16 tips to improve Zoom meetings

The pandemic has forever changed the way we relate to our jobs, as many have realized that the home office can be as productive as face-to-face work. However, many times we still need to hold some meetings, and because of that, the Zoom emerged as an excellent alternative to making video calls. Thinking about your comfort, we bring here a series of tips to improve Zoom meetings and make it even easier and your way.

How to change the Zoom language

1 – When opening Zoom, the application symbol will appear in the lower right corner of the screen, in the hidden icons menu;

2 – Locate the Zoom and click with the right mouse button;

3 – In the list, go to the option Switch Language, and click on Portuguese;

4 – The program will restart and that's it, all the options will be in our language.

How to change your background

1 – Open Zoom and locate the small gear on the upper right side of the screen;

2 – A screen will appear with a list of options, click on Background and Effects;

3 – Your camera will activate and a series of factory options will be available, including images and videos;

4 – To change the background, just click on the available options;

5 – If you want to add an image or video of your choice, click the “+” button located in the right corner, between the camera image and the image options box;

6 – Then just choose between images or videos, and load the desired one.

how to change name

1 – Click on the gear in the top right corner of Zoom;

2 – Among the various options, click on Profile;

3 – Your browser will open and you need to log in with your account on the Zoom website;

4 – On the website, click on Edit, now you can change your name, and also add pronouns.

how to change the photo

1 – Click on the gear on the top right side of Zoom;

2 – Select the Profile option, and then Edit Profile;

3 – Access your user page on website Zoom?

4 – Click on your image and then on Change;

5 – Choose the desired image, size it the way you want and click Save;

6 – Just repeat the process whenever you want to change your photo.

How to leave the camera off by default

1 – Select the gear button on the top right side of Zoom;

2 – Select the Video option;

3 – Scroll down and activate the option: “Turn off my video when joining the meeting”.

How to leave audio off by default

1 – Enter the options by clicking on the gear on the top right side of Zoom;

2 – Select the Audio option;

3 – Scroll down and activate the option: “Mute my microphone when joining a meeting”.

How to temporarily unmute audio during video call

1 – During the meeting, if your microphone is muted, just press the spacebar;

2 – When you finish your speech, release the bar and your microphone will return to its previous state.

How to activate the beauty filter

1 – Enter Settings, which can be accessed by clicking on the gear on the top right side of Zoom;

2 – Go to the video part;

3 – Activate the option: “Retouch my appearance”;

4 – On the side, there is a bar that can control the amount of filter activated.

How to share the screen

1 – Open a meeting;

2 – With the meeting open, press the green button, “Share screen”, located in the middle;

3 – On the screen that opens, you will have some options: Screen, Whiteboard, iPhone/iPad, and other programs are open on the computer;

4 – Select the desired option;

5 – If you also want to share the audio, activate the option: “Share sound”.

How to use emojis during the meeting

During a meeting, to avoid everyone talking at the same time, the host may make everyone silent, but it is still possible to participate if necessary. To do this, just use an emoji, or an Emotion, as it is called in Zoom. Check out.

1 – With the meeting open, at the bottom of the screen, there is a bar with several buttons, click on Reactions;

2 – A small list of emojis will appear, select the desired one and click on it;

3 – If you want more options, click on the button with the three dots. A screen with various emojis and categories will appear;

4 – If you need to change your skin tone, there is an option too, just select the desired one, and that’s it;

5 – The chosen emoji will appear for you on the upper left side of the screen.

How to change the meeting view type

Zoom allows us to change the type of meeting view according to the user's need. For cases where there is only one speaker, it is possible to have his image highlighted, while the others are left with smaller figures. Or let all participants have their thumbnails shown at the same time. And, finally, a virtual fund shared by all participants.

1 – With the meeting open, click on the View button, located almost in the center, at the top;

2 – There are three options: Speaker (which makes the person speaking highlighted), Gallery (where all participants, up to 49 people, appear in simultaneous thumbnails) and immersive (where everyone shares the same background, chosen by the meeting host).

How to hide participants with video off

1 – With the meeting open, click on the arrow next to the “Stop Video” button;

2 – Select the “Video Settings” option;

3 – Pull the scroll bar down and activate the option: “Hide participants with video disabled”.

How to use the vanishing pen or activate focus

1 – Share a web page or whiteboard, for example, during the meeting;

2 – The meeting controls will appear, either at the top or bottom of your screen; click on the Whiteboard option;

3 – A new command line will appear, go to the fifth, from left to right, and select the focus, if you want to draw attention to the mouse;

4 – If you want to write on the screen without having to erase it later, select Pen that disappears, and just scribble freely on the screen, and in a few seconds everything will disappear.

How to record the meeting

1 – Before recording, you need to give Zoom permission to do the function, so go to Settings;

2 – Go to Recording and activate the option: “Record video during screen sharing”;

3 – If you want, you can still activate other options such as adding the date and time of the recording, or recording the audios separately, among others;

4 – Finally, click on record and that’s it. Just remembering that to save in the cloud it is necessary to subscribe to Zoom.

How to use Whiteboard

This new Zoom function can be used both during the meeting and outside of it, and at any time.

1 – With the meeting open, click Whiteboards, in the options menu at the bottom of the screen;

2 – Now just choose between opening a new Whiteboard, or selecting one already opened previously;

3 – All right, the Board will be open and everyone can participate and make their suggestions.

How to hold a meeting for more than 100 people

For free users, Zoom allows meetings of up to 40 minutes to be held with a limit of up to 100 participants at a time and only 3 Whiteboards. To exceed this limit, it is necessary to make the platform subscription, which costs $199,90 a year, or $19,99 a month. In this plan, subscribers can hold meetings for up to 300 people, and have an infinite number of Whiteboards, and up to 5GB of cloud space to save meetings.

If you need even more space, there is a business plan that can hold up to 1000 people simultaneously, but for that you need to get in touch with the platform's sales agents.

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Source: CNet