TelSpan -Worldwide Conferencing

School is almost out and summer is upon us. Memorial Day is almost here followed by the summer vacation months. Scheduling time off can be worrisome when you may have important client meetings, project planning sessions or committee meetings to attend.

Don’t worry. With audio and web conferencing solutions such as those provided by TelSpan, you can stay in touch and attend your meeting from anywhere in the world with a phone and/or an internet connection. Our operators will even be happy to dial out to you from your conference to easily connect you from any place at just the right time.

With no travel to and from your meeting, the disruption to your vacation will be minimal, and the peace of mind you will gain from keeping in touch will help you to relax.

Call TelSpan today at 800-800-1729 or visit us at www.telspan.com to learn how to stay connected during your next vacation.

News Release: March 28, 2012

From April 1 through April 30, TelSpan, the Indianapolis-based provider of worldwide conferencing services is offering up to $25 off the first month’s invoice for first time audio conferencing users!

TelSpan offers a variety of audio conferencing services including reservationless access, Operator Assisted conferences, and audio events with a professional Q&A.

TelSpan offers:
• Professionally Trained Operators
• Dedicated Event Advisors
• Branded Toll-Free Numbers Available
• Guaranteed Reliability
• Industry Leading Client Service
• No Contracts, No Minimums
• Two Decades of Industry Experience
• Flat Rate International Options

Try TelSpan’s audio conferencing, save up to $25, and experience our E3 (Excellence Exceeding Expectations) service for yourself!

To learn more about this offer, please visit www.telspan.com or call 800-800-1729.

About TelSpan

Founded in 1989, TelSpan is an Indianapolis-based primary provider of conferencing related services, including web, audio, and video conferencing, streaming, recording, online registration, and operator-assisted event and Q&A conferences.  TelSpan focuses upon providing high quality conferencing services to organizations worldwide with guaranteed E3 (Excellence Exceeding Expectations) service.  For more information, please visit TelSpan’s website at http://www.telspan.com.

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If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Marie Nolan at 800-600-6458 ext. 650 or e-mail Marie at nolanm@telspan.com.

You’ve done everything right. You saved the company a boatload of money by cutting the travel budget and implementing conference calling. You’ve set up your online registration account, so you can begin marketing your exciting webinars with the latest polling and video technology and making a profit from them. These are indeed wonderful things, but maybe there is something you’re missing….SECURITY.

Even though you may not think of it this way, your conference codes are something that could potentially be abused if they fall into the wrong hands. With the freedom and anonymity of  reservationless calling, there is no way for your conferencing service provider to know if the people using your codes belong to your company, or if they are scammers who have been prowling the internet to find posted codes to use and make themselves a tidy profit. While we do have antifraud procedures in place, it is ultimately your responsibility to make sure you don’t post your conference codes out there on the internet for all to see.

If you want codes for your events that you can post, we can set up one time use codes that open for your event and close after the event is over. There is no chance of some random web scammer finding the code and using it later, because it is deactivated. SECURE!

So the moral of this story is this: keep your conference codes private and don’t post them on your website, Facebook page or other internet site. Anyone could see them and take advantage of you. If you need a one-time use code, call the TelSpan Client Service Professionals at 1-800-937-7726 and we will be happy to get it set up for your SECURITY and PEACE OF MIND.

Effective communication is a complex and multi-faceted process.  Even when an audience cannot detect visual cues, their presence can still subtly influence the tone and tempo of the speaker.  A great way for a speaker to create a more engaging experience is to be aware of the potential benefits or pitfalls of the non-audio aspects of presenting, even if such things are not immediately apparent to an audience who can only hear the speaker.

Smile – Facial expressions have a huge impact on tone.  A serious expression will make your words sound slower and harsher while something as simple as a smile will inject enthusiasm and warmth to your tone. 

Gestures - Even though your audience may not be able to see them, gestures will add emotiveness to your tone and make you sound more energetic.

Posture – Standing helps a speaker audibly project and give bold emphasis, while sitting speakers tend to be more relaxed and fluid.  Sitting up straight will cause the speaker to sound more alert while leaning back will cause the speaker to speak lower and slower.  Walking while speaking will tend to speed up the tempo of one’s speech.

Environment – If you are aesthetically comfortable you will project less stress or anxiety for your audience to pick up on.  A comfortable chair, an organized desk, a colorful plant, piece of art, or pictures of loved ones or humorous things within sight can really make a difference to your mood and thus your tone.

Self-Awareness – Be aware of what your body is doing while you are speaking.  A mirror can make one more cognizant of facial expressions.  Watch the clock to make sure your tempo is not too slow or fast for the allotted time.  Try some breathing and vocal exercises to increase your audible effectiveness. 

