While virtual events have made commuting easier and life more laid back, they come with the challenge of keeping up with professionalism and appearances. Virtual attendees are still judged by their appearance, manners and focus during video calls. The increasing popularity of the bookshelf background and other virtual backdrops, we can easily tell how attuned people have become to their online image. But still there are some who missed the memo! Read below to see what hilarious but unprofessional things we have seen people do during video calls.
Picking Up a Child
A crying baby can cause you to stray off course. Plus, you don’t want other attendees to get distracted by cries in the background. This is when a virtual background and mute can help you remain focused on the meeting as a caregiver tends to the baby.
Changing Clothes
You don’t want to be the butt of everyone’s jokes, quite literally. A virtual background can help you change in dire circumstances, without other people noticing. Hiding your personal space is crucial!
Presenting In Silence
Remember to unmute your microphone, so people can hear you as a presenter or a participant. Not only will people not take what you say seriously, but there will be no point of speaking. It is important to respect everyone’s time and efforts during a virtual event.
Using Public Wi-fi While Presenting
With public wi-fi being readily available and freebies being so tempting, you may choose to catch up on work meetings outside of your office or home. A break is always a good idea but what happens when your Wi-Fi cuts you out of a meeting after 50 minutes? A virtual background can help you hide where you are and show more professionalism as you get booted out of a meeting and return with a new Wi-Fi session open. No one needs to see the hundreds of other free Wi-Fi lovers in the background.
Taking Calls On The Road
We saw a surgeon presenting for a conference from his car. We understand not everyone has a typical office, but it is easier to take someone seriously and see their commitment when you are not looking at the backseat of their car with family stickers on the rear window and a car seat to the left. Using a virtual background helps your peers respect your work with undivided focus.
Howling Wind
No matter your age, a fart will often be funny and tragically hilarious. After all, everyone including the youngest baby and grandpa passes wind. It can often require additional body movements and adjusting clothing. Avoid making it other people’s business by getting a virtual background, hitting the mute button and silencing your posterior motives!
We All Win With A Virtual Background
Apart from helping to avoid embarrassments during video calls, distractions, maybe even trauma; a virtual background is also a great way to market yourself or your business. Creating a simple branded background image will go a long way to level up your online presence and showcase your professionalism.
