Tips to Help You Host A Better Video Conference
Hosting a video conference call can be daunting at first, you have a number of responsibilities and it ultimately falls to you to make sure everything is working properly and running smoothly. These responsibilities can easily go beyond what you may be used to when hosting a physical meeting and, since we will most likely only be having more online meetings in the foreseeable future, you may as well get good at organizing them.
Most corporations will be using applications like Zoom, Skype, or Microsoft Teams, so in an effort to help make your life easier, here are a few tips to help you choose a better video conference.
Technical Aspects of Video Conference:
While it is more than likely that by now, anyone attending a virtual conference call has a bit of experience with them, it is always a good idea to operate under the assumption that everyone is relatively new to them. Some people simply find virtual video calls stressful and can make mistakes or forget things very easily.
As the host, it is up to you to make sure everyone has what they need and knows enough to feel comfortable attending and potentially speaking in a virtual meeting. To keep everyone up to speed, make sure they check or are aware of the following things.
Audio and video
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Picking the right area to have the best possible lighting is particularly important if you are going to be the center of attention at any time, try to use natural light if possible and if not, make sure you test your camera in advance to make sure you have no shadows hiding your face. Additionally, make sure all members of the meeting are wearing headphones and ideally have an external microphone.
Phone headphones are great because they have a microphone built-in. The microphone will be close to your mouth which will make it easier for others to hear you, and the headphones will not only help you hear better but will also prevent any kind of audio feedback from echoing back into the call.
Try a change of Scenery:
One great way to make your meeting more memorable is to use virtual backgrounds. These backgrounds can not only help to add humor to your meetings, but can also be used to hide things like sensitive information, messy rooms, or distractions like other people walking around behind you.
Plenty of Zoom virtual background images are available to choose from and there is a background for practically any occasion. They are incredibly helpful and in this day and age, with distractions all around our home, are practically essential for anyone attending a virtual meeting.
Plan Ahead:
Planning is important for any meeting but virtual meetings, since everyone is attending them from the comfort of their own homes, it is far easier for people to get distracted or sidetracked. To prevent this, we recommend that you write an agenda to plan out your meeting. This agenda can be time-sensitive if you wish, but should at least include the following things.
- The reason for the meeting
- What you want to discuss
- The overall goal you want to achieve
It is also a good idea to write a set of guidelines that can function similarly to how a code of conduct works in an office. Since people are at home, they can easily forget that they need to act to a certain level of professionalism, and forwarding an agenda with a brief list of guidelines and rules will help to keep everything civil and on track.
Record it:
Finally, one of the best features that virtual meetings have to offer is the ability to record any meeting you host. At the simple push of a button, you can record an entire meeting and, while this may not be a great idea when privacy is essential, for everyday meetings it is a great way to streamline the note-taking process.
Additionally, recorded meetings are extremely helpful for anyone unable to make it in time to attend the conference call live. Instead of having to rely on someone else’s notes or feedback, they can simply watch the meeting themselves and remain up to date on all current events.
