14 Feb Be More Engaging Virtually

It’s been two plus years and still I hear from many people that they aren’t happy with how they look and sound on their on-camera platforms. This is a problem because virtual meetings and online working relationships are here to stay. It’s a bit like the talkies edging out those silent movie stars with their hugely emotive eyes and exagerrated gestures. You don’t want to be left behind or forced to find another line of work simply because you aren’t great on screen.

As we’ve always judged each other, on first encounter, based on nothing more than how we look, dress, gesture and walk, we now judge you on band-width, lighting, camera and audio. How many times have you sat through a hugely disrupted meeting because one person’s microphone keeps cutting out and they have to repeat themselves OR their speakers suck and they insist on everyone else being louder or repetitive? The content becomes an afterthought as the group is consumed by technological challenges.

Learning to make the most of new technologies is nothing new, after all. Newsrooms used manual, then electric typewriters, and multi-part carbon paper before computerization changed that work flow. Emergency Room staff had to spell each other off doing chest compressions before machines were developed that could keep going all day, freeing staff up for tasks that made better use of their skills and time.

Here’s a little video promo for how I might be able to help.