How Improve Your Virtual Communication Skills
Have you ever felt nervous when asked to present in front of a group? Do you remember your hands feeling cold, your legs shaking, and your voice trembling?
It might indicate that you need more presentation training or practice.
Practicing your upcoming presentation will help you tighten up your content and refine your delivery skills - Stand out and impress your audience.
Rehearsing aloud will make you more grounded with your topic, secure with slides, and connected with the audience.
Public speaking is a fantastic skill for your professional development, and there are many reasons to take it seriously.
Communicating Effectively on Video
To improve your effectiveness, follow these steps:
- Don't sit too close to the camera; instead, angle yourself further back, like a newscaster.
- Wear clothing that conveys a sense of your professionalism.
- Set up the illusion of eye contact so your audience's faces are below the camera. This way, the discrepancy between looking at the camera and looking at people's facial expressions is less exaggerated. Keep looking at the camera throughout the meeting, especially if you are presenting, and talk as if they are in the room with you and having a conversation with them.
- Your video background should be uncluttered and professional, as well.
Speak in a Way that Conveys Who You Are
Speech patterns, including your accent, tone, speed, and pitch, paint a vivid picture of the people you encounter.
In studies of people saying the same thing, audiences will perceive the person speaking faster, louder, and with more variations in their volume as more intelligent and energetic.
The ideal pacing of a good speech is about 150 words a minute. You want your pace to be fast enough to be snappy but not so fast that it's unintelligible.
Why is communication important?
Effectively communicating positively impacts the customers' experiences and helps ensure repeat business.
Here are six valuable best practices to ensure you communicate successfully.
- Be Brief - Audiences lose attention after roughly 10 minutes of hearing from the same presenter. If you have more than 10 minutes of content, use interactive activities to keep your audience engaged (for example, take a poll, give quizzes, or ask audience members for their opinions via chat).
- Be Simple - Keep slides simple — avoid too many words and graphics. Less is more!
- Be a TV Personality - Look straight into your camera, not the screen. Wear clothing that is neutral in color (no plaids or stripes). Light yourself well and from above. Be mindful of what appears behind you in the background. Invest in a good microphone.
- Engage Your Viewer - Get your audience involved. Just as when you write an article, you MUST provide your audience with what they seek. Use being live to your advantage and show them your in-depth knowledge, wit, and expertise. Then when you post the recording on your site later for others to see, it will be seen as more authentic.
- Be Prepared - Practice delivering your presentation in advance. Make sure all of the features of the technology work. Record your practice using the recording feature of your tool, then watch and listen to learn what works and what you can do to improve.
- Be Early - Encourage your audience to access your call or webinar in advance of the start time so you can iron out any technical issues in advance and get them familiar with the technology.
In Conclusion
Communication is the foundation of all human interactions, from personal to professional, simple to complex, friendly to hostile.
Communication skills can help you achieve your goals, express your ideas, persuade others, resolve conflicts, and build relationships.
Communication is not only about words but also about body language, facial expressions, tone of voice, and listening. These non-verbal cues can convey emotions, attitudes, and intentions.
As always, your thoughts, feedback, and input are welcomed!
I wish you all a very productive and prosperous rest of your week ahead!
Thank you for reading my blogs and for your continued support.
-Mike
Recent Comments
53
Hey, Mike, great message.
I learned many skills in Dale carnage years ago and missed those days of very motivational times. They taught me how to stab a potato with a straw.
I did well with those skills in direct sales but never did much with public speaking.
Thanks for the post.
Chet
Thank you for your input and thoughts, Chet… Dale Carnegie is great respected and resourceful organization. I know them well!
-Mike
Great tips on communication strategy .
I have this blog bookmarked, when I resume doing YouTube.
It’s being self-conscious in the camera that gets me. I know, one would say, it’s just you and the camera!
But in my conscious awareness, it’s me and the entire world, the camera is a medium!!!
Thank you for your blog Mike!
Cheers,.
Maria 🌹
You are so right about that, Mike! I have had to do public speaking over the course of my life many times! In a way, it is not too bad, and not much different than a zoom meeting now! We just have to go with the flow!
Jeff
Another great post, Mike. Standing up and speaking up in front of a live audience isn't always the easiest thing to do in life but we tend to take life as it comes in the hopes of allowing the rest to unfold. So with a little more practice in order to improve will certainly do great wonders even when it's not going to be perfect. ;)
As always, I hope you have a great rest of your day.
Until next time,
Myra
Your so right, Myra! I was so nervous the first time I had to do it…but now I’m very comfortable doing it and look forward to it.
-Mike
Great info as always Mike, standing up and speaking in front of a crowd is not the easiest thing to do in life...
But with practice, we will always improve on the areas that we weren't too great with in the past...
It's all about learning and progressing my friend!
That’s right, practice makes perfect. Even Michael Jordan had to dedicated himself to years of practice!
-Mike
Not too sure about perfect Mike, as I don't believe it exists!
But we can certainly improve our skills with continued practice, learning and dedication!
Mike, this is a great post! You've given some good tips for folks who are nervous about speaking in public. I'm sure your post will be helpful for a great many folks.
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I have found that having self-confidence is key to becoming a good public speaker. Confidence can come from being knowledgeable about the topic, having notes to keep you on track, and leading your audience into your topic gradually but with enough information to keep their interest until you make your point.
Jerry
Very well said, Jerry…thank you!
-Mike