How Do I Make a Conference Call?

Most office phones have multiple lines that allow for conference calls.

You may encounter many situations in the business world in which you will need to make a conference call in the office. If you don't know how to do this, learn how, especially if you intend to continue working in a business environment. Learning how to make a conference call on a standard multi-line phone, which is common in offices, is simple.

Things You'll Need

• Standard multi-line office phone

Instructions

1. Lift up the receiver device on your phone and dial the number of the first person you intend to conference call. When they answer, explain to them that you are conducting the call and that you will have to put them on hold while you dial the other party. Place them on hold.

2. Press the button labeled "Conference" on your phone's dashboard. Most office phones will automatically click over to the next line; for example, if you called someone on line A, they will hold while you ring someone on line B. However, if your office phone doesn't have this feature, press the button of the next open line to call your second party. Some office phones will have a button labeled "Recall" or simply "R," which is essentially the same button as "Conference."

3. Dial the phone number for the second party you are adding to the conference call. When they answer, explain that you are setting up a conference call, just in case you should accidentally hang up on them in the process, and press the "Conference" button one more time. For office phones that perhaps use the recall function, the specific model may require you to hit a number on the keypad instead of pressing "Recall" again.

4. Repeat these steps if you want to add more callers, whether your phone has the "Conference" or "Recall" button. You should now have three parties on the same line for the conference call. If you don't hear the other two parties, call for technical support, as you may have a glitch in your phone.

Tips & Warnings

• Add more parties to your call by doing these steps again after you've added each person to the call.

• You can also perform a conference call online through a variety of websites that also offer video conferencing for a more in-depth meeting.

References

• Ball State University: How To Make A Conference Call
• UC San Diego: Conference Calls

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish