Conferencing Etiquette

• Always use your manners.
– Normal personal and professional manners always apply - introduce yourself, speak clearly, don't interrupt, don’t monopolize the conversation, limit distractions.

• Always begin the call promptly at the scheduled time and finish it on schedule.
– Formally begin the call with introductions and agenda overview and bring it to an end thanking all of the conference attendees for their time.

• Always introduce all participants.
– If you are a participant and have to leave the meeting before it’s over, let everyone know upfront when you introduce yourself.

• Always set a time limit and stick to it.
– If you find yourself going over the time, you may need to postpone the rest of the call to accommodate everyone’s schedules.

• Always pay attention to file size during webinars.
– If someone is using dial-up the desktop portion may be substantially delayed.

• Always resist the urge to surf the internet or follow-up on emails.
– You may be required to provide input, so pay attention.

• Never eat, drink, shuffle papers, click your pen or use a “clicky” keyboard.
– Be considerate of background noise, as participants can hear everything that’s not muted.

• Always avoid the “hold” feature.
– Music often plays and makes it impossible for the other participants to continue the meeting.

• Always pick up the telephone handset for clear conversation and avoid the urge to use your speakerphone, unless muted.
– Most speaker phones are not two way, so if there are sounds in the room, your phone will stop receiving the speaker.

• Always state your name prior to speaking.
– Don’t presume that all teleconference attendees recognize your voice.