The Impact of Video Conferencing on Modern Business Communication
Only four years ago, most business meetings were conducted in one of two ways: In person or over the phone. Times have changed.
Each day, about 300 million people take part in a Zoom call, a 2,900 percent increase since December 2019. This explosion in popularity has fundamentally reshaped how business is conducted. It has removed many communication barriers that existed when conference calls were the only way to conduct meetings between employees at different locations.
Here are a few of the ways in which video conferencing has changed business communication.
Body Language is Becoming Increasingly Important
Body language has always played a major role in establishing one’s presence in a meeting. Leaders can inspire those whom they manage by projecting confidence and enthusiasm.
During video conference meetings, body language is arguably even more important than in-person meetings. Most video conferencing software enlarges the speaker’s screen to ensure they are the center of attention for the audience.
Executives cannot afford to lose the confidence of their staff by looking disheveled on camera. Many executive education courses now focus on improving one’s mastery of their own body language, including:
Their facial expressions when someone else is speaking
Hand gestures
Eye contact with the webcam while speaking
Posture
Leaning in and away from the camera depending on the situation
More Attention than Ever is Being Paid to Voice Modulation
Much like body language, the tone and pitch of a speaker’s voice have always factored heavily into how their message is received by an audience. With video conferencing, voice modulation is not only a useful skill—it can make or break a meeting.
When you’re speaking in person, you can feel relatively confident everyone will hear you. But that’s not necessarily the case during virtual meetings. Technical difficulties and low-quality microphones can make it impossible for meeting attendees to hear the words coming out of the speaker’s mouth. Plus, it can be challenging for a speaker to “read the room” and gauge whether they are speaking too quickly or too softly.
In response, many leaders are taking steps to prepare for potential communication mishaps. They make a conscious decision about when they will increase and decrease their volume, as well as when they will slow down and speed up. They are recording what they plan to say in advance and then reviewing the recording to determine whether it will have its intended impact. And, they are investing in technology, such as video conferencing microphones, that offer superior audio quality.
It’s Improving Understandin of the Meeting Topic
Video conferencing can create new challenges for employees. But it also has clear advantages over previous methods of communicating with co-workers in different locations.
When conference calls were the go-to method for company meetings between employees at different locations, attendees were only able to process information auditorily. Email chains, in contrast, offer only visual input. Neither is ideal for processing information.
Video conferencing, on the other hand, is optimized for learning. In fact, 62 percent of executives say video conferencing improves the quality of communication, while 50 percent believe it enhances the degree to which employees understand information shared during the meeting.
As long as they are working in distraction-free environments, video conferencing is a powerful way of sharing information between employees.
It’s Enhancing Record-Keeping
Note-keeping is crucial for any effective meeting. Deliverables can quickly fall by the wayside if employees don’t have a record of what was discussed during the meeting.
Unfortunately, it’s all too common for meetings to come and pass without anyone being designated as the note-taker. It’s a major damper on productivity and can even damage morale if people feel they attended an unnecessary meeting.
Video conferencing software can save the day if someone forgets to take notes during a meeting. Transcription features create a written record of what was said during a meeting. Users can later go back and reference the transcription for key takeaways and the next steps from the meeting. Many providers even allow you to search based on the speaker, which allows attendees to go back and review any commitments they made during the meeting.
Video Conferencing is Here to Stay
Video conferencing technology has transformed how we live. If you want to develop as a professional, be sure to constantly work on your video conferencing skills. You can feel confident it will pay off.
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