CONFERENCE CALL ETIQUETTE
 

Moderators should be on time
 A moderator should arrive a few minutes early to greet each of the participants, to let them know when everyone is present and ready to start the call, and to keep participants informed of any delays.

Introduce yourself
It is important to introduce yourself and other speakers at the beginning of conference as other participants may not easily recognize voices.

Create an agenda and keep to your schedule
Remain consistent with the timeline and agenda as prescribed in order to respect the time of the other participants.

Clearly state when the call is finished
If participants linger after you have hung up on the call you will be billed! Ensuring that all participants understand when a call has ended will avoid any possible confusion. The Moderator should stay on the line and make sure everyone has left the call.

Use appropriate equipment, and make sure your are in a quiet location where you will not be disturbed
1. If possible, always use a phone with a handset that is hard-wired into the phone lines. Be sure to TEST the working condition of your equipment before an important conference call!   

2. Cellular or cordless phones are more likely to cause static or other distracting noise that they pick up on the airwaves.  

3. Speakerphones pick up lots of background noise, and sometimes cause "clipping" because of the limitations of the equipment. If you are using a speakerphone, try to find one that is "full digital duplex"-this will allow all parties to speak at the same time with no clipping. And if no one in your room needs to speak, use the "Mute" button on the phone to prevent background noise from disrupting conference calls. When someone needs to speak, simply release the "Mute" button.

Turn off your call waiting

Sometimes conferences are set to play a tone to announce a new person entering the conference. If your line starts beeping with call waiting, it can be very confusing and disrupting to the meeting! Most call-waiting features can be deactivated by dialing 70# before dialing. Check with your local phone service provider if you are unsure how to deactivate this function on your phone.

Participant Commands

#1 Mute own line

#2 Un-mute own line