If you’re relying more on video meetings with customers, vendors or colleagues, you may be thinking about making the switch to an office background. If you’re on the fence about it, here are four very good reasons to use a virtual background whether you work in your office, from home or anywhere else, for that matter.
Maintaining Professionalism
Unfortunately, others may judge you for your surroundings. A cluttered desk can be distracting while you’re trying to sell your business to a new client. People in the background at a coffee shop can take attention off you when you’re talking to colleagues. Your cat in the background may amuse your coworkers, but your boss may not think it’s appropriate. With an office background for Zoom, you’ll appear professional and polished, no matter what’s going on around you.
Matching Your Team Members
Uniformity when everyone is in a meeting reduces distractions and suggests a consistent message. Your office background can create a unique presence online. You can use the space for marketing or promotional messaging. It can also be fun to have a rotating message that changes throughout your meeting to include power words and product images as part of your branding. Your background may also be a conversation starter that piques clients’ interests.
Work Anywhere You Want
Work from home or anywhere is very popular, but you may not want everyone in your meeting to know your secrets or to see your artwork. Maybe you’re working out of your bedroom while you are remodeling space for a private office. You might be working out of your car temporarily because of a bad situation. An office background with your company logo is a great way to conceal your office conditions without worrying about judgments.
Branding Opportunities
There’s a rule of 7 that says someone needs to see your brand at least 7 times before they buy in. Using an office background for Teams is one more opportunity to get your brand out there. If you’re on a virtual meeting with others, being on camera gets you priority in being displayed. You’ll want to see your company logo in the background as another avenue to promote your business. A consistent branding message across social media, your website and in meetings is an inexpensive marketing tool that keeps your business on the mind of all participants in the meeting.
Time Savings
Creating the perfect office environment for a virtual meeting can be expensive and time-consuming. By selecting a virtual background, you won’t have to clean up your office space or move to another room just to have a meeting. You don’t have to wonder if your artwork on your wall might offend a potential client. It saves time, both physical and mental. It gives you more creative freedom, because you can put in a background that fits the occasion. You can support your favorite teams, showcase the holidays or even be whimsical with an outer space background. All the world’s a stage. Your office background gives you the place to interact with others in your own way.