SpeakerNet News Compilations

Bridge Line Supplier Recommendations

—Rebecca Morgan

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Update from Jeff Keller (jeffaie@optonline.net)

I'm looking for a reliable telephone bridge service that also records the conferences and quickly makes the recording available. Some of my conferences will have less than 50 people on the call.

-- Douglas Bladecki

Arkadin
www.arkadin.com
866-427-5234

-- Brad Snyder

I've used www.telebridge.com on several occasions with good luck.

-- Ian Percy

www.freeconference.com -- This is a free service with a minimal charge if you want the session recorded or transcribed.

-- Allan Hardman

We use FreeConferenceCall.com, and have had very good success with them. There are absolutely no charges, lines hold 97 people, you can record and give a phone number and PIN right on your call for people to dial in to listen to. They even send an e-mail report immediately after the call listing every phone number that dialed the call, and the times in and out. All the usual features are available, such as various mutings (callers, in and out chimes, etc). The number and PIN they give you is good for 3 months.

The recording is available until you record over it with your next call -- you can not archive them.

-- Noel McNaughton

I recommend Telephone Bridge Services (www.telephonebridgeservices.com, a division of Teleclass International). I have dealt with these people for about eight years, and they are reliable.

-- Judy Cullins

I use LiveOffice Free Conferencing (freeconferencing.liveoffice.com) now instead of www.freeconference.com. This new system allows you to phone coach or consult and record it all with MP3. All no cost. The moderator gets a PIN and can record. The others get their own PIN number. The opportunities are great from this. Record your teleseminars, and either give them to your audience or sell them at a reasonable price to others in your database.

Warning: With www.freeconference.com my last teleclass had more than 10 callers get dumped and not be able to get back on. Also you can't record to an MP3 with this company.



Original responses:

We're wanting to compile a list of recommended bridge line suppliers, both for rent and lease. If you've used a reliable supplier, please provide their name, URL, email, phone, pricing info, and other useful info. Does the line have mass-muting capability? Individual access codes?

-- Nancy Gerber

I have been working with Teleclass International for several years. Their technology is very reliable and their customer service is exceptional.

They have 60-person bridges, 150-person bridges with audio podium, and a great lease deal (this page has a comparison chart with them and other major suppliers).

For those who are presenting teleclasses, if you go through their instructor training and are certified to list classes on their site, they offer an exemption subscription for instructors -- $50 a month allows unlimited teleclass course listings in their on-line catalog and this includes the fees for the bridge rental. It's a great deal.

NOTE: Even the best teleconference line technology is not perfect -- there are occasional glitches, poor connections, noisy lines, busy circuits, etc. Good customer service from whatever company you choose is essential when technical challenges arise.

-- Susan Friedmann

-- Tom Antion

I'm with VoiceText Communications. They have really been wonderful. I have a 600-person mutable bridge line and I can change the pin numbers frequently. They have operators standing by that are instantly responsive in case of trouble. They also do backup recording to CD or tape for an extra fee. I have been very pleased with their service.

-- Michele Lisenbury Christensen

Ed Shea
630/530.1060
coachimago@aol.com

Rents by the hour - both bridges and audio-podiums (recording of your call, accessible 24/7 by up to 150 people at a time). $15-$50 per hour based on variable capacity and length of term. Mass muting capability. Per-call access codes -- 1 for host/speaker(s), another for guests.

-- Susan Levin

Check out this one; it is free.

-- Jeanette Cates

The company that lets you mute the lines is VoiceText. They're here in Austin. Alex Mandossian is the person who put me in touch with them. I haven't contracted yet, because they're more expensive. But I know Dan Janal uses them for his PR Leads calls and Tom Antion has used them for his calls. They give you two lines - one for moderators and one for participants.

The other possibility is the line used by MultipleStreamsofIncome. It's out of New York. You can call MSI and ask for Jan or Tom Painter and they can give you the details.

-- Ruby Newell-Legner

-- Fred Gleeck

Fred Gleeck offers bridge lines that may be purchased by contacting him at 800-FGLEECK or visiting his Web site. SpeakerNet News subscribers receive a 10% discount.

-- Judy Sabah

Judy Sabah rents her bridge line for $20 per hour in hourly increments. It accommodates up to 30 people. Contact her for rental reservations at either 303/777-1765 or Judy@JudySabah.com. Information about bridge rental is also available on her Web site.

-- Joe Graziano

I use RCI (Resource Communications, Inc.). They have done a fantastic job for me. They have very affordable rates and can handle small teleclasses to very large teleclasses. If anyone on the call has a problem, an operator can be summoned immediately.

They also are very flexible. They have tailored many calls specifically to my requests and can record digitally for your website on tape and/or on CD.

They are at www.callrci.com or contact Steve Eitman at 1-800-527-4874 x 228

-- Steve Epner

Try FasComm (www.fascomm.com) for monthly unlimited usage telephone bridge line usage, starting at $67/month.

-- Caterina Rando

In San Francisco Bay Area (415 area code), rentabridge.com offers excellent, consistent sound and performance, easy "meet-me" entry with no pin codes, hassle-free technology (up to 30 callers, $10-$15/hour).

SpeakerNet News is produced by Rebecca Morgan and Ken Braly. It is not affiliated with the National Speakers Association. Send comments or suggestions