How to Set Up a Webinar

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How to Set Up a Webinar

• How to
• Compare
• Shop for
• Choose
• The optimal conferencing service for your needs.

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Persimmon Telecommunications

• Brings together a team of experts to help you
  make the best choice for your Telecommunications
  services
• Cost Effective Connections

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Joe Budelis

• Harvard PhD in Decision Control
• 30 years experience
• Areas Project Management, IT, Analysis,
  Telecommunications
• Long Term Positions
• Mobil Corporation
• Morgan Stanley Dean Witter
• ShopForT1.com, Telarus, Commission River

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What we bring to you

• Telecommunications expertise
• Consulting services
• To help you find the best option(s) for your
  Telecommunications needs
• To assist you with questions or issues that arise
  during setup during the contract term
• To help you determine if contract renewal or a
  switch to another service is most beneficial

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Specialties

• T1, PRI, DS3, OC3, Ethernet and Fixed Wireless
  lines
• Fractional, Full, Bonded
• Data, Voice and Integrated Ts
• MPLS and Point-to-Point Ts
• Phone Service
• Local and Dedicated Long Distance Voice T1s and
  PRIs
• POTS and Switched Long Distance
• Toll Free Service
• VoIP
• SIP Trunking with optional foreign DIDs
• Cell Phone Service
• Audio, Web Video Conferencing
• Domain Registration, Web hosting Cloud
  Computing
• Fax Services

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You Heard about meTell me what you wish to learn

• How many of you have set up webinars?
• Personal or Serious Business Interest?
• Are you interested in personal, family,
  associates, groups of a few people?
• Are you interested in small or large business
  webinars?
• What is the maximum number of participants that
  you would expect?

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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 1. Are you easy to reach?

• Ask for the customer service phone number / email
  
• Give them both a try. Can you reach a person
  right away. If you are on a conference call and
  you need help, you want an immediate response.
• Ask the representative how long it takes to reach
  technical support.
• Is there an automated menu that you need to
  navigate through to reach a representative? Your
  time is important you shouldnt spend it waiting
  on hold.

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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 2. Can you handle any/every type of conference?

In the future, you dont know what kind of
service you might want to offer on your
conference calls. For example, you may want to
host a PowerPoint presentation, or invite a
high-profile guest speaker perhaps youll want
to add video, or invite 1,000 participants to
listen in. You may not wish to change your
conference provider when your business is
booming. You need to make sure your provider can
adapt and grow with you. Find out what
capabilities the conference call provider has. In
addition, find out if the price will change.
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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 3. Do you guarantee line capacity?

You would be surprised to find out that many
conferencing companies overbook their systems.
Make sure your provider guarantees that all of
your participants will be able to get on your
call. Specifically, ask what their conference
bridge capacity is maintained at. Ideally you
want a provider that keeps their system at no
more than 50 capacity. If the provider doesnt
know or wont tell you, be leery. Weve heard
stories first-hand about how people paid more
because they thought they were maxing out their
200 lines. But in actuality, their participants
were being blocked at only 30 participants
because the provider over-booked. You should have
live call controls that allow you to monitor your
conference as it proceeds.
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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 4. Do I need to sign a contract?

• Is there a cost to signup?
• Is there a penalty to cancel?

You dont want to lock-in to a contract and
discover a few months later that the quality
isnt very good or that the service doesnt match
your needs. Many excellent conferencing options
do not require a long term commitment but simply
require you to pay as you go.
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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 5. Do you have live call controls?

These are moderator controls that you can use to
manage your conference call. Ask the
representative if you can visually track
participants using online controls. This is an
important feature because it will provide you
with added security, and help you resolve issues
fast. For example, if someones phone is making a
disruptive noise, you need to SEE where its
coming from and mute it so that it doesnt
distract others. In my experience, this is
perhaps the most important feature if you are
going to have calls with open audio.
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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 6. Are there any hidden fees?

Be aware that once you start using a conference
service you may discover various fees and
stipulations you didnt know about. Watch
specifically for monthly fees or minimum usage
requirements. Some providers will charge a
monthly fee for toll-free accounts regardless of
usage as opposed to using a pay-as-you-go model.
Also, some fees are hidden on the invoice as
arbitrary taxes which are not required to be
collected. For this reason it is a good idea to
ask upfront about fees and get a sample invoice.
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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 7. What features and benefits are included and do
  they cost extra?

Find out what capabilities the conference call
system has. Make a list of features that are
important to you and ask specifically about those
features. Be aware of companies that seem to
Nickel and Dime you because it will add up in
the end. Some of the popular features which you
should ask about are recording (playback and
download), web conferencing, Pin Options and
participant name recording (for added security),
and Operator Services (for event planning). You
should not pay extra for most of these.
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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 8. What guarantees do I have that this will be a
  good service?

Ask if the company has a written guarantee policy
that is posted on their website. Listen carefully
as to how they answer this question if they are
confident and to-the-point, then you know that
they stand behind their product. Ask about the
technical support, the hours of operation, and
how the company will solve your problems. Take
note as to how fast they answer their phones. Did
you have to wait on hold? Thats a good indicator
of what kind of service you can expect.
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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 9. Does your conferencing system use VoIP (Voice
  over Internet Protocol) ?

