Five Google Meet Updates That Increase Your Business’s Efficiency

In the work-from-home world we’ve adapted to, video meetings have replaced traditional face-to-face interaction. Staying informed on updates to video chat platforms like Google Meet will help make sure your company is using all its features to its full potential.

Google has made its remote meeting platform more efficient and productive with updates that limit potential roadblocks. Increased compatibility across Google services, additional meeting host controls, features to limit distractions, and new safety measures included in this round of Google Meet updates will help you run meetings more efficiently.

1. Compatibility with Google Calendar

One Google Meet update ensures the platform connects with Google Calendar to increase consistency and compatibility between Google’s services. Google Calendar now has a feature that allows users to choose their preferred video conferencing provider when creating a calendar event. Google Meet, however, is the default provider under the new updates, so when you make a shared event, you can easily set up a Google Meet room at the same time. It takes one click to set up a meeting that corresponds with an event in Calendar. Plus, all of the users who RSVP to the meeting will be able to access the link via the Calendar event, making the process of joining a meeting faster.

The option to link a calendar event to a third-party video conferencing service that is not Google Meet is available as well.

2. Breakout Rooms to Step Up Productivity

Meeting hosts can now split attendants into different rooms during a meeting. With this breakout room feature, hosts can increase employee engagement and departmental productivity. Small group discussions bring new ideas and bring back a semblance of normal social interaction to the office. Because the host controls breakout rooms, small groups can be pulled back into the main meeting with the click of a button.

A host can create up to 100 breakout rooms in a call. Users can be separated into specified groups, or you can choose to randomize the breakout rooms. Hosts can also move between the rooms and manually move people into different rooms. All of these features allow for increased collaboration between departments.

3. Q&A Feature to Boost Employee Engagement

The new question and answer feature in Google Meet offers an easy way to get employees more involved and engaged while limiting distractions during meetings. When a host turns on the Q&A function, employees can type questions in the chat for the host.  Other employees can “like” questions, and the most liked questions move to the top of the chat so the host knows which questions are most pressing to answer.

Businesses can use this feature to increase employee engagement by making it easy for even the most soft-spoken employees to get their questions answered. If someone is in a noisy environment or comes up with a question after the topic has passed, this Google Meet update is perfect to encourage them to get involved in the discussion.

After the meeting, the host receives an email, including all of the questions employees submitted, so the host can follow up with questions that don’t get answered in the call.

4. Filter Out Noise and Background Blur

We’ve all experienced an unmade bed, energetic pet, or a roaming roommate causing distractions during meetings. In an effort to limit distractions brought on by varying work environments, Google Meet can now intelligently filter out background noise during meetings, and users can blur their backgrounds.

Google Meet will automatically remove background noise while letting your voice be heard clearly, so things like rainstorms and pet noises will be filtered out of your device’s audio input. The background blur feature gives meeting participants more privacy and limits potential distractions during meetings so that you can get through your meetings smoothly.

5. Updated Safety Measures

A common concern with using video conferencing platforms for your business is the caliber of safety and privacy measures they offer. Google has been working to combat safety concerns in its Google Meet updates, and this round of updates is no different.

Here are a few important safety measures they’ve taken:

• People without Google accounts are not allowed to join meetings
• Participants can’t enter a meeting room until 15 minutes before a scheduled meeting
• Participants that are not invited through Google Calendar must request to join a meeting by “knocking,” and the knock must be accepted by the meeting organizer
• Users can report abusive behavior in meetings through the platform
• Meeting hosts can mute and remove participants during the meeting

Google Meet updates in Fall 2020 make video conferencing easier and more productive. If you’re working from home, consider these updates when using Google Meet to boost your business’s efficiency. Working remotely has presented challenges that we’ve all had to adapt to, and these Google Meet updates work to make adapting that much easier.

Caroline Savoie is a copywriter at Catapult and a news reporter for LSU’s Reveille. She’s a journalism senior at LSU’s Manship School of Mass Communication and a Slytherin with a love for AP News and Hunter S. Thompson.

Work with Catapult Creative Media Inc. Catapult Creative Media Inc. is a digital marketing and design agency serving clients over the United States but is proud to call Baton Rouge, Louisiana home. Founded in 2007, Catapult provides digital, social, and mobile marketing solutions backed by relevant strategy and measurable results. Catapult works the web to their clients’ advantage, launching them to their next level of success.