Since the inception of ZipDX, when participants are explicitly invited to a ZipDX conference the system sends them an email invitation. This is part of the security model we call Identity Conferencing.
Each invitation (shown above – as viewed in MS Outlook) is personalized, unique to each participant. It includes their PIN and the most appropriate dial-in number based upon what the system knows about their location. Thus, when viewing the invitation they see everything required to join the conference.
There are times when it would be useful to be able to include some additional information relevant to a specific conference. For example, an organizer may wish to distribute the conference agenda, or links to access shared documents. To address this requirement we have included a customization feature.
In the process of creating a new conference using the ZipDX web portal you see a section entitled Invite Email Custom Footer near the bottom of the page, below the Audio Features settings.
Shown collapsed by default, clicking on the Show button reveals three separate areas where custom information can be entered.
By default the meeting invitation includes a link to access the ZipDX Web Portal. This is handy when participants are expected to join a web share or connect by computer using our web phone.
The tick box to Suppress Portal Hyperlink (shown above) ensures that the participants will not be offered such a link. This simplifies the invitation. Its is appropriate when you know that all participants will be connecting by telephone and web sharing will not be used.
As an initial example let us consider that a meeting organizer might want to distribute a reminder about some keypad functions available during the course of a conference. Such notes might appear as follows:
*1 – Raise your hand
*2X – Cast a vote, where X is a number between 1 and 9
*3 – Hear the number of participants in the conference
*6 – Mute or un-mute yourself
When entered into the customer footer tool they appear as shown below.
They result in email invitations with the notes included as shown in the following image:
The image above is a screen shot of a web mail client showing only the Organizer Notes section. Click on the image to see a larger view of the entire email invitation.
There are two possible opportunities to use the custom footer:
If you add a custom footer in the process of creating a conference it will be used just once, for that conference. This is appropriate when the materials included are applicable to one specific call. For example, the agenda or links to shared files.
If you add a custom footer to a conference template it will be used repeatedly. It will be included any time that template is used to create a new conference. This approach is most applicable when the information included is broadly applicable to a series of calls.
For example, when hosting a multilingual conference series you may elect to include dial-in instructions for connecting directly to the various language channels available.
The system retains the customization included in a past conference. In your Past Conferences you can go into the conference details. Click on the button to Copy to Template. The customization messages are carried forward into the new template.
The two examples presented serve to illustrate how the custom footer feature works. We’ve included the text used in creating these examples so that you have a basis for experimentation. Setup a test meeting for yourself, including some notes in the custom footer.
You can adjust your preferred language, then have the system send you a reminder email so you see exactly how the information is presented. There’s no better way to become familiar with the use of a new feature than by a little experimentation.
The Custom Footer function provides a convenient way for conference organizers to include additional information in the meeting invitation. Whether for distributing an agenda, links to shared files, or tips on using the conference service, it helps to consolidate all the information a participant needs in one, convenient place.
In addition, support for localized messaging allows participants to receive conference invitations in their preferred language. We are continuing to extend our library of localizations, and hope to add Spanish in the near future.