By Dana Phillips.

Have you ever hosted a conference call, and when you hung up, you thought, “That didn’t go well. Did I get my message across? Was it clear? What did my listeners think? What actions are they taking now?” Deep inside, you knew the call didn’t go as well as you wanted. It’s’s happened to many a Leader, and you can do something about it.

Your conference calls are an essential part of your communication with your team or clients. Each time you plan a call, ask yourself, “What do I want my listeners to THINK…FEEL…and DO when they get off the call?”

Here are four tips to help you plan great calls:

  • Have a Specific Objective. Identify the goal of the call. Is this a training call? If so, keep it to one training topic and cover it thoroughly. Is this a call to give information, i.e., sharing the new monthly promotions? If so, keep it sharing them and providing a few ideas on using the promotions to build their business for the month. Is this a call to share the benefits of moving up to a new Career Level? If so, be sure your message is clear, concise, and presented in an exciting way.
  • Be Prepared. Take time to plan the call. It’s great to “fly by the seat of your pants” in many areas of your business. When you do a conference call with team members or clients, it’s essential to respect their time and give them value for the time they’ve invested in being on the call. When you’re prepared and have practiced what you’ll say, the call will be focused and will deliver more in the time allotted. Many leaders find that writing out what they’ll say on the call will make them more comfortable and confident. They can study and become familiar with what they want to say without it sounding like reading it. It also helps keep the call within the time allotted.
  • Have Guest Speakers. Invite others to be guest speakers – When you have two or more voices on the call, it makes it easier to listen to and keeps your listeners from “tuning out” because they listen to the same voice for the entire call. Be sure to invite guests experienced in speaking on conference calls and are credible in the topic you are sharing. Everyone likes to hear from someone who’s leading by example.
  • Keep it Simple. Have you ever been on a call listening to a speaker who is sharing so many ideas so fast that you can hardly keep up? It’s hard to retain much of the call or even know where to start when you hang up. It’s important to stay focused by taking time to cover the topic. Give your listeners a process or steps to follow and close with a FUN challenge that will encourage them to take action right away.

Remember, you don’t need to share everything you know on one call. There will be other calls, and you can choose different topics. Be respectful of your listeners’ time and end the call on time. And most of all, have FUN and ENJOY your time connecting with people who are important to you!

Would You Like More Practical Ideas on Leadership? Recruiting?

Every Friday, we offer a quick five minute Facebook live in our group, the Direct Selling Leaders Network. You and your future leaders are welcome to join the group. We have no cross recruiting and no daily sales pitches. PS: Our Friday topics for the next few weeks are about recruiting and Facebook. Interested? Join today!