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Cost of Conference Call

How Much Does a Conference Bridge Cost?

Submitted by lees on Mon, 2011-12-05 10:32

 

How much does a conference bridge cost?  It's a very common question and there are two easy answers, depending on your situation:
 
1)  You don't need to buy a conference bridge to have a conference call.  The cheapest and most effective way to conduct a conference call is to use a conference service on a pay-as-you-go basis that gives you access to our conference bridges which are already installed and operating.  It's like buying a time-share rather than the condo.  We have several plans to choose from (see the links at the top of the page for the various services.)
 
2)  If you are looking to buy and install your own conference bridge hardware and software, you need to be a very heavy user -- at least $2000 a month in conference call expenses -- to make it worthwhile.  We buy, sell and rent dedicated conference call bridges and would be happy to provide you a quote.  However, please understand that 99% of all businesses and non-profits outsource their conferencing to services like 24Conference.com because it is much more cost effective and there is no need to install additoinal phone lines, sign long term maintenance contracts, hire staff  to monitor and organize usage, not to mention the upfront capital costs associated with purchasing conference hardware which can run into the tens, or hundreds, of thousands of dollars.
 
Unless advancing technology changes the situation, our advice is to keep things simple and outsource to our service bureau.  Time and time again, we've seen occasions when companies get diverted from their core mission and start spending time and money trying to internalize technology because they "want to keep it inhouse."  All of a sudden, they get themselves into the conference call business, only to find out later it wasn't worth the investment.  (A perfect example of this is video conferencing:  Companies have spent hundreds of thousands trying to put in fancy hardware, only to find out that the trend is "desktop video" using a $25 webcam and an "in the cloud" service costing only pennies a minute.)
 
If you are corporate enterprise and you've made the decision to install a new inhouse conference bridge, we stand ready to assist you with your purchase or rental.  However, if you are medium to small operation, we highly recommend that you continue to do what you do best, while letting us take care of your conference needs.  You'll find that outsourcing not only saves you money, but the convenience and the time you save, especially with reservationless conference calling, will make your dealings and collaboration projects much more pleasant and easy.
 
We look forward to helping you set up the custom conferencing plan that best meets your needs and budget.
 

Conference Call Bridge Cost and Rates: How Much?

Submitted by lees on Fri, 2011-09-30 08:59

 

Costs and rates for using telephone conference call bridges and services vary greatly and depend on the type, format and number of people on the conference call.
 
The different types of services can be seen across the top of this page.  Generally speaking, costs can be categorized into per-minute costs or monthly fixed rate costs.  Per-minute costs are usually billed after your conference call, while discounted flat or fixed rate costs are pre-paid.
 
Per minute conference costs are calculated on a per-minute, per-person basis.  In other words, 5 people on the conference call for 10 minutes, equals 50 total minutes.  50 mintues times 7.9 cents per minute equals $3.95.  That's how much a 5 person, 10 minute, conference call would cost.  If you were using a Local Access dial-in number, your costs could be substantially less.
 
Flat rate plans offer substantial savings, however, the major disadvantage is that they don't offer a toll-free access number.  Each person calling into the conference must dial a long distance number.  (Dialing a long distance number may not be an issue if your conference call users are calling from a cell phone or have free long distance bundled with their regular phone service.)
 
The huge advantage to flat rate conferencing is that it offers unlimited usage -- there is no timer on the conferenc bridge.  You can have as many conference calls as you like, and talk as long as you want.
 
On the high end of conference call costs is the professional managed Operator Conference Call -- a service that has operators calling out to the conference participants and then introducing them into the conference call.  This is for high profile or critically important conferences such as legal depositions, investor relations, corporate press conferences, sales presentations and deal-closings.
 
Overall, there is a conference service that will fit your budget.  Give us a call and let us know what your looking to do in particular, and we can help you sort through your options quickly.  Call us 877-254-2424.

Conference Service: Telephone Conference Call Service Rates and Plans

Submitted by lees on Sun, 2011-08-14 11:01

 

Conference service over the telephone, also known as audio teleconferencing, can be easily obtained with a variety of rates and plans, serving a wide range of business and non-profit needs and budgets.
 
Using a professional conference service is not only more convenient, but it is far less costly than attempting to install special conferencing hardware and software.  When you outsource your conference service, you avoid any set-up, maintenace and overhead costs and, in addition, you are able to begin conferencing immedately.  95% of all conferencing is outsourced in the United States because the service is convenient and inexpensive.
 
