Nothing is more frustrating than trying to explain a concept and knowing that no one on your video call “gets it.” If only there was a way to share your idea to the entire team so you are all on the same page. Wait a minute…there is! An online meeting with screen sharing allows teams to communicate ideas and documents in real time. But exactly what is screen sharing?
What is Screen Sharing?
An online meeting with screen sharing enables a presenter to broadcast their screen to other devices on the meeting. This simple process encourages real-time collaboration, demonstrations, training, and other data sharing tasks.
It’s important to understand that your viewers will be unable to interact with what they are seeing on a shared screen, it’s a shared visualization tool only; also, only one participant can share their screen at a time.
What are the Benefits of an Online Meeting with Screen Sharing?
An online meeting with screen sharing taps into all the ways we learn and remember information (hearing, reading, and visualization): the presenter will explain the concepts while the team reads the text on screen and looks at graphics and other visual cues. Score!
The benefits of online meeting with screen sharing include:
- Expanding the team’s ability to collaborate in real-time on a project
- The ability to provide tech support remotely
- Trainings including using new software or applications
- Sharing the team’s task manager applications for updates
- Sharing a sales pitch with prospective customers
Screen Sharing Basics
You may have been tossed into a new world of video conferencing, and, like most people when thrust into an unfamiliar environment, were afraid to click the buttons, arrows, and dots within the application during a meeting. The most important button you’ve had to know until now was the “mute microphone.”
Most videoconferencing apps and software make screen sharing very straightforward, though. For many of the programs, anyone can screen share at any time. For others, the host may need to allow screen sharing by participants.
From there, it’s a matter of locating and enabling the program’s screen sharing function, selecting what window you would like to share, and hitting “share.” Instantly, your teams will see the screen you have selected.
The Best Online Meeting Screen Sharing Platforms…and How to Use Them
There are a few strong leaders in the video conferencing landscape, and each of them have the option for screen sharing. Here’s a some of our favorites.
Zoom Screen Sharing
“Well, this is a surprise,” said no one ever. Zoom is well known for hassle free, secure meeting platforms. It’s also known for very easy screen sharing.
- Find the green on your Zoom meeting screen
- Choose what you’d like to share, including single window, sound only, second camera view, and file selections
- Your toolbar should look like this now, meaning you are successfully sharing
- New share allows you to move between windows or documents
- When you are finished, simply click Stop Share
Teams Screen Sharing
As simple to use as Zoom screen sharing, the powerhouse Microsoft 365 app Teams allows a similar way to enable online meeting screen sharing.
- Find the Share Screen icon on your toolbar menu during your video call
- Teams will offer options of sharing your window or your desktop when you click the icon
- Choose the screen you want to share
- Select Stop Sharing when you are finished
GoToMeeting
Another popular videoconferencing app is GoToMeeting, and again, online meeting screen sharing is a click away.
- Click the grey screen icon and it will turn green
- Choose the view you want to share
- Click Share at the bottom of your screen
- To stop sharing, click the green icon and it will turn grey again
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