Hints and tips

XO Quick Conference best practices

How to Conduct an XO Quick Conference call

  • Contact the people you wish to invite, giving them the dial-in number, the Participants' Passcode and the date and time of the meeting. Note: Please advise your participants when entering the meeting before you, they will be placed on hold in the conference listening to music until you join. If you or your participants are travelling, remind them to print out the dial-in details to take with them.
  • At the start of your meeting, dial your XO Quick Conference dial-in number and follow the prompts. Enter your Chairperson's Passcode. Participants follow the same instructions and enter their Participants Passcode. Keep your Chairperson's Passcode safe to prevent fraudulent use.
  • That's it! You will be joined together on the call and your meeting can begin.

How to keep your audio conference secure

  • Press * then 0 Operator assistance – If there is a discrepancy between the number of lines in the conference and the roll call, use this function and ask for the Conference Co-ordinator to disconnect the line not responding.
  • Press # then 1 Participant roll call – At the beginning of each call, you can use this function to listen to the names of the participants who have joined. This way you are aware of who is on the call and you can determine if there are any unwanted participants on the call or whether you need to wait for somebody to join before you start.
  • Press # then 2 Monitor the number of lines – Use this function to obtain the number of lines active in the conference. This is a quick way to establish how many participants are on the call without having to do a roll call.
  • Press * then 7 Conference lock & unlock – Use this function to lock or unlock participants entering the call. This feature is useful when you do not want additional parties to join your call after it has begun. Participants attempting to join a locked call will be directed to the Conference Co-ordinator.
  • Press # then # End the conference – Use this function to disconnect all participants at the end of your call. This ensures that your conference ends when you hang up.

Conference call etiquette

  • You should treat a conference call like any other meeting.
  • Agree an agenda prior to or at the beginning of your call.
  • Specify the time zone in meeting invites to avoid meeting delays and confusion.
  • Be sure to include the Global Access URL link for your account.
  • As the chairperson, agree who will host the call.
  • At the beginning of your call, conduct a roll call by pressing # then 0 to check who is on the call.
  • Ask the host to introduce meeting participants at the start of the call.
  • Introduce yourself when speaking and encourage participants to do the same.
  • Ask your participants to mute their line by pressing * then 6 to cut out any background noise when this is present. They can then unmute their line by pressing * then 6.
  • Do not place your phone on Hold during a conference call. Doing so would add your Music On Hold into the conference call.
  • Be sure to keep your mobile phone or Blackberry at least six feet away from your telephone as it can create a 'hum', or other interference when active.
  • Take care not to rustle paper, type or make a noise that might disturb the call, unless your line is muted. Press * then 6 to mute and then * then 6 again to un-mute
  • Press * then 0 if you need help from a Conference Co-ordinator.
  • At the end of your call, summarise the key actions and agree the next meeting date and time.

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