Running an online meeting is a necessary skill in today's business. Good leaders know how to run a meeting. Exceptional are also every bit as skilled with online meetings.
Online meetings can save you money on travel, boost communication between workers and clients, even increase sales. If you run them right. Follow these 8 tips and you'll be ahead of the game.
1. Start with a written agenda, from the beginning. Don't take this lightly. Without the usual visual and verbal cues online meetings can be harder to keep on track.
2. Learn how to use your internet conferencing software. Invest a half hour in yourself and learn the application. If you're worried about the cost, most of the vendors offer free trials - sign up for one and practice.
3. Make sure everyone's prepared. Participants seem less likely to do their prep work (homework, if you will) for online meetings. I recommend a quick "how are you doing" phone call to anyone needing a nudge.
4. Remember to smile while you speak. Call center staff the world round know that your facial expressions translate into your voice tone. Even if there's no one to see you, smiling (with authority) works wonders.
5. This should be obvious, but just in case: keep the noises out of the background. Have dogs? Put them in a different room. (Mine are guaranteed to bark at a car 5 minutes into a call.) Ask participants to turn their cell phones to vibrate. Don't use a keyboard near the phone. No eating. You get the idea.
6. Don't be the note-taker. Ask someone else to handle this responsibility. Managing a good online meeting requires your attention. Don't distract yourself with the additional task of taking minutes.
7. Do participants understand (or agree on) the key points? We don't have facial expressions to help us know if everyone's in agreement. Instead, online meeting leaders have to ask specific questions after each major topic -- use that feedback to gauge the participants' understanding.
8. Keep track of who's joined the call. This is particularly important if it's going to be an interactive meeting (as opposed to a formal presentation). Your participants will want to know who else is on the call. Ask everyone to identify themselves at the start of the meeting.
These guidelines should help you understand how to run a meeting online. If you're still feeling undertain, I suggest you sign up for a free trial with a internet conference vendor (see resource box for helpful links). Take a few test runs with the software -- hold a practice meeting with a friend and get comfortable. You'll do fine.
About the Author:
Tyler honed his skills using web conference software while working in a home office. Learn about web conference free trials at his website. You can get a unique content version of this article from the Uber Article Directory.
