Making your virtual meetings and presentations a success…

Although you may have preferred to meet in person for that much anticipated and longed for personal interaction with your audience, perhaps to ensure the success of your presentation and to avoid the virtual meeting faux pas and cringe worthy occurrences that have become associated with virtual meetings, it may not always be possible!  Virtual meetings and presentations are set to continue for the better part of the year especially taking into account the requirement to limit in person meetings for the purpose of curbing the spread of the COVID-19 Virus.

Seeing as these virtual interactions are here to stay, it stands to reason for us to ensure that our virtual meetings and presentations are a success. You may not be able to control some aspects such as the attendance at the meetings, network interferences, etc., but there are a few things that you can do to ensure the smooth running of your virtual meeting as far as possible…

1. Be prepared!!

Just as you would have ensured that you have everything on hand and test your equipment prior to an in-person meeting or presentation, be well prepared for your virtual presentation. Ensure that the software on your PC has been updated, you have the correct apps installed for the functionality required and that you know how to locate and use the relevant functions such as screen sharing, spot lighting the speaker, chat reactions, etc.

2. As the meeting host, dial-in at least 5-10 minutes before everyone else. This gives you the opportunity to test your lighting and sound in advance and to ensure that the presentation you need to share is open.
    
3. Determine the appropriate etiquette and set out the rules for the online meeting beforehand. Inform the meeting attendees whether you prefer or need the cameras to be switched off or on based on the size of the meeting or interaction required. As the host, it’s always best to have your camera switched on. When hosting a workshop, you may request attendees to switch on their cameras for the introduction even if they will be switched off later on. Inform attendees whether you require them to keep their speakers muted, to use the chat function to comment and/or raise questions, or to use the raise hand function and to unmute their speakers when they want to share something.

• Adequate lighting is important especially if you hosting the meeting or presenting. It helps to keep your audience engaged if they can see your facial expressions. Avoid, avoid, avoid any distracting virtual background!! Using creative backgrounds may seem like a cool idea and an opportunity to show off your technical abilities, but you would rather have a natural setting than look like you are floating in space or even worse, having your face flicker on and off like a badly produced ‘alien invasion’ movie.

• Set your camera at eye-level so that it is easier for you to make virtual ‘eye-contact’ and ensure that your camera angle is not distracting. The last thing your participants want to look at is up your nose or at the top of your head.

6. Check your sound quality. Sound quality is critical. Speak at a consistent volume and avoid speaking at a volume that’s either too high or too low, as this will have your audience fiddling with the sound settings or even worse tuning out completely. It is also important to avoid lengthy pauses, as these are not as effective virtually as they may be in person, your audience may think that you have lost connectivity.

• Respect time! Ensure that you start and end the meeting on time as per the meeting invitation in order to allow your participants to honour all other engagements they have scheduled for the day. Where the discussions are robust and lead to the meeting running over the scheduled time, check with the meeting attendees in order to determine whether they are able to continue past the scheduled meeting time or whether the meeting needs to be re-scheduled. If the meeting is a long one, schedule adequate breaks for the comfort of your audience.

May all your virtual meetings be a success.

This article contains information from an article by Dr Sharon King Gabrielides.

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