7 Handy Zoom Meeting Tips & Tricks You Should Know!

Virtual communications and meetings are not new to the technology world, but in the year 2020, the use of telecommunication tools skyrocketed! Many individuals found themselves using or adjusting to new virtual tools such as Skype, Google Hangouts, or Zoom for the first time ever! In this article I will focus on the popular free tool – Zoom and share a few tips that will take your usage of this tool to the next level. If you have any other useful tips of your own that you wish to share, please let me know in the comments below!

Unmute Yourself with the Space Bar

Most of us have experienced attending a conference call where multiple attendees try to speak at once, can’t find the unmute button, or begin speaking because they think they are unmuted. Instead of wasting time searching for the unmute button on your desktop computer, you can simply press and hold the spacebar on your keyboard to unmute your microphone. This feature is normally enabled by default in most Zoom installs if you navigate to your Audio settings as shown below. Zoom calls this their “Push to Talk” feature. When you wish to go back on mute, simply let go of the space bar.

Change Your Background

With this really cool feature, you can transport yourself to the Great Wall of China, the Milky Way Galaxy, or a simple office if you learn how to change your meeting background in Zoom. Shutterstock is even offering free professional-grade Zoom backgrounds here on their website. Assuming you already have Zoom downloaded to your desktop computer or mobile device, you can change your background by:

Desktop Instructions:

1. Click your profile picture, then click on Settings.
2. A new window will appear. Within the left menu bar, click on the Virtual Background tab (if you don’t see this tab, log in to the Zoom website, go to Settings and toggle on Virtual Background).
3. Under the Virtual Background tab, select one of Zoom’s default backgrounds, or upload your own image by clicking the “+” symbol.

Mobile Directions:

1. Join a new meeting and tap the three dots on the bottom right of your screen to open the More menu.
2. Tap on “Virtual Background“.
3. Select one of Zoom’s default backgrounds or upload your own by clicking the “+” symbol.

Easily Manage Various Meetings with One Click in Zoom

Sometimes we may have various meetings, recurring meetings, virtual happy hours with friends, or family time meetings on Zoom. Each of these meetings have different Zoom IDs and passwords, all of which can sometimes be a chore to keep up with. To prevent myself from scrolling through old text messages, or managing sticky notes, I decided to leverage Zoom’s built-in scheduling functionality. This feature ties into Outlook, iCal and Google Calendar, which allows me to find meetings that I am not the host of and quickly! The only thing you have to do is allow Zoom to have access to your email calendar. Here’s how you set this up on your desktop computer:

1. Click on your profile picture — My Profile. This will open up your browser window.
2. Within the profile section, scroll down until you see the “Calendar and Contact Integration” section. Click the button called “Connect to Calendar and Contact Service”
3. A new prompt will appear, allowing you to select 1 of 3 calendar app options. I will use Google Calendar for this example. Select your app preference based on your email provider:
4. When prompted, select “Grant Zoom Permission” and allow Zoom permission to your calendar.
5. Now Zoom will be able to see your calendar. Next go inside of your calendar app on your desktop or mobile device and create a new appointment with the correct day or time of your event. Example: (a recurring meeting you often attend, or a one-time event invite from a family or friend.) In the location field, insert the meeting ID link . This will allow you to easily see the “Join” button on your Zoom dashboard once your calendar syncs with Zoom. Save the changes in your calendar.
6. Close and reopen your Zoom app to refresh it, and voila, all of the meeting appointments that are not hosted by you will appear in one place as shown below:

Enhance Your Video with a Beauty Filter

Have you ever attended a video conference, but just felt like today was not the day you should be on camera? Well Zoom has a feature that can help called “Touch Up My Appearance”. This built-in filter allows you to smooth out the skin tone on your face, giving your viewers a more “airbrushed” appearance of your face. Here is how you can turn on this feature for your future Zoom video calls:

1. Click on your profile picture and navigate to Settings.
2. Click the Video tab. Within the Video tab, you will see an option for “Touch up my appearance“. You can turn this off or on my checking or unchecking the box.

My Favorite Desktop Keyboard Shortcuts

Use Fun Snapchat Camera Lenses and Filters on Zoom

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