Zoom tips

Top tips for effective Zoom meetings

Image by (opens in a new window)Brian Cragun from (opens in a new window)Pixabay.


Did you know we have an average of 1,000 Zoom meetings per day at UCD during term time? Here are the top tips from UCD IT Services for holding effective online and hybrid meetings.

General Tips

• Mute when not speaking to reduce background noise. 
• Keep your camera on, where possible, to engage better with your colleagues.
• (opens in a new window)Virtual Backgrounds help maintain privacy and add a touch of fun to your meetings.  
• Record and transcribe your meetings if you need to for future reference and sharing with absent colleagues. These features can also make the meeting more accessible. (But, consider sustainability and privacy - don’t record unless you need to.)
• (opens in a new window)Breakout Rooms allow you to split meetings into smaller groups for focused discussions.

Think about Security

• (opens in a new window)Enable waiting rooms and passwords to enhance the security of your meetings.
• Remove AI bots and other uninvited attendees. (opens in a new window)How to manage unintended meeting attendees in Zoom meetings.

Some nice Zoom features available to UCD users

You may not be aware of all of these:

• (opens in a new window)Annotation tools let you draw, highlight, and add text on shared screens. 
• (opens in a new window)Polls and Quizzes can be created to boost engagement and gather feedback. 
• (opens in a new window)Zoom AI Companion can now send you an automatic meeting summary (Note: this feature is optional and must be switched on in each meeting by the host).
• (opens in a new window)Zoom Whiteboards offer a collaborative visual space to brainstorm, plan, and draw with your team in real-time. You can use preformatted templates, or work on a blank canvas.
•  You can even use the (opens in a new window)Touch up my appearance feature to smoothly enhance your look during Zoom calls.

Now you're ready to make the most of your hybrid and virtual meetings! 

See our Zoom webpage and (opens in a new window)Knowledge Base articles on the UCD IT Support Hub for more information.