When it comes to running large-scale operator assisted conference calls, there’s little room for error.
Whether it’s an earnings call, company-wide briefing, “all-hands” meeting or large training session, your company’s reputation is on the line.
Get it right, and the chances are that nobody will notice. After all, that’s what’s expected.
Get it wrong, and your brand and corporate standing could be adversely affected.
In the last year alone, we’ve run thousands of virtual event calls. We’ve learned what works and what doesn’t. In this blog, we share our four steps to delivering a flawless operator managed event call.
Step 1. PREPARATION – Ensure everything is set up correctly
It’s the surprises that trip up an otherwise smooth-running operator conferencing service.
It’s vital that you as the host or person booking the call make your conferencing provider aware of everything they need to know upfront, so they can get ahead of the game and avoid the unexpected.
This should involve a comprehensive information capturing process that ensures every aspect of the call is considered.
We analyzed in detail the factors we needed to deliver a flawless event call experience. We turned this into a simple online booking form that we ask every customer to complete so that nothing gets missed when it comes to running the call itself
Elin Morgan, Head of Event call services at LoopUp
These include:
- Making sure your provider has the resources to manage calls for the number of attendees you require. It’s important to have a realistic view on actual numbers. If you get more people than planned attending, this can create problems.
- Choosing the language/languages you’d like your operator to use on your call. Not all providers have multi-lingual or local operators, so it’s worth checking first.
- Deciding what information you would like to be collected about your attendees e.g. – company, job role, contact details.
- Choosing the appropriate dial-in access numbers so that your guests can join from any global location.
- If you need to re-charge the costs to a client, department or project, this will need to be set up using billing codes.
- Thinking about whether you want a test call for a practice run through or to test the sound and presentation content for your event call.
- On some calls, you may want to schedule time with your operator before the main call. This can allow you to brief specific details and make sure everything you want is covered.
Step 2. JOINING THE MEETING – Balancing convenience and security
Choosing the best entry method to suit your event call is critical. Security is built into all three methods provided by LoopUp. But some managed event calls need more security than others, so you need a choice of joining options:
- Pre-registration: When sensitive, controversial or share price affecting information is being discussed, it’s vital that only those on the invitee list can join and you’ll want the extra security by pre-registering your guests. That way you can always tell who should be on the call and remove any unwanted guests.
- Operator greeted: You may want the operator to greet your guests personally. In this instance, guests will have to provide a password/PIN before being admitted to the call.
- PIN entry: There will be some larger conference calls where it’s more important to get all attendees on the call quickly without hassle. Even in this instance, guests still must input a PIN to join.
Ask your provider about the joining methods they can offer you.
Step 3. DURING THE CALL – Interacting with the operator and guests
You’ll need a range of features and options to help you manage your content and effectively get your message across, such as:
- Sharing and presenting slides
- Playing video and audio recorded content
- Sharing live video
- Screen sharing
- Sharing documents, apps and other content
You’ll also need to interact effectively with the operator and fully engage with your guests during the event call. You can do this via:
- Exchanging instant messages with your operator
- Seeing who’s on the call at any time and be able to remove anyone who shouldn’t be there
- Managing a Question and Answer session
- Polling – vote on any subjects
- Muting/unmuting guests
These features are not always available, so it’s best to check with your provider.
Step 4. AFTER THE CALL – Information sharing
It’s important to evaluate your event call and gather learnings for the next time. You’ll need the following to be able to do this:
- Receive a complete guest list to see who couldn’t attend
- Refer anyone who couldn’t attend to an easy to access recording
- Send a transcribed copy of the call to anyone who requests it
- Post-call debrief with your operator to discuss all elements of the call and any improvements to be made going forward.
Implementing these four simple steps will ensure your operator assisted call will work for you.
To find out more about Event by LoopUp, click here or download our infographic.
About the author and LoopUp
More than 5,000 firms around the world trust LoopUp with their important remote meetings, from day-to-day conference calls to high profile event calls. Danielle Homer manages the team at Event by LoopUp in the UK.
We run hundreds of calls every week to customers in the public and private sectors. Our highly skilled operators guide you every step of the way to make sure those important announcements run smoothly.
