Hybrid meetings, where some people are in the room together while others are virtual, are an inevitable part of our "new normal", and they are challenging for even the best presenters.
What inevitably happens is that the people gathered in the room dominate the meeting. They don’t intend to; it’s the result of an unconscious phenomenon called ‘distance bias’. Distance bias is our tendency to assign greater importance to people or things closer in space or time than what’s farther away. In the case of hybrid meetings, we instinctively prefer and connect more easily with the people in the same room with us. This puts virtual attendees at a disadvantage.
Your goal in a hybrid meeting is to create an engaging and equitable experience for everyone — both in-person and virtual. Fostering inclusion while delivering an engaging and memorable meeting requires smart planning and delivery.
Here are 10 tips to help you run effective hybrid meetings:
Sales Tip 1
Prepare a clean and crisp message
Why it’s important…
In the best of circumstances, your audience will only remember 10% of what you presented. Virtual attendees will remember even less. They are more likely than in-person attendees to forget what is said during a hybrid meeting because they miss out on the non-verbal cues that help us retain information.
By delivering a clean and crisp message you make it easier for all attendees to engage in discussion and remember what you’ve shared.
Tips
- Apply the Rule of Three when building your story because clients can comfortably remember three new chunks of information. Build three key messages that align what you do uniquely well with your client’s challenges.
- Refine your presentation to include only content that supports your three key messages. Do away with extraneous information that will consume precious time you could otherwise spend in meaningful dialogue.
Sales Tip 2
Simplify your visuals
Why it’s important…
Virtual attendees are at a visual disadvantage. They are listening without the benefit of the non-verbal cues happening in the room — glances exchanged, facial expressions, and eye contact — all of which make conversation flow naturally.
Dense or complex visuals make it more difficult for virtual attendees. They have to work extra hard to keep up with what’s happening in the room while also trying to interpret your slides.
Well-designed visuals make it easy for everyone to listen and absorb your message.
Tips
- Use fewer words, fewer bullets.
- Make ONE key point per slide.
- Apply the Billboard Rule that says your client should be able to get the gist of your slide in three seconds or less, the time it takes to read a billboard as you drive by.
- Spread your content over more slides to provide more frequent on-screen stimulation for your virtual audience.
- Apply simple PowerPoint animation so you can click through and speak to one chunk of information at a time.
Sales Tip 3
Assign a client advocate
Why it’s important…
Distance bias leaves virtual attendees feeling disconnected from the energy in the room. It is more difficult for them to follow along, and read the room. As a result, they are less likely to speak up when they have something to say because they don’t want to interrupt or disrupt the meeting. It’s too easy to lose their attention.
Virtual attendees need someone who’s watching out for them. This person, a ‘client advocate’, is there to ensure an inclusive and equitable experience for everyone.
Tips
The client advocate is the physical presence in the room for remote attendees. They reduce the sense of distance felt by virtual attendees by:
- Keeping an eye on the virtual attendees to pick up on facial expressions or other cues that indicate they might have something to say and giving them an opening to do so.
- Jumping in from time to time to allow the people on screen to ask questions, particularly during page breaks.
- Reframing, clarifying, and translating what’s happening in the room.
- Ensuring virtual voices are heard, not interrupted or talked over by those in the room.
- Directing the attention of virtual attendees to the visual being shared so they can easily follow along.
- Monitoring the chat channel for comments or questions and gracefully making sure these are shared with the group.
Sales Tip 4
Engage with virtual attendees first — and often
Why it’s important…
The best way to counter distance bias in a hybrid meeting is to over-emphasize those joining remotely.
Virtual attendees are more likely to stay fully present and engaged when you, the presenter, set the expectation and communicate up-front that you will asking for their input, and then actively engage them throughout the meeting.
Tips
- During the opening of the meeting, engage virtual attendees first. Direct your opening questions to them before those in the room.
- Early on in the meeting, give them permission and encourage them to interject and fully participate as if they were in the room.
- Check-in with virtual attendees often to bring their attention back from wherever their minds may have wandered. Frequently give them opportunities to provide input.
Sales Tip 5
Be on camera
Why it’s important…
The attention of the in-person audience is focused on the presenter. You want to provide the same experience for virtual attendees to ensure that they are able to engage fully.
Tips
- Each presenter should know where the camera is and select a seat that will work best with the camera’s location. Do not sit in front of a window. The backlight will cast you into shadow. Do not sit where there is distracting activity behind you, like people walking by or working.
- Switch between looking at those in the room and looking at the camera to send a clear message that the virtual attendees are important to you.
- Stand to present only if the camera follows you. Prioritize being able to be seen by virtual attendees over standing.
- If you stand, keep in mind that virtual attendees may not be able to see your gestures, like pointing to information on the slide, so you will need to verbalize what you are doing.
Sales Tip 6
Share and un-share your slides
Why it’s important…
When there are no slides between you and the virtual attendees, it’s easier for them to feel connected to you and those in the room.
Sharing and un-sharing your slides at the right times will spike the attention of everyone. This simple change in what the client is seeing engages their brain. And it subtly communicates, “okay, let’s talk.” Without the barrier of the slides, the client is more likely to engage in conversation.
Tips
- Potential times to un-share your slides include:
1. When you are transitioning between presenters or sections and want to invite questions or comments from the audience.
2. When your conversation goes beyond what is on your slide to encourage dialogue and eliminate the conflict of seeing a slide that is no longer relevant. - Tell them when you are about to share or stop sharing your slides. Say simply, “I will start/stop sharing my screen now.” Rather than being surprised by the change, you want them to participate with you in the ebb and flow.
Sales Tip 7
Use the chat function
Why it’s important…
The chat function can be a great way to keep virtual attendees engaged. It provides a backchannel for virtual attendees to share thoughts or ask questions without disrupting the meeting or trying to find an opportune time to interrupt whoever might be speaking in the room.
Tips
- Have the client advocate log in to the chat channel to monitor questions or comments from virtual attendees. The client advocate can then find an opening for the question to be asked or the comment to be made.
- The client advocate also proactively uses the chat function to check in with virtual attendees to see how they are doing.
Sales Tip 8
Share your presentation in advance
Why it’s important…
Make sure your virtual clients have all the information they need to participate fully.
Your goal is to make it easy for them to follow along during the meeting so they are free to listen, think, and learn.
Tip
- If you decide to print paper books, send copies to virtual attendees in advance.
- If you use a paper book, you should also share an electronic version on your screen so virtual attendees can follow along. Otherwise, you will need to verbalize every time you turn to a new page because the virtual attendees cannot easily see or hear you do so.
- Keep your paper book and electronic presentation in sync at all times.
Sales Tip 9
Ensure high-quality audio
Why it’s important…
Experts agree that using video in a meeting is very powerful, but having good audio is even more critical. You want to ensure that the audio for virtual attendees is clear and strong.
Tips
Know the location of the microphone and direct your voice to that spot. A room with multiple or 360-degree microphones will do a better job picking up your voice when your head is turned.
Sales Tip 10
Test the technology in advance
Why it’s important…
There will be many different room setups, some with very high-end systems. Give yourself ample time to troubleshoot technical difficulties. This is the best way to ensure your meeting will begin on time, and you will perform at your best.
Tips
- Test the technology the day before with someone at the client location. Not only does this allow you to work out any glitches ahead of time, it also gives you the opportunity to see the experience from a virtual attendees' vantage point.
- Practice with the team using the technology so you know what the client experience will be like on both ends.
- Test the motion and zoom capability of the camera in the room so you know its range should you decide to stand to present.