Tips for a Successful Audio Conference Call

Notify your participants of the date/time of your conference in advance of the meeting.
Prepare any materials needed for the conference.
Set an agenda for the meeting.
If possible, send the agenda to all meeting participants.
Send out a reminder to participants for calls scheduled far in advance.
Make sure you are in a quiet location where you will not be disturbed.

Turn off call-waiting. Most call-waiting features can be deactivated by dialing *70 before dialing into the conference.
Be on time! It helps if the host or chairperson dials into the conference a few minutes early. This avoids confusion if guests dial-in early.
Conduct a roll call to find out who has joined your conference.
Instruct everyone to state their names when speaking to avoid confusion. For example, "This is Karen, and I'd like to see..."
Require attendees to refrain form putting the call on hold, as some companies have hold music that would disrupt the conference. If a participant places a line on hold, press *0 and request the operator mute or remove the caller from your conference.

Ask for feedback from specific participants instead of from the entire group.
Postpone any discussions that are not relevant to the conference for another date and time.
Promptly deal with any noise or distractions.
Summarize the issues discussed and recap any action items resulting from the call.
Clearly state when you are ending the conference. Often a guest can be left on the line not realizing that the conference has ended.