There are several conference service plans to choose from.  Here is a quick review and rundown of the most popular conference services.  For more details you can click on the links below, or you can find the various services on the left hand sidebar or top of the page navigation links.
 
Pay Per Use Conference Service:  This is also known as "pay as you go" conferencing, and provides you 24/7 access.  There is no need to make reservations.  Once you get your call-in number and passcodes, you can use it anytime.  Your credit card is charged only after you use the service.  There is no monthly minimum, so if you don't use it, there is no charge.  A perfect conference solution for occasional users.
 
Per Minute Conference Service:  90% of the conferencing in the United States is done on a per-minute basis.  Minutes are calculated by the number of callers times the number of minutes (i.e. 10 callers on the conference for 10 minutes = 100 minutes.)  You are charged after the call and are only billed for the time you use, no more or less.  You have your choice of a toll free dial number, or a regular long distance number (slightly cheaper.)  
 
Supersaver 800 Conference Service: (pre-paid bundled):  This discounted service, with a toll free dial in number, provides discounted rates and is modeled after your cell phone plan.  You pre-pay for a certain number of minutes each month.  This is a very popular service for businesses and organizations that have predictable usage and know how many conference minutes they generally use every month.  There is no long term contract, and this service goes month to month.  So, if you wanted to purchase a large number of discounted minutes one month, and not the next, that can be easily arranged.
 
Local Number Call-In Conference Service:  This is a per-minute conference service, but rather than dialing a toll free or long distance number to access the conference, you call a local number in your area.  (We have over 100 local numbers in the U.S. and Canada.)  Not only is this service less expensive than dialing a toll free number, but it also provides a tremendous convenience for callers to use a local number.  Very popular, particularly if the callers are centralized near a large city.  Also, you can get local numbers in several large cities and have everyone in the same conference.
 
Operator Conference Call Service:  Full service conference, including professional operators who call out to each of your parties and place them in the conference.  You can also have an operator on the conference itself to manage Question & Answer sessions or coordinate the muting and lecture modes.  This is the preferred choice for legal and deposition conference calls, or investor relation calls or high-profile or important calls where you are looking to provide top level service.  An ideal solution for landing that big contract.
 
Flat/FIxed Rate Conference Service (pre-paid unlimited use):  Fixed Rate conferencing is ideal for heavy users because you get unlimited usage.  You can conference anytime you want, for as long as you want.  Everyone dials a long distance access number (we have a New York City 212 access number and others in the Mid-West) to get into the conference call.
 
Video Conference Service:  As technology advances, costs for video conferencing have come down substantially.  In fact, the expensive conference rooms with large video screens and television cameras are a thing of the past.  The operative words are "desktop conferencing" where you and your participants use small webcams (cost about $25-50) and can view each other in high quality transmissions.  There are some free services like Yahoo and Skype that offer video conferencing for one-on-one exchanges.  However, for larger calls you'll need an outsourced video conference service.  This also gives you features that will share powerpoint presentations, slide shows, documents, and participants can also see your desktop, so they can follow again and see whatever is on your computer screen.
 

Phone Conference Services: Getting the Highest Quality at the Lowest Rates

Submitted by lees on Mon, 2011-07-11 17:54

 

High quality phone conferencing services are readily available and easy to obtain.  In fact, you can get a conference accout set up in minutes at no cost.  You can review each of the various conferencing plans and options at the top or side of this webpage.
 
Here are some of things you should know or consider while you are narrowing down your phone conference bridge options:
 
1)  In 90% of the situations, it's MUCH less expensive to outsource your conferencing services versus owning and maintaining your own in-house conference bridge and hardware.
 
2)  There are variety of flavors -- you have a number of plan options that can best meet your budget and needs.  It doesn't hurt to discuss the pros and cons of each with a professional.  That's why we're here.
 
3)  Free conference services exist, but in the end, you get what you pay for.  Long distance carriers have been known to block calls entering free conference bridges.
 
4)  Audio phone conferencing is here to stay.  Why?  Because as cool as video conferencing is, the majority of people are self-consious about what they look like on camera.  Some people even hate looking at themselves.  Verbal conversation will never be replaced when it comes to business and organizational interaction and that's why the phone will be around for a long time.  More people text now than talk on the phone, however, it's not a convenient way to conduct business dialogs.
 
5)  For video and web conferencing, the old video conference room is out and the smaller less expensive webcams are in.  Now you can do everything from your desktop, or even smartphone.
 
6)  It's true.  Phone conferencing slashs travel and meetings expenses dramatically.
 
