How to Host a Successful Virtual Meeting
Virtual meetings are a fantastic, cost-effective option to catch up with colleagues or clients from across the globe.
Why virtual?
However, many businesses are put off by going digital due to pesky technical errors that can crop up and cause delays and frustration. We’ve rustled up some helpful tips on how to help your future online conferences run smoothly.
Before you meet.
Send out the agenda.
Outlining what is to be discussed during your meeting ensures that everyone in attendance is on the same page.
We’d recommend that you attach a brief overview of the key topics to the body of your calendar invite, or even send one out in an email around 24-48 hours before you’re due to meet up.
Arrive early.
On the day, ensure that you arrive prepared with lots of time to spare before the meeting. This provides you with an excellent opportunity to check your tech and familiarise yourself with the software, if necessary.
Technical hiccups are one of the biggest grievances during virtual meetings and may distract your colleagues from the matters at hand.
Check that Wi-Fi.
A poor internet connection can mean that you lose contact with your team or struggle to communicate with them properly. Make sure that the room you are in has a reliable signal that won’t cut out when you are mid-sentence.
During the meeting.
Share your screen.
Many online meeting platforms allow users to share their screens with others. This is especially handy if you have prepared a presentation or have something specific to demonstrate. In our experience, screen-sharing really helps to maintain your colleagues’ attention and keeps everyone up to date with what is being discussed.
Don’t be shy.
It might be a little daunting to reveal your tired face on a Monday morning, but sharing your video is a brilliant way to fully engage with your colleagues and get the most from a virtual meeting.
Face-to-face meetings have been, and probably always will be, a favoured way for people to exchange ideas, so boost the effectiveness of your online conference and switch on that webcam.
Be direct.
Another challenge of meeting virtually is the slight delays that slow connections can cause, which often leads to people talking over one another or awkward silences. Don’t be afraid to be direct with your team and ask specific people precise questions. Keeping a close eye on your agenda will also help to keep conversations on track.
Other things to think about.
Staying secure.
A quality online meeting software gives you the ability to control who can access what. Before fully committing to a particular programme, you may want to see if your tool enables you to choose exactly which employees can use the account and what features they can access.
By limiting who can use what can seriously reduce your risk of a security breach, as these are frequently caused by uninformed uses of software.
Consider encryption.
Again, a decent virtual conference tool will encrypt your data. This means things like files, messages, voice and video conversations are scrambled or distorted as they are transferred, which prevents hackers eavesdropping into your private meetings. Encryption is especially vital if members of your team regularly use public Wi-Fi networks in coffee shops or co-working spaces.
Be aware that some conversations, for example, if they are carried out over mobile or landline, cannot be encrypted.
If you are after more advice on how to properly conduct a valuable virtual meeting, get in touch with us via our contact page.