• A VoIP conferencing system might work fine if all
  participants are using Internet Phones, e.g.,
  Skype phones.
• If some participants are using normal land line
  phones or cell phones, a conferencing system
  based on VoIP typically experiences problems like
  poor call quality.

Make sure the carrier you choose uses fiber-optic
lines and a private telephone network to transmit
your audio. Be extra aware of the free
conference call providersthe telephone bridges
that they use are often blocked by large carriers
such as ATT, QWEST and SPRINT.
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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 10. Do you have DTMF Clamping?

DTMF clamping traps tones from your telephone
keypad, preventing them from playing into your
call. This is important because many conference
call providers rely on using telephone keypad
controls to activate special features like
recording (2) or muting (6). A bunch of beeps
playing into your call can be very annoying.
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Questions to Ask aConference Call Provider

• 11. Can I get a free trial?

If the product is good, then they shouldnt mind
letting you try it. When possible, dont give out
your credit card information for a demo. There is
no reason why a company should need your
financial information for a FREE trial.
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How to Conduct an Effective Tele-Conference

• 1. Develop an agenda that includes

Goals Participant expectations Timeline of
deliverables
2. Plan accordingly
Ask participants to review the agenda prior to
the call Estimate the time needed for
participant comments or QA when determining the
number of agenda items
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How to Conduct an Effective Tele-Conference

• 3. Scheduling and Preparation

Make sure all the participants have all the
required information (the access phone number,
the conference code, etc.) Distribute
supporting documents/files before the call start
4. Starting the call
As the facilitator, dial-in 5-10 minutes early
and be the first to arrive If appropriate, ask
early arrivals to greet subsequent arrivals as a
team-building activity Find out if there are
any individual time constraints and adjust
accordingly
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How to Conduct an Effective Tele-Conference

• 5. Stay on topic

Sticking to the published agenda reduces costs
and makes the teleconference more efficient
Provide your participants contact information in
order to contribute possible topics for future
conferences
6. Share leadership duties
Help less engaged people become more involved
in the call Ask individuals to lead sections
of the agenda During the call, pause
occasionally and ask for feedback
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How to Conduct an Effective Tele-Conference

• 7. Wrap things up

Provide a brief recap of all items discussed
Re-iterate the contact information for those
participants that need further clarification or
would like to contribute future topics
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How to Increase Conference Call Attendance

• 1. Remind Your Participants

Remind your participants by sending an email or
making a quick phone call. Sometimes people want
to attend, but they forget.
2. Use a Guest Speaker
Invite a high-profile speaker. This can be an
industry professional or a prominent member of
your company. Inform participants that you will
be hosting a live Q A session with your guest
speaker
3. Take Attendance
Participants will be less likely to skip when
they know that their name will be called out. A
little accountability can go a long way.
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How to Increase Conference Call Attendance

• 4. Out-Dial

Instead of having participants call you, call
them. A blast-dial feature enables everyone on
your list to be called at the same time. You can
also have an operator assist you with the
out-dial process.
5. Incorporate Media
Keep attendees engaged and theyll come back for
more. Use PowerPoint Presentations, Live Polls
Text-Based Chats to enhance the conferencing
experience.
6. Keep it Entertaining
Incorporate humor throughout the meeting and find
ways to keep it interesting. Create a funny,
interactive poll, show a comic strip or share a
joke.
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How to Increase Conference Call Attendance

• 7. Consistency

Plan calls for the same time and same day so that
participants are less likely to forget. In
addition, participants will begin to anticipate
your meetings and plan accordingly.
8. Toll-free
Flat rate conferencing does not get the same
response as toll-free. If people need to pay for
the call, then they are less likely to attend.
9. Last-Minute Reminder
A last-minute reminder often improves attendance
significantly. Send a short email about an hour
or so before the conference call begins.
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Conferencing Options

• The system that I demonstrated, that we use, and
  that we sell can be seen and you can sign up for
  it at
• http//conferencecall.homestead.com/
• If you forget that URL, Google
• Persimmon Telecommunications
• Typically, the first result is
• http//persimmon.homestead.com/
• Then click on the Conference Calling link on the
  left.
• Or, call 609.333.6932, and Ill set up a free
  trial for you.

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Conferencing Options

• The system that I demonstrated is priced a number
  of
• different ways depending on your needs for
  example,
• Per line per minute toll free rate 5.9
  cents/minute
• Flat Rate Conference Call (5 seats) 14.95/month
  
• Flat Rate Conference Call (10 seats)
  29.00/month
• Web Conferencing Unlimited Pro(5 seats)
  59.00/month
• Web Conferencing Unlimited Pro(10 seats)
  99.00/mo.

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Conferencing Options

• If you want a free or almost free system to use
  to organize a family and/or friends conference,
  Don Singleton of the APCUG wrote that one or a
  combination of the following might satisfy your
  needs
• Skype - http//www.skype.com/
• AdobeConnectNow - http//www.adobe.com/acom/connec
  tnow/
• Microsoft SharedView
• http//connect.microsoft.com/site/sitehome.
  aspx?SiteID94
• IBM Lotus Sametime Unyte - http//www.unyte.net/
• See Dons writeup at http//reports.apcug.org/2008
  q4/6.htm

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This Presentation

• is available on my web site at
• http//conferencecall.homestead.com/
• If you forget that URL, Google
• Persimmon Audio Conference
• Normally, the first organic result is the URL
  above.