Are “Free Conferencing Services” really free?

Have you been considering using a free conferencing service but have wondered, what’s the catch? After all, we’ve all heard the saying, “If sounds too good to be true, it probably is." Does this old saying hold true for "Free Conferencing services?"

You may have wondered then, what’s the skinny on free conferencing services? Does it make sense for my small business? Is there something they are not telling me? Fortunately, there are only two things to take into consideration: the real cost to your pocketbook and the real but intangle cost to the integrity of your brand.  

Your pocketbook: Free conferencing services can be completely free but only under the following one condition: If all your associates, your customers and clients have  access to unlimited toll free plan on their phone or mobile service. Otherwise, if you have a 6 cents per mintute long distance plan from your phone company, that is your per minutes cost of "Free Conferencing! Multiply that by the number of participants on the call with similar plans! Another question, how will your clients and prospects feel about having to pay for toll calls in order to connect with you? How about the corporate conference rooms that don't allow long distance calls?

Your brand: This is what I call the intangible, tangible, because the impression you make will eventually find its way to your bottom line. Free conferencing call services will diminish your brand by announcing the magic word, FREE to your participants as they enter the call. And no one ever misses the word FREE! Does your organization sound “too cheap” or “small” to risk working with?

The Free Conferencing services try to overcome both those barriers by providing you with a customized greeting and  800 toll free plan. However, this toll plan can cost as much as 10 cents per participants per call. Ten participants on a call for 60 minutes can easily cost you $60.00 an hour. Twenty such calls per month will cost you over $1200 a month! This cost is twice the cost of a  traditional full service conferencing plan with rates under 5 cents per minute, per user, and lower if under a contract!

The bottom line:

Are Free Conferencing Services too good to be true?

Unless you and everyone you employ as well as do business with have 24/7 access to unlimited toll free services, the answer is a resounding YES, it is too good to be true! And, it can cost you twice as much or more than traditional conferencing services!

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If you need assistance in planning your telecom move, please reach out to us at www.nadicent.com