What are the best practices for promoting diversity and inclusion in virtual presentations?

2 Choose inclusive language

The language you use in your virtual presentation can have a significant impact on how your audience perceives you and your message. You want to use language that is clear, respectful, and inclusive of all the diversity in your audience. You can do this by avoiding jargon, slang, idioms, acronyms, or technical terms that may confuse or exclude some of your audience members. You can also use gender-neutral terms, pronouns, and titles, and avoid making assumptions or generalizations about people based on their characteristics or identities. Additionally, you can use positive and affirming language that acknowledges and celebrates the contributions and perspectives of different groups and individuals.

3 Use diverse and accessible visuals

Visuals can enhance your virtual presentation by adding interest, clarity, and emotion to your message. However, they can also create barriers or biases if they are not diverse and accessible. You want to use visuals that represent the diversity of your audience and your topic, and avoid images or graphics that are stereotypical, offensive, or irrelevant. You can also use captions, alt text, transcripts, or descriptions for your visuals, so that they are accessible to people who have visual impairments or different learning preferences. Moreover, you can use colors, fonts, sizes, and contrasts that are easy to read and distinguish on different devices and screens.

4 Engage your audience

One of the challenges of virtual presentations is to keep your audience engaged and attentive, especially when they may face distractions or technical issues. You want to create opportunities for your audience to interact with you and with each other, and to share their feedback, questions, and opinions. You can do this by using polls, quizzes, chats, breakout rooms, Q&A sessions, or other interactive features that are available on your virtual platform. You can also use verbal and non-verbal cues, such as eye contact, gestures, pauses, and vocal variety, to convey your enthusiasm and interest in your audience. Furthermore, you can acknowledge and appreciate the diversity and inclusion in your audience by using inclusive examples, stories, or testimonials, and by inviting and respecting different viewpoints and experiences.

5 Follow up with your audience

After you deliver your virtual presentation, you want to follow up with your audience to reinforce your message, address any concerns or queries, and solicit feedback for improvement. You can do this by sending a thank-you email, a summary of your presentation, a recording or a slide deck, or any additional resources that are relevant to your topic. You can also ask your audience to complete a survey, a rating, or a comment form, where they can share their opinions, suggestions, or questions about your presentation. You can use this feedback to evaluate your performance, identify your strengths and weaknesses, and improve your diversity and inclusion practices for your future virtual presentations.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?