5 Etiquette Mistakes to Avoid While Hosting a Video Conference

By: Colleen Jilio-Ryan | Posted in: video conference

Lawyers require face-to-face consultations in order to carry out witness-depositions and deal settlements. Since matters pertaining to the legal field are delicate and every minute is legally accountable, lawyers and clients must link up rapidly, conveniently and promptly.

Today’s professional environment has been greatly redeemed by video conferencing because it minimizes the amount of traveling to a big extent. Video conferencing offers the lawyers a virtual yet effective medium for face-to-face consultations, witness-depositions and deal settlements with least amount of traveling.

It’s essential to know about the effective video conferencing practices as it is being utilized globally on a large scale.

Here are 5 etiquette mistakes to avoid while hosting a video conference:

1. Avoid Being Disoriented
   Try to pay complete attention to the proceedings to give a positive impression of yourself. Be punctual and present yourself at the beginning of your speech so that everyone gets familiar to you and can call you by name. You can also maintain a note of all the speakers in order to directly refer them by name. Attempt to keep your focus on the camera as much as possible.

2. Avoid Inappropriate Dressing
   Shirts with stripes or complex patterns do not broadcast well on camera because they are visibly distracting. Avoid colors like red, white and black, but wear light-colored garments like pastels etc. Also, refrain from wearing over the top or gaudy printed attires and accessories like shiny jewelry etc.

3. Avoid Being Noisy
   Don’t shout and adjust the microphone level, if you are inaudible to someone. Ensure to get the audio checking done before the onset of your virtual meeting so that you are audible to everyone. Also, ensure that microphone is not obstructed by your clothing etc. Yelling will cause disturbances to the participants, who might reduce their volume levels and possibly omit out the important details of your speech.

   Related Article: Video Conferencing for Corporates: Problems and Solutions

4. Avoid Side Conversations
   In a real world face-to-face encounter, there is not much of a possibility for you to have side talks with co-participants or colleagues, therefore you should refrain from it in virtual one as well. That involves resisting any side conversation with anyone sitting adjacent to you and getting on the phone or through text messages with anyone not associated with the current meeting.

5. Avoid Being Discourteous
   Be polite to the co-members and don’t intervene other speakers. Disrupting other speakers off is impolite. Wait for a suitable gap in the conversation before pitching in your valuable inputs by first raising your hand slowly. Another alternative for getting each comment addressed is taking up pending issues through instant messaging.

Use appropriate video conferencing etiquette, be prepared, be yourself and relax to have a great time!

Colleen Jilio-Ryan

Colleen Jilio-Ryan is the Owner of Jilio-Ryan, a Tustin based premiere law consulting firm. The firm along with its certified court reporters is dedicated to providing the highest quality deposition and litigation services to attorneys, insurance companies, and corporations. With her sincere efforts, Colleen is committed to meeting the highest standards of the legal industry, and is an industry leader when it comes to on-time court reporting and deposition scheduling.