How much money is your business wasting?

New research from PowWowNow finds that businesses waste 55m of the 210m spent each year on conferences-by-'phone.
There's no doubt that ëphone conferencing is an important aspect of mobile working. Workers at all levels need to be able to reliably stay in touch with co-workers and clients. And it's a powerful indication of how important it has become, particularly to people running small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs - typically up to 100 staff), that British business now spends a staggering 210m on conference call charges every year!

In a world where technology moves at amazing speed and new opportunities are created every few months, many voice conference users are shockingly unaware of what's out there and the cost savings offered.

Maybe this is why it's reported that SMEs are wasting 55m a year simply by not being aware how to be more efficient - both in terms of opportunities and deals that are available. Now, we're all painfully aware how much effort is required to actually earn 55m, but taking that amount of cost out of the business can be much simpler!

But now, innovators such as PowWowNow are offering simple dial up voice conferences where each invited participant calls a central number and, using a PIN, joins the conference. This way there are no bills for organisers, no contracts, and each participant simply pays for their own 6.7p per minute call. That's one heck of a difference and it's no wonder that users of this service have risen from an initial 500 to now 50,000 every week!

Ten Top Tips for effective voice conferencing:
ï Meetings should be shorter than face-to-face discussions. They are more efficient but be aware that greater concentration is needed.
ï Don't make agendas too long - hold shorter meetings more frequently.
ï In an ideal world, initial meetings are better face-to-face if those involved haven't met, but if this isn't possible, appoint a chairperson and get them to briefly introduce those involved, to break the ice.
ï Think about agreeing and observing an end time for the call as well as a start time - it's courteous and it helps participants to plan
ï It's helpful for a chairperson to cut in at intervals to summarise and check for views, since there's no body language or eye contact to observe
ï Arrange not to be interrupted during the period of the call.
ï Call from a quiet location if possible - you need to concentrate and background noise from your ëphone will disturb the other conference members
ï Don't put your ëphone on hold during a call if you have on-hold ads or music on your system - you will be broadcasting to everyone - not a way to be popular!
ï If you have a ëcall waiting' facility, turn it off - the beeping will be heard by all participants
ï Make sure that you have all the necessary papers and references with you before the starting time.