Next time you are on a phone call or audio conference, try a few of the suggestions above, and then tell us what you think!

Event management at TelSpan is our promise to dedicate an Event Advisor to your Q&A event from start to finish.  You will receive recommendations on the best products to use in order to achieve the most successful event possible.  Assistance in the event setup stage, coordinating web training if necessary, and reviewing registration platforms are all included.  A confirmation call to ensure your event is scheduled correctly and details are updated puts our client at ease.

On the day of your event, your dedicated head operator will dial out to you and your speaker(s) as VIPs for your pre-conference.  During this time, our clients can provide us with any additional call requests as well as discuss last-minute items for the event flow.  Your head operator will then provide a professional introduction to your audience and fluidly turn the call to the host/speaker(s) to begin the presentation.  During the presentation, host, speakers, and participants have access to support at any time by pressing *0 on their touchtone phone.  Q&A session(s) can be held throughout the call by verbally queuing the head operator.  At the event’s conclusion, your operator will close the call for you and give you the option to post-conference.  Within 24 hours of your event, you will receive a participant list as well as a recording (if previously ordered).

We recognize that when our clients select TelSpan, our service is a reflection upon them.  We not only strive to provide great service to our clients, but our clients’ participants as well.  Our goal is to provide E3 (“Excellence Exceeding Expectations”) service to everyone we speak with. 

Let us manage your next event and see how our event management team can bring professionalism and success to your next conferencing event! Call us at 800-800-1729 to learn more.

News Release: February 1, 2012

From now through February 29, TelSpan, the Indianapolis-based provider of worldwide conferencing and communications services is offering $50 off each Concierge Event Conferencing Package. Eligible events must take place between February 1 and February 29, 2012.

Understanding that the success of Conferencing Events is critical to the achievement of client goals, TelSpan launched its Concierge Event Management Service in 2011. This service was created to assist clients with the planning and execution of each Concierge Conferencing Event, allowing the client to focus on the event content.  A TelSpan Event Concierge will handle all logistical details of each Concierge Event, including event technology selection, consultation on media presentation, event registration, coordination and training of speakers, PC compatibility testing, customization of introductions and scripting, facilitation of pre and post-event surveys, conduct roll call, other participant screening, and polling, provide event recording and archiving, customize branding, provide transcriptions, and more.

TelSpan was established to provide clients with “best-in-class” conferencing and communications technologies and offers a full line of web, audio and video conferencing solutions as well as online registration, streaming, and other communications services.  Concierge Event Management Services are a natural extension of TelSpan’s commitment to provide world class care to its clients.

Try TelSpan’s Concierge Event Service for yourself, save $50, and experience our E3 (Excellence Exceeding Expectations) service for yourself!

To learn more about this offer, please visit www.telspan.com or call 800-800-1729.

About TelSpan

Founded in 1989, TelSpan is an Indianapolis-based primary provider of conferencing related services, including web, audio, and video conferencing, streaming, recording, online registration, and operator-assisted event and Q&A conferences.  TelSpan focuses upon providing high quality conferencing services to organizations worldwide with guaranteed E3 (Excellence Exceeding Expectations) service.  For more information, please visit TelSpan’s website at http://www.telspan.com.

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If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Marie Nolan at 800-600-6458 ext. 650 or e-mail Marie at nolanm@telspan.com.

We have a client in the financial industry that regularly holds luncheons with a presentation to prospects about the services their firm offers. Realizing that they were missing out on additional prospects who were unable to physically attend for one reason another, this client reached out to TelSpan for assistance.

With a variety of platforms available, we were able to craft a solution enabling this client to broadcast out the audio portion of the event as well as the slide presentation, live over web and phone lines in real time. In this case, due to a lack of internet access at the luncheon facility, a TelSpan operator assisted offsite with pushing the slides for the remote audience, and coordinated the entire presentation with the speaker via the audio line. Remote attendees are able to access the presentation from anywhere with their pc and telephone.

Talk to us about how your next live event can reach an even larger audience!

Several weeks ago during a conversation about what I do at work, I had someone ask me with a straight face if as an operator I plugged people in and out of their conferences.  I received a good chuckle out of this perspective.  Mostly because I was picturing a woman with her Victorian Updo literally plugging wires in and out of a large switch board, and knowing the next direction this conversation would take would be about party lines.  But, at the same time I realized that not everyone, probably not even most of our everyday clients knows how we really function and the technology and tools we use.

I could provide you with all the technical terminology, but I can assure you that I am not completely sure what all of it means, so in an attempt not to lose everyone through this post, I will keep this simple.

