Video Call Etiquette and Team Spirit Looks
7.5 Tips for Looking Good on a Video Call
In the last couple of weeks, how many video calls have you been on with dark, shadowy figures who are just as likely to be a cadre of James Bond villains as they are your coworkers and customers? You donât need expensive, studio-quality equipment to look good on a video. In fact, you donât even need technical knowledge.
Here are seven and a half tips and hacks to make sure youâre looking your best on video calls:
We may not have all the answers, but weâre here to help you with staying productive and making the most of your quality time at home.
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1. Keep the Light in Front of YouUnless youâre threatening 007 with a giant space laser, youâll want to make sure your face is well lit. The easiest way to accomplish this is to make sure youâre always facing the light. If youâre near a window, make sure itâs behind your camera, not your head.
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2. Use Your Monitor for Extra Fill Light
Sometimes you need a little more light to make your face pop on camera. You donât need to invest in free standing LED lights. You just your monitor and a blank Word Doc.
Open a new Word Doc and make it full screen. This will make most of your screen a brilliant white and bring out nice highlights on your face. (Note: depending on your skin tone, you might not want pure white fill light. Just play around with the page color until you find one that complements your complexion.)
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3. Position Your Camera at Eye LevelUse a few books and raise your laptop so your camera is level with your eyes. This will eliminate weird angles and unfortunate views up your nostrils. Itâll also make it easier for the other people in the meeting to connect with you, and it have much better posture if you arenât hunched over the camera.
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TIP 3.5: Use a Post-It Note to Make Eye Contact
When weâre talking to people, our natural reaction is to look at their faces. However, if you do that on a video call, youâll actually appear to be looking away from the people youâre talking to. You can fix this with a single Post-It Note.
Draw a smiley face on the Post-It and then stick it right behind your camera. When you talk, talk to the smiley and it will look like youâre making eye contact with the other people on the call!
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4. Keep Your DistanceDistancing isnât just something you want to do socially right now. Keeping an armâs length between yourself and your camera will help you frame the shot and avoid looking like either too small or filling the frame with your face.
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5. Leave Just Enough Room On TopSpeaking of framing, make sure to leave just enough space between the top of the video frame and the top of your head. You donât want too much space there, but you donât want to cut yourself off either. Staying an armâs length away will help with this, and then simply adjust the angle of your camera to tweak.
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6. Backgrounds MatterA messy background can distract your viewers from what youâre saying. At the same time, a completely blank background can make it look like youâre taking a mugshot, not leading a team conference. Take a few minutes to declutter your background but leave a little bit of visual interest to add a little depth to your shot.
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7. Control the Sound
Even if youâre alone in your home office, the built-in microphone on your camera or computer isnât designed to deliver crystal clear sound. Instead, use your earbuds or an external microphone for better audio quality. This will also reduce any ambient background noise like dogs, family members, or the upstairs neighbors who recently decided to buy their tween a drum set.
These small tweaks will drastically increase the professional appearance of your video calls. If youâre looking for more ways to enhance your calls, we recommend searching YouTube for webcam tips and tutorials. Youâll find a wealth of information, reviews, tips and tricks. it. Itâs the perfect time to do some out-of-the-box thinking.
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Should You Stop Marketing During COVID-19?
As published by Business 2 Community (B2C)
Letâs start by looking at two of the wrong ways to approach marketing during a crisis right now:
Making a joke about coronavirus.
A few weeks ago, it was common to see online memes and humorous marketing campaigns being shared. A Las Vegas jeweler even created this campaign to sell rings! As more and more people around the world were affected by coronavirus, these slowed down a lot. Making light of the situation is not only in poor taste, but youâll likely drive away a good chunk of your target audience.
Playing on peopleâs fears.
