Suggestions for Presenters

The following are general suggestions for presenters in Zoom Webinars or meetings, including how to test your audio and video settings, how to disable notifications from appearing during presentations and changing your virtual backgrounds.

Testing Audio and Video Settings

• Testing computer or device audio
• Testing computer or device video

Display Settings

• IT recommends using Zoom in Gallery view with side-by-side mode enabled.
• IT also recommends hiding non-video participants, particularly if there are a lot of panelists or presenters, or if you will need to use a visual queue of someone coming to the screen before going off-screen during a transition in a webinar.

Disabling Notifications

To reduce sound interference and prevent unwanted messages from appearing during presentations:

• If you are speaking (and especially if you are using your computer's internal microphone), ensure that your phone and other devices near you are set to silent.
• Close any unnecessary web browsers or applications.
• Change your Microsoft Team's status to Do Not Disturb or turn off your Notification Sounds through your Notification Settings.
• Turn off sounds in Microsoft Outlook.
• For Windows 11 users, set Focus Assist to "Alarms Only" or "Priority Only." In the Action Center on the bottom-right taskbar, click Focus Assist and click Alarms Only or Priority Only. For older versions of Windows, in the Action Center, click Quiet hours.
• For macOS users, turn on Do Not Disturb. In the upper-right corner, click Notifications and click Do Not Disturb.

Other Tips

• Be situated so that there are no windows behind you as it can underexpose your face.
• Place a light in front of you so that your face is properly exposed.
• Wear clothing that is not very busy with patterns or stripes.
• Update your Zoom profile with a profile photo or remove your photo so that just your name displays.
• Enable and use a virtual background with several virtual background options from IC or with other photos. Test your virtual background in advance.