Video Conferencing FAQs

1. Color: neutral shades such as beige, tan, pale gray or a pale slate blue work best. These colors provide the best ergonomic background and reduce eye strain when viewing the video images.
2. Seating Arrangement: set the tables and chairs in a horseshoe or semi-circle configuration. In this arrangement, remote sites can view all your participants easily; an optimum setup for meetings and discussions.
3. Lightning: use an evenly lit space with minimal shadowing. Additionally, there should be no direct lighting aimed in the direction of the camera lens, instead light should focus towards the members.
4. Acoustics: Reverberation and echo can distort audio signals. Sound Absorbing material such as carpet, draperies, fabric covered vertical blinds, and fabric wall coverings work best for video conference rooms. In addition, ceilings with sound-proofing tiles will lessen reverberation or acoustic echo effect.

Click this link to see the Video Conferencing Best Practises

1. Quarterly reviews can now be done using Peoplelink Video Conferencing
2. Reduced traveling expenses plus hotel stay charges
3. Smarter and profitable Sales trainings
4. Better and regular face to face leading to improved Productivity
5. By doing customer and vendor meetings on Peoplelink Video Conferencing, reduce the time your products take to hit the market, making every minute count
6. Developing a uniform culture and policy structure for all office locations worldwide, unifying the organization
7. Better monitor the “work from Home employees” and remote location sales staff.
8. More Sales: Benefits of being able to present and meet with more customers
9. Accelerate Sales: Financial benefit of accelerating the sales cycle (which otherwise is extended while waiting for customer presentations and working meetings)
10. Customer Training: Financial benefits of improving reach and frequency of training Programs. This many include better product adoption, customer retention and loyalty.
11. Customer Support: Improving call resolution times with desktop sharing & remote control.
12. Faster Decision Making
13. Improved work/life balance AND better employee retention
14. Significantly reduces high recurring costs on bandwidth as PeopleLink Video conferencing uses the award winning technology that works even on low bandwidth (256kbps)

This depends on the number of licenses you have purchase. For example if you have purchased an 8 party license, you can have 8 locations connected simultaneously.

No, the software needs to be downloaded only once, which takes about 3-4 minutes of time, depending on your internet bandwidth. After that, you can just click and login to the conference. Further, PVCS Insta Pro is download free video conferencing solution. It is also independent of the browser used and is compatible with MAC, windows and Linux OS.

Yes, you can upgrade your PVCS solutions to the next version.

Yes, you can record the video sessions.

You can connect upto 1100 locations using PVCS.

Generally, 'telepresence' is a term used to describe visual communication on high definition (HD) video systems, from desktops to fully immersive rooms. "Video Conferencing" describes traditional non-HD video systems. As HD systems are increasingly adopted, telepresence is increasingly becoming the default term describing real-time video interactions.

Remember you're on camera, so don't do anything you don't want others to see. Act as you would if people were in the room with you. Avoid rocking your chair, tapping on the table or making any noise near the microphone. Speak in your normal voice and try to avoid side conversations when people on the far side are speaking. Muting your microphone when you are not speaking is very helpful.

Video Conferencing Etiquette

Compared to ubiquitous social technologies like cell phones, email, and text messaging, video conferences today for the most part lack any universally-accepted rules of engagement. There are no cross-cultural standards like saying “Hello?” when you pick up the phone or replying “LOL” or “LMAO” when you find something humorous. Most standards have been inherited from the audio conferencing world, where muting, not interrupting, and (ostensibly) paying attention to the speaker are accepted degrees of courtesy.

But as real-time and on-demand visual communication increases, standards for video etiquette will undoubtedly develop and become accepted behavioral nomenclature. Despite the efforts of corporate product managers and marketers to drive their preferred versions of these behaviors, ultimately the final arbiters of standards will be users’ collective instincts. But until that critical mass is reached on the desktop, conference room, and immersive suite, a few key fundamentals to leverage today will ensure your video conferences are positive experiences for you and those with whom you interact.

We list a few below…

Polish your image

Prior to the call, use the picture-in-picture “near side” view function to see how you will appear to those on the far end. Ensure you’re visible within the frame,that your environment is adequately lit, and that there are no distractions in the background. Also try to ensure your line of sight is relatively level, and that you’re not looking at your far-side participants from an angle tilted too severely high or low. (Note: When seated in Immersive HD Telepresence environments, these variables are nearly all accounted for, so simply try not to slouch.) If you’re in a near-side room with multiple participants, ensure everyone is visible in the frame while avoiding the distant “fish eye” effect by zooming the camera to an acceptable angle.

