5 Best Tools for Minimizing Chaos While Doing Conference Calls at Home

In just the past few years, so much has changed in the business realm and more employees than ever are now working from home amid the shifting workplace hybrid model. This means that employees are able to do work from their native environment but the problem with that is a normal household is usually chaotic and full of life at all times. This brings up the need to know some practices that may help you be more focused with fewer distractions around you during video calls. 

The good news is that thanks to cloud-based VoIP systems and mobile video conferencing systems, working from home is not just possible, but easier than ever before due to the robust features offerings available in the cloud or via mobile devices.

Making the switch to remote work is an adjustment on its own, but the fact is that employees probably are working in their busy households; they might have spouses working from home as well or children doing schooling at home. The home is now a new center for work and learning, and it can easily become a chaotic experience for employees who are striving to deliver their best work.

Here are 5 of our favorite tips for minimizing chaos during conference calls and video meetings to help employees leverage features to control their communications and create a work environment at home that’s conducive to productivity. 

HD video conferencing is a great way to connect virtually while maintaining many of the important elements of “face-to-face” interactions. Without being physically together in the same office or conference room, you can connect meaningfully with colleagues, clients, and customers via video. 

Audio conference calls are a good way to gather team members and share information, but these calls are also very prone to distractions. Attention levels are also lower in audio-only calls versus the more engaging video calls that are available in VoIP systems.

Video conferencing is proven to capture and hold meeting attendee attention better (and for longer), and being able to see the facial expressions of those you’re communicating with deepens understanding. It also helps foster a stronger sense of connection for employees who don't get to see one another in person in an office setting while working remotely. Improving the image quality of video conferencing calls can blur this line even better when call members are not being distracted by a fuzzy image on the screen. Having a clear perception of the people you are interacting with during a meeting can enhance the personable nature of the call and in turn, make it more productive.

As landlines continue to lose users, the majority of people now use their mobile devices for both personal and business communications. Mobile VoIP and video tools are a necessity in today’s business setting, particularly as so many companies are opting for at-home work. 

With mobile VoIP and video, employees can easily access audio calling and video meetings securely from their smartphone or tablet. This gives people working at home the flexibility to take a call in a quiet room in their home or participate in a video meeting from anywhere they are. 

5G is now more mainstream in 2022 and is bringing about innovations in telepresence with holographic conferencing capabilities and Ultra HD video calling will likely soon be the norm. Additionally, 360-Degree video calling is already in the works, which means you can have even more realistic, personal, face-to-face interactions via video and the opportunity for even more impactful presentations and demonstrations via video with this technology.

Video conferencing solutions are improving with each iteration, but when you have several people at a conference, static or background noise can become incredibly distracting and hinder the progression of your meeting. Clarity of the video conference call is key for effective communication. 

While the quality of your voice and video calls will always depend on the strength of your internet connection, modern VoIP and video systems have improvements in place that automatically cancel static and suppress background noise to give you the most crisp, clear audio and video communications available. 

One of the challenges of working remotely is that employees may not want their homes in plain view to everyone on video calls for privacy purposes. Additionally, with so many people working from home and children doing schooling at home as well, there may be people walking around the house who could happen into the background of a video call unannounced. 

Many video communication systems offer the option of setting your video background by selecting from a collection of options or using a customized backdrop for your call. This way, employees can maintain privacy and avoid some embarrassing mishaps at the hands of their family members during calls. Video call backgrounds can also minimize distractions from whatever that may go on behind them during a video call. 

Whenever you are not speaking, you should mute yourself to decrease the background noise and help contribute to good call quality and clarity for everyone on the call. If you are the video call leader, you should share this tip with your participants at the beginning of the meeting to help minimize delays or distractions once the meeting begins. When only the relevant people are talking at a time, the video conferencing experience can seem less chaotic and distracting, and you will be able to accomplish the goals of your meeting with more efficiency.  

With all these tips to make video conferencing from home seem more seamless, employees will continue to have the freedom to work from wherever they want. While the line between business and personal may seem blurrier than ever, remote working has changed how and where we live, and there seem to be no signs of this revolution stopping. 

About Wheelhouse

Like what you just read? At Wheelhouse, we are passionate about all things software, and our specialty is connecting software buyers to a solution that perfectly matches their needs. 

Please visit our VoIP and Video Communications software page for a complete list of all the solutions we have on offer.