It always feels good to know that you are showing up looking your best. But why is this so important on video and zoom?

The fact is that much of our lives and our businesses play out online these days, especially in response to the demands of the pandemic.

But even before the pandemic drove so much of our interactions online, video was playing an ever-increasing role in marketing and sales.

Consider these statistics mentioned in the video in this blog post, created before the onset of the pandemic:

1. Video drives a 157% increase in organic traffic from search engines.
2. A video in an introductory email increases click-through rates by 96%
3. Videos on social media drive 1200% more shares than text and images combined.

No doubt these statistics have gotten even more impressive in the light of recent events.

The strategies I share in this video for looking your best online fall into two major categories:

The first is setting the stage. This involves such things as;

1. Checking your background and lighting.
2. Controlling noises by turning off phones, printers, fans, etc.

The second is positioning yourself as the star. How do you do that?

1. Sit close to the screen so that your face shows up clearly.
2. Make sure that you’re looking into the camera, not where someone else’s face happens to be showing up on your screen. When you look at someone’s face on the screen instead of at the camera, people see you looking sideways instead of right at them.
3. Use at least 10% more energy in sharing your information, as the digital divide dilutes the impact of of whatever you’re sharing.

A key to growing your communication confidence on video and zoom is knowing that you are presenting your best self in the best possible way.

Go for it!!

BTW, since I made this video, I got bounced offline in the middle of an interview (thankfully being recorded instead of live) when the electricity went out.

Since that upsetting experience, I have invested in backup batteries for both my modem and my PC. I needed to get two since my modem is in my husband’s office, not mine.

If you live somewhere with funky electrical service, you may want to consider investing in a backup battery, especially if you are doing numerous things live, rather than recorded in advance.