Training Industry Magazine - March/April 2020 - 31

When given the choice to connect to an
online meeting by telephone or by voice
over IP (VOIP), choose the one that will
give you the best connection quality.
If you have a poor signal, you might
think, "It's okay; it's bearable." However,
it's disrespectful to your audience to
knowingly join an event with poor audio.
Many online platforms allow for an audio
test, so use it to check your sound
quality and background noise levels.
A common mistake in digital
communications is to use speaker phone
(or the built-in-microphone on your
device), which is designed to pick up far
away sounds. This leads to unintended
noise on the line and contributes to poor
audio quality. Always use a headset for
clear audio sound. You can also invest
in a noise canceling headset and install
noise canceling software.
Next, focus on your voice. If you've never
heard the sound of your own voice over
the airwaves, call yourself and leave a
voicemail. Play it back and listen to the
quality of your audio. Do you speak too
fast? Do you properly enunciate words?
Do you use too many filler words?
One more quick tip: If it's an early
morning conversation, warm up your
throat ahead of time with some simple
vocal exercises, like humming your
favorite song.

Adjust Video
The fastest way to improve the quality
of your online communication is to use
your webcam for video calls. Video
streaming leads to more effective
communication, because you can see
facial expressions and catch other
nonverbal clues.

If you're one of many people who
don't like turning on their webcam,
I'll say this in the nicest way possible:
Get over your fear of being on camera.
Put on your favorite solid-color shirt,
some makeup (if that makes you feel
better about being on camera) and a
smile. Focus on your audience instead
of yourself, and it will become easier
over time.
Only turn off your webcam if the
bandwidth capability doesn't support
streaming video. If you've adjusted
every possible setting and the video
deters the online event
quality, then turn it on for
a brief hello and then
turn it off for the
duration of the
meeting.
To put your best
face forward
and show up
professionally
on
webcam,
do these three
simple things:
* Adjust your webcam to the
correct height so that your eyes
are level with the camera. You may
need to raise your device or lower
your chair.
* Place light in front of you, not behind.
If you sit with a window behind you,
close the blinds or relocate your
setup so that you're facing the light.
* Check your background to ensure
it's appropriate. If you're concerned
about this, consider a portable green
screen and use software to create an
artificial background.

Audience Engagement
The next key to digital communication
success is to engage your remote
audience. When you aren't together
in the same room, there's tremendous
temptation to multitask and only pay
partial attention to an online speaker.
As an online meeting leader, you can set
expectations ahead of each virtual event.
Let everyone know the purpose of the
meeting and explain any expectations
for involvement. For example, your email
invitation could say, "In this meeting, we
will all be on webcam and will brainstorm
solutions to X situation." If you're
not the leader, you can request
this information so that
you are prepared.
Then, carefully plan
the first 10 minutes
of your online event.
Have
something
on
screen
for
everyone to discuss
as they join, like an
icebreaker
question.
You could compare the
weather outside each window or
discuss current events - anything to get
participants talking and comfortable with
each other. While I always prefer actual
dialogue, the chat function also works to
encourage conversation. This informal
banter is the equivalent to small talk that
takes place among attendees before any
other in-person event. However, without
the leader's invitation, this dialogue
usually doesn't occur naturally in an
online environment.
Next, find ways to use the platform
tools (chat, polling, status indicators,
drawing tools, etc.) to keep the audience

Digital? Online? Virtual?
These three terms are used interchangeably. Each one implies the use of technology to connect with others. You
could be using laptops, mobile devices, keyboards or microphones. All of these methods include connecting
remote participants to one another for communication.

T R A I N I N G I N DUSTR Y MAGAZ INE - MODERN LEADERS 2020 I WWW. T RAI NINGINDU S T RY . C OM/ MAGAZ I NE

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Training Industry Magazine - March/April 2020

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