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Thanks for stopping by. I'm Carol Skyring & this is where I talk about videoconferencing.
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Oct
22
Thinking Visually: Tips for Videoconferencing
October 22, 2009 | | Leave a Comment
Seeing forms a large part of communicating. The visual message is usually much stronger than the verbal. Actions do speak louder than words. You are probably aware of the importance of vision in conveying your message:
The videoconference environment is a visual one. Take advantage of this fact and try to convey your messages visually using words and pictures. You need to think about how everything you do will look on a screen – this includes your own actions as well as any visuals you might want to display.
There are two ways to display visuals in a videoconference – via the document camera (for text, pictures, objects) and via computer eg PowerPoint.
Screen Graphics
Graphics and documents for use in videoconferencing should be designed with the screen in mind. The principles below will help you to achieve effective screen graphics – both on the document camera and with computer.
Print size & font
Use a minimum of 36 point bold for titles.
Use a minimum of 24 point bold for body text.
Use a sans serif font eg Arial, Helvetica, Geneva – sans serif font is easier to transmit & read on screen.
Don’t mix fonts and don’t use too many styles ie bold, italics, underline – they’ll lose their impact.
Use upper and lower case for body text.
Maximum of 30 characters and spaces per line.
Maximum of 7 lines of text per screen.
Page layout
When arranging the page layout, use landscape mode ie page sideways.
Don’t over crowd your graphics. Too much information is difficult to read.
Keep diagrams simple.
Keep all graphics within a ’safe’ area on the page. Leave a 4 cm margin top and bottom and a 6 cm margin left and right.
These tips come from the book: Tips, Tricks and Techniques for Great Videoconferences.
