Virtual Presenting Tips
Lighting
- Avoid sitting with your back to a major source of light. Consider all your sources of light, and test your lighting ahead of time.
Background
- Be mindful of what is in your background, remove any items you do not want seen by the audience.
- Wear a shirt that is a different colour from your background.
- You can add a custom background, although live backgrounds are preferred.
Video
- When presenting, choose a position that is most natural for you, whether that be standing or sitting.
- Ensure that the camera or webcam is positioned with a clear view of your face.
- Clean the camera or webcam lens.
- Prepare for hiccups, sound failure, power outages, etc. Use a hard-wired microphone and headphones, rather than ones that rely on Bluetooth.
Delivery
- Use props.
- Tell a story.
- Be yourself: if you’re funny, be funny.
- Put the same effort into your presentation that you would on stage.
- Write a script or go freestyle — do what makes you the most comfortable.
- Visualize and checklist your session. Are all your pieces in place?
- Consider: do you normally stand or sit when presenting? Standing will give you more movement and energy. Just make sure that the camera is set correctly.
- If (when) tech fails, use humour, as hiccups are inevitable.
- Practice, practice, practice.
Devices and Connectivity
- Hard-wire your devices, if possible.
- Close all unnecessary windows and tabs that may take up precious bandwidth and processing power.
- If your computer is overheating, shut it down and let it cool off before starting it up again.
- Unplug extraneous smart devices, such as Google Home, Amazon Alexa, smartwatches, etc.
- Video games that require internet access should be turned off or played offline.
- If you have a security system that requires a lot of internet bandwidth, you might want to consider upgrading your internet plan or getting a separate connection.