Tips for Better Virtual Presentations

With so many of us working from home offices, companies are holding a lot more virtual meetings to stay in touch and align on projects and goals. Giving a presentation is no longer just about showing your slides in a conference room. You need to be prepared on and off camera to ensure that your meeting is a success. Below are some tips that can help you to prepare for your next meeting.

• Make sure your slides are simple and easy to read
  • Pictures are better than a lot of words. You can put your own notes on a different screen so that you can access them if needed.
  • Prior to the meeting, do a mirror check— if you look polished you will be taken more seriously
• Look at the camera, not your screen. That allows you to connect with your audience.
• Make sure everyone has cameras on (body language is 55% of how we communicate)
  • If someone seems distracted, you can politely try to draw them back in to the conversation.
• Familiarize yourself with the technology and all its bells and whistles
  • Does your technology have chat boards, white boards, etc. and are you using all the features effectively?
• Pay attention to your lighting, sound, and background
  • Is it easy for people to see your face?
  • Is your background clean and uncluttered?
  • Are you in a quite area with no audio distractions?
• Use good verbal cues to keep the audience engaged
  • Fluctuate your tone
  • Use storytelling and humor
  • Ask for people to share, “I noticed you nodding; Lisa; I would love to hear your perspective on this topic.”
  • Check for understanding using an open-ended question, “I know I covered a lot there, what questions do you have?”
• Accept there will be hiccups and plan for them
  • Someone’s screen freezes
    • In the chat, use the private feature to send them the call-in info and have them exit and dial back in
  • The audience is talking over each other
    • Ask people to give you a hand raise if they have a question and a thumbs up if they have a comment; this incorporates some physical movement and allows people to get called on prior to speaking
  • A pet or child joins in; if so, do a quick introduction to acknowledge the new “assistant” and then transition back into business

We hope you found these useful. Have any tips of your own? Email us at ecicorpcomm@ecisolutions.com.