10 tips for virtual meetings

To assist you to maximise your video conferencing experience, here are some tips from industry expert, Carol Daunt, on professional presentation and etiquette during virtual meetings:

Wear standard business clothes, though “busy” patterns should be avoided – as these will blur and make the picture “fuzzy” – and pastel colours are better than white. Also, avoid bright, flashy jewellery as it can reflect the light and be distracting to other meeting participants.

Consider the image to be conveyed (e.g. business suit for formality, or casual clothes for a more-relaxed atmosphere), and think about whether it is more appropriate to sit or stand for the meeting – bearing in mind that leaning back in the chair looks informal, while sitting or standing tall appears more formal.

Do not walk around during a presentation so participants remain in-shot at all times. Instead, participants should sit or stand in a comfortable position, with their support materials nearby.

Set the camera to a medium shot , with the key participant/s in the centre of the screen and some space visible around the perimeter. This will allow facial expressions and personality to be conveyed effectively, but prevent inadvertent movements out-of-shot.

Where there is an audience at the same site, participants should avoid concentrating solely on their on-site audience. Adopting the approach of regularly scanning past the screen displaying the other site/s – and speaking directly to it at times – will maximise the collaboration experience.

Use a range of graphics to support a presentation – simply being a “talking head” does not engage remote meeting participants. Leveraging a document camera to display small objects and graphics such as text, diagrams and photos, or transmitting presentations via computer, will have more of an impact.

Break down long presentations into 10-15 minute segments, with space in between for questions and comments, to prevent other participants from “drifting off” and losing concentration.

When presenting to several sites, it is a good idea to appoint a leader at each location to distribute material and organise participants to ask questions, in order to save time. (Where numerous sites are connected, a limitation of one question per site may need to be set upfront.) Each reply to a question or comment from a remote site should be made looking directly at the screen, so it appears to be a personal response to the party who posed it.

The microphone/s in the room will pick up and amplify sound so meeting participants do not need to raise their voices or shout to be heard, no matter how remotely the other participants may be located. Instead, it is important to concentrate on speaking clearly and distinctly – as mumbling does not transmit well through microphones – and to vary pitch and the pace of delivery to avoid sounding monotone.

These are from Carol Daunt from LearnTel, a leading provider of training and consultancy for the application of collaborative communications technologies.

 

Sydney Public Relations Agency, CP Communications provides specialist media, traditional and online PR strategies that get amazing results. Contact us today. For more great tips visit our website www.cpcommunications.com.au. 

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