I just hosted a conference call for my business partners. It was a twenty minute call with a guest speaker. We could have invited our partners to dial into the call live but in this case, we simply recorded it. We will give the playback number to our partners, but I could also download the recording and either email it or post it on a web page.
Teleconferences allow you to create the excitement of a “live event” for your clients or prospects, and recording allows you to make that event available 24/7.
Here are some uses for teleconferences:
- Live seminars for prospective clients
- Informational programs for clients
- Training employees; instructing new clients
- Creating audio brochures or reports
- To capture testimonials
- Creating information products you can sell or offer as bonuses
You can do one-one-interviews, group presentations with multiple speakers, or simple broadcasts, with or without caller participation.
Speakers use a different code to dial in so they can be heard. Participants can be muted, or they can be allowed to ask questions.
There are many free and paid teleconference services available. The paid services usually offer additional line capacity and features, but for most purposes, the free services work just fine. For today’s call, I used FreeConferenceCall.com, which allows up to 96 callers.
FreeConferenceCall.com has another free service for recording audio messages directly for playback. It works like voice mail, but there is no limit to the length of your recording.
I’ve used this to record introductory messages, aka “sizzle calls,” to generate interest in a product or service I was promoting, for training messages, to record live conference calls for permanent playback, and for FAQ-type messages.
You can get a single audio playback number, or one with “extensions” so the caller can press “option one for information, etc. . .”.) The free version requires callers to dial an extension to listen. There is a paid version ($5/mo.) if you want a direct dial number without an extension or pin number.
The audio recording service can be set for “playback only,” so callers can access information, or you can allow callers to leave a message. This can be used as a lead capture tool for advertised promotions.
I’ve used teleconferences and audio recordings extensively in my businesses, both the paid and free versions, and they are an excellent, low-tech way to communicate with a large number of people. If you have not used these services in your marketing, I encourage you to do so.
A good place to start: set up a free account and record a message, “Three Reasons For Hiring [Your Firm Name] for Your [Legal Issue/Engagement]”.
How have you used teleconferences and audio messages in your practice?
