. Presentation - Multiple Speakers

This type of conference is exactly the same as the first, with the exception of multiple speakers.  The best way to do this is have all of the speakers use a moderator code, so that they will not be muted along with the rest of the attendees.  This adds a level of complication because most likely the speakers will be on a variety of phone types - some may be on speaker phone, some on headsets, etc.  The most sure fire way of keeping this type of conference clean is instructing the speakers to un-mute themselves when they are presenting, and mute themselves again when they are not.  Doing this along with using the tips in the first section will ensure a great presentation. 

3. Open Discussion

In an open discussion or "open forum" conference, everyone needs the ability to speak.  This type of conference is the trickiest to achieve great audio quality on due to the nature of the conference.  Speaker phones and cell phones can absolutely ruin these conferences by adding distortion, echo and a variety of quality killing characteristics.  Another factor is how many participants are on the conference call; larger conferences will multiply these effects.  

For these calls I suggest that speaker phones and cell phones should be avoided if possible, and again that anyone not speaking should either mute their phone or their conference line for optimal performance.  If these rules are followed then you can achieve great results regardless of the number of participants on the call.

Below I also have a general reference list for which phones / setups are best used for audio conferencing, in order of best quality to least quality:

1. POTS phone with wired headset (or traditional handset)

2. POTS phone with wireless headset

3. POTS phone in speaker phone mode

4. Business class VoIP phone such as Cisco or ShoreTel (Using same phone setups as 1-3 above)

5. Cellphone in handset mode

6. Two tin cans connected with a string

7. Cellphone in speaker phone mode shopping in the mall

8. Non business class VoIP phone running over home internet service with no supporting QoS

Our conferences can always be tweaked to make the best of what you have.  Our services in particular offer a wide variety of settings and we can always work with you to achieve optimal clarity.  

I hope everyone has a fun and safe holiday weekend,

Daniel Ripperden, Strategic Account Executive
Great America Networks Conferencing, LLC
15700 103rd Street, Suite 110
Lemont, Illinois 60439
Office: (312) 432-5328
Fax: (630) 633-0390
E-Mail: dripperden@ganconference.com
Website: http://www.ganconference.com
Blog: blog.ganconference.com
Twitter: twitter.com/ganconferencing
Facebook: facebook.com/ganconferencing

Comments

[conferencing software]

Conferencing Software is the latest in global communication. Its been hot for a while now but has just gone into another gear. Hundreds of companies and products based on conferencing are popping up all over the net. It takes a little getting use to trying to focus on the camera to engage your audiance properly but is way worth it compared to offline meetings. The costs you can save are huge.

[audio conferenza]

Love the new website! Enjoying looking around and seeing all the options available!!

[av equipment rentals]

Connecting to a conference call is easy. Participants simply:
Call the conference bridge number
Enter their pass code
Confirm the day, date, and time of the call
It is imperative that participants not call the conference bridge number early or at any other time than that which is scheduled; access to the conference line is only available as arranged for by the moderator. The correct pass code must be entered to gain access.

[Delmer Cropley]

Business conference calls are phone calls in which the calling party can call more than one party at a time. Depending on the plan you have, the other parties would only be able to hear what you have to say, but not hear each other, or you can set up a plan where all the parties can not only hear what is being said, but can contribute to the conversation as well. There are business conference calls available on line now, with the right equipment, that you would not only be able to communicate on a business level, but be able to see each other speaking as well.

[Delmer Cropley]

A conference call is simply a way of allowing more than two people into a telephone conversation. With just one call, you can already inform a lot of people about what you need to relay, saving you a lot of time and effort making individual calls.

[frankchen002@yahoo.com]

The author of this article is wonderful. I like it very much
http://www.luxureplicas.co.uk/cheap-zenith-replicas-66.html
However, I also have something good to share, quick and see it

[moncler]

Since it’s conception, the salvatore ferragamo has been produced into a variety of designs, colors, shapes, and styles that have won top picks of millions of women the world over. http://www.monclerjackets-onsale.com
http://www.uggs-bootsale.com
http://www.ferragamoshoesales.com

[LevineKAYLA22]

Lots of specialists claim that loans help a lot of people to live the way they want, just because they are able to feel free to buy needed goods. Furthermore, banks offer secured loan for all people.

[discount uggs]

There are business conference calls available on line now, with the right equipment, that you would not only be able to communicate on a business level, but be able to see each other speaking as well.

[buy ugg]

The work brokers network will give you entry to a huge combine of people who’ve the important points in relation to businesses available for sale and also purchasers or perhaps traders looking for any business endeavor.

[uggs outlet]

Very honored to can see your article, literary grace good, will always support you, I am your loyal fans oh, come on

[North Face Outlet]

great blog! i learn few things in this post, thanks for the share

[christian louboutin outlet]

You are a very idea, and article is well written

[ugg outlet]

When I see you on it, like it, thanks for your sharing

[gucci outlet]

Thanks you. Very good post.Unless they can offer a really compelling reason for users to come back, it will be the next Bebo, MySpace

[loans]

The business loans are essential for people, which would like to organize their own business. As a fact, this is easy to get a bank loan.