The first 10 minutes of any meeting with remote colleagues often end up being a waste of time. You’re trying to open your presentation, check your sound, confirm everyone has the link, and approve those waiting to join.
While remote videoconferencing is more common than ever—in fact, we’re more likely to mean a video conference when we say, “I’ll call you,” now—it still goes wrong every day.
Most people haven’t mastered the art of setting up a video call.
If you’re running the meeting, the number of variables you have to consider can be immediately overwhelming. You have to consider your own tech tools, scheduling across time zones, the content of the meeting invite, the setup and bandwidth on the other end of the line, and even whether your chairs should be arranged in a circle or a square, to name a few.
Here are a few video conferencing tips to help you create and manage consistently excellent video calls.
1. Get your conference call set up in advance
Okay, this might seem like obvious advice, but you’d be surprised how hard it can be to set aside a few minutes before your conference call.
Build a 10 (or even 20!) minute buffer into your schedule before the meeting. Log in to your video conferencing tool and ensure it’s set up correctly. Test your speaker, headphones, and audio output.
If people start joining the call early, feel free to let them in so you can check their audio and internet connection! Use this time to confirm your setup and have some small talk.
It might seem like this step isn’t essential, but it’s like insurance. Most days, it won’t make a big difference, but someday, it could save you from a potentially embarrassing call failure.
2. Set up in the actual location you’ll be taking the call
It’s fine if your video quality looks excellent and you appear perfect next to your router, but you might face issues when you move to your office at the other end of the house.
Do all your testing in the actual location you’ll be taking the call. You want to look at:
- Call quality and internet speed
- How well can you be seen in the lighting
- If there are distractions in your background
- How clearly can you be heard
If you’re managing a virtual meeting from your company’s office, check the conference room. Make sure you're familiar with the technology and screen in the room, that the internet connection is fast enough, and that the lighting is adequate.
3. Choose the right video conferencing tool
There are many video tools available, but the top three are Google Meet, Teams, and Zoom. Each platform has its own pros and cons, but all are reliable options.
You’ll want to evaluate each tool for:
- Security
- Specific features (like waiting rooms, breakout rooms, whiteboard collaboration, etc.)
- Video and audio quality
- Ease of use
- Integrations
And remember to consider any other tools involved in your video call setup, such as AI note-taking apps, call recording tools, chat integrations, and more. If you plan to use them, make sure to test them beforehand.
4. Send out a clear agenda before the meeting
Whether you’re hosting a webinar, an interview, a routine meeting, or a one-time project check-in, your video call can always benefit from a clear agenda.
Video calls, especially larger ones, can easily go off track. Having an agenda provides structure and helps keep everyone focused. During the call, remember to take notes yourself, a coworker, or an AI assistant. Afterwards, use those notes to send a summary and a list of action items to all attendees.
An agenda helps prevent your meeting from becoming one of those “this meeting could be an email” types.
5. Facilitate the meeting (or assign a facilitator)
Your video conferencing setup is about more than just the technology you use and the room you’re in. It also includes how you manage the meeting itself.
Just as with in-person meetings, there’s significant value in assigning a single owner and facilitator for the meeting. This can be the same person responsible for setting up the meeting, or if you have an executive assistant managing the setup, it can be you or someone on your team. Ensure that a single person is responsible to avoid confusion.
The facilitator is responsible for:
- Summarizing the goal of the meeting at the beginning
- Introducing everyone, if necessary
- Ensuring the meeting is moving along effectively, taking note of what items should be handled offline or in a separate meeting
- Keeping everyone on track
- Ensuring that everything is discussed adequately
- Summarizing action items at the end of the meeting
- Sending out notes and to-dos
If it’s a routine meeting, it might be wise to assign a permanent meeting owner to ensure consistency and efficiency!
Optimizing your calendar for efficient meetings with a Prialto Virtual Assistant
Now that you've learned how to set up an effective virtual meeting, you might want to consider optimizing your entire calendar.
You only have 24 hours in a day, and 8 hours are usually considered a standard workday. Wasted meetings and overscheduled calendars mean you don’t have enough time for the productive work you need to get done.
That’s where a virtual assistant comes in. A virtual executive assistant will help you manage your time and optimize your calendar by:
- Managing your schedule, invites, and time blocking
- Reminding you of key dates and meetings
- Taking over your administrative work
- Putting together meeting documentation and notes
- And more
Curious? Learn more in our Virtual Assistants Master Guide