At TelSpan, we are equipped with a variety of conferencing bridges.  In the audio conferencing world, a bridge is a piece of technology that serves as a point of connection for multiple individuals joining a single call, handling multiple calls from multiple organizations at once.  In all reality, we never have to physically touch a line for it to connect to a conference call; our bridges do all the work.  The only time your line would be ‘touched’ would be when a call participant has requested assistance from an operator, or if there was difficulty with a line entering a conference.  And when I say touched, I mean touched by a mouse, on a computer.  All of our bridges have a physical presence on a server, but what we work with is a real-time visual composition on a computer screen.  When we assist someone trying to enter a conference we literally drag and drop and icon representation of their line to their desired location and viola, they enter their conference.

TelSpan allows conference participants to connect via TDM, SIP, and VoIP connections, no plugs required.  A TDM connection in this case would be a standard phone line, where a SIP connection is a line that starts from a standard phone connection and then along the way to its destination is altered.  For example, if you are in Boston and need to dial into a conference call, you could dial a toll free number or dial a local Boston 857 number and not be charged long distance rates.  It would be like making a call from Boston to Boston even though you would technically be calling Indianapolis, our conferencing headquarters.  This same SIP principle holds true for our International Toll Free Numbers only with countries instead of cities.  The most fascinating connection is VoIP.  A Voice over Internet Protocol connection allows you to dial from an internet based phone and interact with our conferencing bridges and with all the other SIP and TDM connections. Who would have ever thought this was possible?   But it is possible through today’s advanced technology and it happens every day. 

In conclusion, I can promise you this; we have updated our hair, left the party lines to rest and are dedicated to providing you with the most up-to-date conferencing technology available.

News Release: August 16, 2011

TelSpan is proud to announce the launch of its latest conferencing solution, TelSpanVenue. TelSpanVenue is the premiere solution for webinar, webcasting, and web conferencing needs for audiences up to 1200 participants.

Combining web, audio, and video conferencing in one robust platform allows users to easily manage their online meetings, give presentations, and share documents while interacting with their audience. No downloads are required to host or attend a webinar, only Adobe^® Flash^® Player is required. TelSpanVenue is cross platform and browser compatible making it easily accessible for a variety of participants.

TelSpanVenue is feature-rich, and offers high quality video, screen sharing, custom branding, up to six webcams, PayPal^TM integration, surveys and testing, built-in registration and more. Participant interaction and engagement is increased with interactive features including instant messaging, annotation, white boarding, polling, and mood indicator feedback tools.  A content library allows you to store your meeting content online, and accepts a wide variety of file types. Recording is available on-demand to allow you to archive your sessions for future use.

An online demonstration of TelSpanVenue is available at  TelSpanVenue Video Demo

For more information on TelSpanVenue or any of our other services, visit www.telspan.com or call 800-800-1729.

About TelSpan

Founded in 1989, TelSpan is an Indianapolis-based primary provider of conferencing related services, including web, audio, and video conferencing, streaming, recording, online registration, and operator-assisted event and Q&A conferences.  TelSpan focuses upon providing high quality conferencing services to organizations worldwide with guaranteed E3 (Excellence Exceeding Expectations) service.  For more information, please visit TelSpan’s website at www.telspan.com.

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If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Marie Nolan at 800-600-6458 ext. 650 or e-mail Marie at nolanm@telspan.com.

Having a successful self-managed conference call can happen for you if you are armed with the right information, and take a few minutes to help your participants be prepared.
 
There are a few common problems that happen on conference calls that are easily avoided with proper preparation, and one of them is hold music playing into the call. If someone in your conference call puts their phone on hold to answer another call, they might just be playing hold music into the conference call. This will make it very difficult for everyone else to hear, so the best way to avoid this is to simply inform your participants ahead of time. If they have another call they must take, they can simply disconnect from the conference and call back in when they are free. They are missing everything that is happening on the call, so they have nothing to gain by staying on the line. Remember, if someone is playing hold music into your call, you can utilize TelSpan’s *0 feature to get assistance from a Client Service Professional.

Another common problem in conferencing is background noise. Sometimes a person needs to get on a conference call when they are in the airport or at a restaurant, and while it may not sound too loud to them, the background noise is very distracting to other participants on the call.

TelSpan’s *1 feature allows each participant to toggle between mute and un-mute so that they are able to fully engage in the call without the distraction of the final boarding call preventing everyone from hearing. As the host of the call, you have the power to mute all participants at any time by utilizing the *5 feature, and if you need help finding the source of the disturbance, remember to press *0 and a TelSpan Client Service Professional will isolate the problem and work with the participant to achieve a solution.