We all want to run more streamlined, efficient businesses that keep excessive spending to a minimum while still delivering on our goals.

Communication is the lifeblood of any team, but getting everybody in one place at one can be a challenge, especially if you're spread across different countries or regions.

Conference calling can be a great way to achieve your business goals.

Here's our guide to how conference calls can help you keep your team firmly on the same page.

Clarity

Even in a traditional meeting, the more people that are present, the harder it can be for everybody to hear clearly. Yet it's vital that everyone in a team receives the same message simultaneously so everyone moves forward together.

Most of us are not in corporate boardrooms with amplification systems, yet it's vital that everybody's point is clearly heard.

Conference calls help you to achieve your business goals because everyone can be clearly heard and nothing is missed.

With active talker indicationand echo canceling, you can easily keep track of who's saying what and they'll come through crystal clear.

Flexibility

Effective business doesn't mean constantly putting out fires, but it does require flexibility to meet business needs. At times, it's not possible for everybody to be exactly where they'd planned to be at the same time.

With conference calling, as long as you have a reliable internet connection, which basically means almost anywhere these days, you can be part of any meeting. Need to take conference calls on your mobile - not a problem!

The added bonus is that unlike everybody traveling to a physical location, which is in itself fraught with potential holdups, conference calls can be rearranged more easily than traditional meetings.

All of this helps your business to be more dynamic and agile.

Timeliness

There's a time for a well-planned meeting with a set agenda that everyone's studied in advance. But sometimes, you need to nip a problem in the bud, and now's the only time that's going to cut it.

You could send an email, but let's face it, it's easy for them to get lost and have minimal effect.

A conference call can be arranged in minutes and have a massive impact.

Deliver your message to your whole team, at once, and field questions in real time. This can help to redirect the team's focus and catch potential problems before they escalate.

Energize your Workforce

Conference calls in themselves won't magically help you to achieve business goals, but the way you use them can.

On a conference call, the amount of energy you put relates directly to the success of the meeting. It could be easy for minds to wander, especially if it's audio only and you feel like no-ones watching.

If you're chairing conference calls regularly, reflect on the current level of energy you generate. Remember that people who are energetic are motivated to achieve the best for your business. How much energy you generate is down to you.

How can you achieve this? First of all, radiate warmth and enthusiasm by smiling as you speak and putting some life into your voice. If you're passionate about your business, let it shine through in how you talk about it.

Take an interest in your coworkers and let it show in how you lead the meeting - keeping it formal but friendly.

Also, take into account time differences. Is it early or late in the day in one of your offices? Make sure your tone conveys that it was worth them getting in early, or staying back late.

This will generate rapport, boost morale and make people look forward to conference calls.

Build Team Spirit

It's easy for team members these days to fire off an email or an instant message to each other. But so much subtlety in communication is lost when using the written word, and it's easy for misunderstandings to occur.

It makes good sense to have a team who like each other and enjoy working together. With conference calling, this can be the case even if they've never met each other in person.

Rather than feeling out on a limb, team members feel fully integrated and a vital part of the team. These are the kind of team members you want - the kind that are the drivers of success in any business.

Small Team Solutions

Sometimes, it's not necessary to meet with the whole team.

It can be helpful to connect key team members with clients without them all having to be at the same physical location.

Sometimes the input of another professional or team member with different expertise is all that it needed to change a challenging situation into a potentially lucrative one.

The business benefits of this are clear to see - you save travel time, delays in getting everyone to the same location and best of all save money. Plus, your client's concerns are addressed more quickly, which is just good business sense.

Never Miss a Beat

Minuted meetings are the mainstay of most businesses, but how much is recorded is really down to the attentiveness of one person who is taking general notes.

With conference calls, you can choose to record them. It's so useful to be able to go back and double check a fact, or replay a key point to make sure that you've understood it correctly.

Never miss a detail again with this great feature that you find in the best conference calling systems.

The Verdict: How Conference Calls Help Your Business Goals

The verdict is clear - conference calls save time and money, boost morale and bring teams together, and ensure that no details slip through the net.

What more could you want for your business than a team who communicate effectively, in a timely manner and are all firmly on the same page?

Make sure that the conference calling system you choose is the very best for your business needs.

Contact us today to discuss how we can help your business go from strength to strength.