Yes, I can hear you now

Next you’ll want to make sure your volume is set to the right level, so that when you connect to the far end or conference bridge, your voice(s) are clearly audible and you can hear the far end. Those who were in the conference room before you may have lowered or raised the volume for their far end participants. As a rule of thumb, a volume set at its mid-level or slightly higher than mid-level should enable you to clearly hear and be heard.

Clear visibility

After your camera angle and incoming view window have been correctly established, try to remain focused on the conference. Constantly looking at your computer display, talking on your cell phone or to someone off frame, typing on your keyboard, etc. are the video conference equivalent of speaking too loudly on your cell phone in a public space: once common, today a sign of inconsiderate boorishness. Video conferences are much more interpersonal and interactive than telephone calls or emails, and attentiveness, non-verbal cues, and facial expressions matter.

Avoid Distractions

Once in the video conference, make as few alterations to your camera angle as possible. Certain modifications might be necessary in response to environmental changes (e.g. room lights automatically turning on or off, increases in background or ambient noise, a presenter in your room needing to be in closeup) but on the whole, correcting and fine-tuning video settings can be quite distracting to far-end participants, and disruptive to whoever is speaking.

If Multipoint, Then Mute when not speaking

The technologies inside the microphone(s) on your near-end video conference system won’t distinguish between relevant and irrelevant sounds. It will hone in on side-bar gossip just as readily as the core meeting points, so if you’re in a multi-point conference with three or more parties, it’s generally productivity-enhancing for everyone if you mute your near-end audio. When you or someone on the near-end wants to speak, simply press or click on the “Unmute” button and make your point, then, when you’ve had your say, return to Mute mode. Note: Muting is particularly critical if you’ve called into a conference over audio from your cell phone, where the signal is prone to static and background noise. Everyone will appreciate your consideration.

It really is “Just like being there”

As with any face-to-face meeting, stray noises and side conversations can sidetrack a video conference from its primary purpose. The result can be a virtual assembly that veers off course and into the weeds of anarchy. With the pre-existing near-side/far-side divide of a video conference, the danger of side topics dominating is particularly acute, so if you’re the host of a video conference, just as with an in-face interaction, provide a meeting objective, agenda, and content to all participants beforehand to keep people focused. If you’re a meeting participant and an agenda hasn’t been provided, request one from the host at the outset of the call, then extend to them the courtesy of your attention.

Other variables such as showing up promptly (which in the video conferencing world means a few minute early, to check your image, volume, lighting, etc.), not interrupting or speaking out of turn, acknowledging or greeting other participants, and requesting a “Next steps” summary (if one isn’t forthcoming) at meeting’s conclusion are all steps that you want to carry over from the real to video worlds.

Ensure more productive meetings with Video Conferencing Tips

• Provide an agenda and specific start and stop times before the meeting.
• If content is to be shared, email a backup copy to a meeting participants before the meeting.
• Make sure you have the video number(s) of the site you want to call or that the site is listed in a directory
• If there are windows in the room, close any drapes or blinds. Daylight is a variable light source and can conflict with interior room lighting.
• Use the preview mode to best adjust your camera angle. Try to fill the screen as much as possible with people rather than with the table, chairs, walls, lights, or the floor.
• Once in the conference, introduce all of the participants at your location and encourage other site to do the same.
• Limit side conversations – and determine if you really want the far end to hear what you are saying. If not, use the “Mute” button.
• Use natural gestures when you speak.
• Avoid nervous gestures like fussing with your hair or clothing and excessively moving your hands. This can distract the other participants.
• Maintain eye contact with the far site. Don’t focus on the preview monitor as the far site may sense you are not looking at them so that you can focus completely on the far site.
• Make as few alterations to your camera angle as possible. Certain modifications might be necessary in response to environmental changes (e.g. room lights automatically turning on or off, increases in background or ambient noise, a presenter in your room needing to be in closeup) but on the whole, correcting and fine-tuning video settings can be distracting.
• Speak in normal tones; there is no need to yell in to the microphone.
• Do not tap pens or rustle papers near the microphones - the far side can hear this and it is distracting during a meeting
• Share content appropriately - studies show video conference participants have respond favorably to a ratio of people 80% of the time and content 20%.

Tips for Multipoint Video Conferences (3+ sites)

• Once the call has started, keep your site muted unless you need to be heard.
• When you are done speaking, mute your audio.
• Allow other sites to finish speaking prior to speaking.
• For more than five sites, there should be a moderator to direct the conference and control when sites should be engaged and in what order. It is best for the moderator to pre-select the method for sites to speak.