Tips for Using Visuals In Online Meetings

• 00:03 There are numerous excellent tools out there for
• 00:06 you communicating with people in an online meeting, where you're using visuals.
• 00:12 It doesn't have to be just you speaking, you can use traditional PowerPoint slides.
• 00:17 You can draw on your screen.
• 00:19 You can bring up animation.
• 00:21 Whatever you do, make sure it's done with a purpose of really making your ideas
• 00:25 become more understandable to the people you're speaking with, and more memorable.
• 00:31 You shouldn't use glitz just for glitz sake.
• 00:33 You shouldn't use animation just for animation sake.
• 00:36 In that way, it's similar to an in person PowerPoint presentation.
• 00:41 Only use what's really going to be helpful to your audience.
• 00:45 Now one of the tools I love the most is simply sharing my screen.
• 00:50 And that way when I'm in a meeting,
• 00:52 I can show people exactly what I'm talking about.
• 00:54 They can see my cursor.
• 00:56 So if you're going to do that, do it in advance, practice it.
• 01:01 Make sure you know exactly how to share the screen and
• 01:04 whatever platform you're on.
• 01:07 They're all a little bit different.
• 01:09 You don't want to have to learn a new technology in front of people.
• 01:13 When important clients, customers,
• 01:15 colleagues are all listening to you and focusing on you.
• 01:19 Practice in advance.
• 01:21 It'll be so much easier.
• 01:24 Also, make sure you have nothing extra up on your computer.
• 01:28 Get rid of every other browser, get rid of every other page, email,
• 01:34 get it all down, only have the platform open you're using to speak.
• 01:39 This way, you've minimized the possibilities of crashes,
• 01:43 conflicts, notifications popping up.
• 01:47 And you don't want anything embarrassing to pop up.
• 01:49 Let's say you're sharing a screen and you think you're going to the webpage
• 01:54 you want to share or your PowerPoint presentation.
• 01:57 But it instead goes to your email and there's something highly personal,
• 02:01 possibly embarrassing up there.
• 02:04 Get rid of all the tabs.
• 02:06 You don't want a tab of some naughty or embarrassing site showing up.
• 02:12 Because that's, unfortunately,
• 02:14 the only thing people will remember from your video conference.
• 02:17 If they see something that makes them giggle or
• 02:20 laugh because it was up on your screen.
• 02:23 So get rid of every additional page,
• 02:25 every additional application, only have up what you need.
• 02:31 In addition to all this, my recommendation, restart your entire
• 02:36 computer at least a half an hour before you start your teleconference.
• 02:42 I say a half an hour.
• 02:43 This has happened to me before, I waited until five minutes before,
• 02:47 I'm restarting it.
• 02:48 And that's when my computer decides it's time to do updates, and
• 02:51 it needs 10 minutes.
• 02:53 Give yourself at least a half an hour.
• 02:55 That way, you know, everything is updated.
• 02:58 You don't have any extra clutter on it, your computer's less likely to freeze and
• 03:02 you can have a successful online meeting.

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