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We had some tips sent around the organisation for conference calls - see below. The one about looking at the camera really caught my eye- yes you need to do that, but then you can't look at others' screens to pick up any body language. An intriguing dilemma... anyway here they all are, apols for any formatting issues in advance:-
If you're doing conference or video calls, let's get it right.
First, get the camera to the proper height... no more black holes and nasal hair. Sit back, don't lean into the camera, it turns into a leer. Take a selfie, see how the world will see you.
Clean the lens, particularly on lap-tops, use a soft, non-abrasive cloth, such as a microfibre. Be gentle.
Get the lighting right. Position the camera with the light source behind it, shining on your angel face. Do it the other way around and you'll be in shadow... phantom of the opera.
Don't hand hold a phone or a tablet. Prop it up, safely. If it falls over and you're wearing a jacket, a tie and yer pants, we'll all get the picture.
Sort out the background. Tidy up, de-clutter. Holiday pictures of you in your bikini might distract the boss. A blank wall is better than bottles of booze and the ironing-pile on the sofa.
Bribe the kids, or the cat, or the dog, to keep out of the way.
Look the part. I know lazy-boy stubble is fashionable but on a video-call you'll look like a slob. A video call is a business-call, try and look business like.
Don't look at yourself in the small frame. Keep your eyes on the camera. If you wander off, you'll look like you've been smoking something.
Don't use earphones. Unless there are eavesdroppers... they make you look like a nerd.
If your bandwidth is slim, try and use a wired wifi connection. Mute the microphone when you're not speaking, stop the webcam when you don't need it, disable HD, close other applications. Turn off WiFi boosters in other parts of the house. Do document up and downloads in advance... and sit still. Moving about uses more bandwidth.