The reason phone conference call services are booming is because it is the least expensive way to conduct business from a variety of locations.  Face to face meetings are always good, but unfortuntaely, they eat up time which businesspeople and non-profit professionals can't afford.  If you can get 5 people on an audio conference call by just picking up the phone, you can accomplish more in 10 minutes than you can killing a morning or afternoon trying to get everyone in the same room at the same time.  And with the advent of smartphones and cell technology and coverage, people can now conference and conduct business from anywhere.  You'll see hand-held video conferencing technology becoming more widely used in the future.
 
Your best bet:  Look at the different conference services that are offered, get some good advice, and move forward with your plans.  There are no long term commitments so you can always switch to another plan easily and quickly.  Getting a high quality and reliable conferencing service could be the best move you've ever made.

Vancouver Conference Call Service Company: 778 Local Access Bridge

Submitted by lees on Sun, 2011-06-26 17:50

 

Local Vancouver conference calls using a 778 area code bridge service are now being provided to those interested in obtaining a local Vancouver access conference number.
 
Information about this unique Vancouver conference service can be obtained here, along with rate or order information: http://24conference.com/local_access_conference_call
 
The Vancouver conference service is "always on" and can be accessed on-demand, 24/7, without reservations.  The number -- 778-300-1670 -- can be used by teleconference participants from anywhere in the world by calling it and then using assigned passcodes.  There are no set-up costs, no hardware, and no special software needed.
 
The conference can easily accommodate dozens or even hundreds of callers and the rate is a low 2.9 cents per minute, per person.  For example, 10 people on a conference call for 10 minutes would cost $2.90 -- an extrememly low rate that offers you the convenience of dialing a local number.
 
Using a local Vancouver number to dial into a teleconference is both cost effective and convenient because conference call hosts do not have to pay the additional expense of having participants dial a toll free number or go to their own expense of dialing an out of state long distance number.  It is particularly advantageous for organizations that have a large number of Vancouver participants -- "intra-Vancouver" callers who are located in various offices or branches within the 778 area code.
 
Conferencea can be accessed from anyone in the world so accommodating international conferences is very quick and easy.  Additional passcodes can be issued to enable  you to have several simultaneous conference calls going on at once.
 
Overall, this is the only Vancouver conference bridge number that is being offered today, and we want to do our best in providing you the highest quality conference services available, at the lowest cost.  If you have any questions about the service, please call us at 877-254-2424 and we can answer your inquiries, and if you are interested, we can quickly sign you up so you can have your first conference call today.  You can also order online at the "Local Access" link above.
 

Cost Per Minute Conference Call: Rates For Different Conference Services

Submitted by lees on Tue, 2011-06-14 10:35

 

Per minute costs and rates for conference calls can vary widely, depending on what kind of conference service you have.  For example:

Flat rate and fixed rate services are available for a low flat monthly rate regardless of how many minutes you use.  The service offers unlimited service and you conference whenever you want, however long you want.  The downside is that if you don't use the service, you still have the monthly flat fee.  Also, this is not a toll free service and users will dial a long distance number.  (There is a 212 New York City area code conference number available on a flat rate service.)

A variation of that is the Toll Free Supersaver plan which works just like your cell phone plan -- you buy a certain number of toll free minutes each month.  The upside is that this service is the least expensive way to provide toll free convenience for your participants.  The downside is that you have to pay for the minutes you don't use.

The Pay As You Go conference call services are simple and straight forward.  You only pay for the conferencing services you use, AFTER you use them.  You can calculate your costs by simply multiplying your per minute rate for the total number of conference minutes you use.  For example, 10 people on a conference call for 10 minutes equals 100 total conference minutes.  Pay As You Go rates will vary depending on the what service you use.  Using a toll free number for your conference calls will cost slightly more than using a non-toll free number.  The most inexpensive Pay As You Go service is called Local Access, or Local Meet Me, which enables you to dial a local number in major cities.  So, if you are in New York City, you can dial a New York City number, and your colleagues in Chicago or Los Angeles can dial local numbers in their respective cities, and you will all end up talking on the same conference bridge.  Even if you don't live an a major city, using Local Access conferencing is about the cheapest form or conference calling you can use.  (There are free services available, but many times users experience blocked access. If you are a professional or business organization, the reliability of a paid conference service is highly recommended.)

At the top of the conferencing world is operated managed conference calls.  These are for important calls when you need the services of a professionally trained operator to call each of the participants and place them into the conference bridge.  Corporations use these operator conference call services all the time, particularly with investor relation calls, media calls or crisis updates.

Call us today at 877-254-2424 and we'll get you set up with the plan that will be the most cost effective one that meets your particular needs.