Itâs one thing to use a sense of urgency to sell your product or service, but itâs another thing entirely to use scare tactics. For example, donât scare people into buying a first aid kit with a message like âOnly two left! Donât risk your familyâs health!â Rather, focus on the benefit of being proactive and prepared by stocking up on medical supplies. Make sure the angle and tone of your marketing reflect your customerâs current concerns and pain points without capitalizing on their anxiety.
How to Effectively Market Your Small Business During the Coronavirus Outbreak
No matter what type of small business you have, your priority should be clearly communicating with your customers to put them at ease.
Think about what your clients need to hear from you, and how you want to position your business during this crisis.
The Impact of Coronavirus on Small Business
As a human, Iâm sure youâve been affected by COVID-19 (also known as novel coronavirus) in some way.
Whether that means worrying about elderly parents, changing travel plans or stocking up on essentials to work from home for the foreseeable future, itâs hard to not feel the stress.
As a small business owner, you may be seeing fewer customers as people limit social interaction, change travel and leisure plans and focus on staying healthy rather than on shopping for products and services.
Unless you sell toilet paper or hand sanitizer, you may be concerned about the impact of the coronavirus on your small business; your revenue, employees, and empty marketing funnel.
So does that mean you should hunker down and stop your marketing efforts for the time being? No!
The World Health Organization has declared coronavirus a global pandemic, and itâs a very uncertain time. However, Iâm a firm believer in focusing on what we can do and change while finding the opportunities amidst adversity.
Every challenge can be met with common sense, rational thought and even kindness. This is not the time for irrationality. I was watching a webinar the other day and someone said, âWorrying is like a rocking chairâit gives you something to do but it wonât get you anywhere!â
I know we are living in troubling times. The virus and how the global economy is responding to the preventative measures being placed is something that will go down in the history books.
But as business owners, there is one thing we do still have control over, and thatâs the ability to be resilient and make choices that will get us through these times as best possible.
In this article, Iâm sharing some ways you can address the challenge of marketing during a crisis and keep your business going.
Here are 3 ways to market your business during the coronavirus crisis:
Reassure everyone that youâre protecting their health.
This is especially true if you have a brick-and-mortar location. This may mean sharing your extra sanitation practices, putting a hand sanitizer station at the front of your location or implementing a policy where all staff wears masks and gloves.
For example, A Local Cleaning Company shares their additional precautionary cleaning measures due to coronavirus on their website.
Be prepared to pivot.
You need to be flexible to best serve your customers. That might mean instead of canceling a customer conference, you change it to a virtual event. If you are planning an upcoming workshop or event, pivot with your audience in mind. Itâs possible you have already been forced to cancel or postpone, but donât assume everyone wants the solution youâre providing. Consider options such as making it a virtual version of the event or postponing your conference to a later date. Or some people may want ticket refunds.
Polls and questionnaires can be a great way to get honest feedback from your ticket holders before changing an event.
And of course, take a look at all of your contracts to ensure youâre covered before making any changes. If youâre a service provider, create other ways to help your clients like a local fitness trainer did. He offered them a way to stay fit that doesnât involve being around a group of people in a gym.
Make your employees a priority too.
Donât focus all your efforts on marketing during this time. Your employees are what keep your business going, so how can you care for them? Maybe you can give your staff the option of working 100% remotely while COVID-19 is a concern.
Or, remind them you fully encourage them to stay home if theyâre feeling sick.The more you can put your employees at ease, the better theyâll be able to support your business and your customers.
What Small Business Owners Can Learn from Coronavirus
I know this is hard, and I hope you can hang in there and focus on the present, and on being of service to your clients and staff.
Theyâre afraid, and what you do or share can help alleviate those fears. Remember to be careful and intentional about what youâre saying.
If your small business is being adversely affected by coronavirus, itâs also a good time to reassess your business fundamentals, including how COVID-19 is affecting your digital marketing. How will you deal with a crisis the next time it happens? Are there things youâd do differently to be more prepared or prevent losses?
Like everything else in life, this is a learning experience. Stay healthy, safe and positive.