Many of us, well, many of you, may not have even heard of Zoom before March 2020. It’s a wonderful platform for sure – if you know how to do a Zoom party well!
Some of our Goofy Faces artists are Zoom Party experts and have been using it to draw remote digital caricatures, or eSketches™, for a while. Along the way, we have learned how to make your Zoom events, birthday parties, work meetings, etc., flow more smoothly with fewer hiccups and so everyone has a good time!
General Zoom Tips – aka Zoom Etiquette
Goofy Faces artists can draw your guests at your next Zoom party!
Some meeting etiquette is the same whether you’re in person or online. Zoom-specific options, like muting if there is distracting noise, is a feature we only wish we had for in person meetings! Here are some tips to improve your Zoom online events:
- Be timely – Ask guests to log on a few minutes early. Depending on your system, and how many people are logging in, it may take a minute or two to get up and running. If a waiting room is enabled, the host will let everyone in at the right time.
- Use the chat feature! Especially if your conversation is only between you and one other person. Don’t take the focus from the speaker just to share that important idea – or that funny comment – with your friend or colleague!
- Keep your video on. No one likes speaking to a screen full of blank squares! Now more than ever, we want to see your smiling faces! If you need to get up, move around or leave for a minute, go ahead and turn your video off so you don’t disrupt the event.
- Remind everyone to turn off all notifications and silence all other devices in the room with you.
- Avoid logging in to your Zoom Party in the same room as someone else who is logged in on another device. This causes an annoying echo effect! Either log in on just one device and share, mute one device, or have one person go into another room.
Zoom Party Tips When You Hire a Goofy Faces Artist
Invite a Goofy Faces artist to your graduation or birthday Zoom Party!
Our artists are Zoom experts! When they are on and drawing your guests remotely, you can let them “run the show.” They will help direct who gets to be next and how to set up the viewing. If you don’t have a Zoom Pro account that lets you have more than two people on for more than 40 minutes, we do! We are happy to set up the event and send you the party/meeting invitation to share with your guests. (small fee applies)
Just like when we draw live digital caricatures, or eSketches™, in-person at a private party, corporate event or trade show, you will want to give your guests sufficient space to see the drawing. Here are our tips for the best Zoom party remote caricature experience with a Goofy Faces artist:
- Have your guests select Speaker View if they wish to see just the person being drawn and the caricature coming to life! Select Gallery View to see all participants on your screen as well as the artist and live drawing.
- The device matters. Encourage your guests to log in from a tablet or computer rather than a phone. Kids especially will have more fun when they can see their friend and the drawing on one screen. On a phone you may have to keep swiping to see all the action!
- Be polite! As the artist talks with the person being drawn, the guests will get to watch the drawing. If the guests are too chatty or get rowdy behind the scenes, we may ask everyone to mute, or we may have to mute them, so they don’t disrupt the artist.
- Proper lighting is key. In person, we bring our own lights. If there is a window with bright light behind you, either close the shade or turn so you face the window instead. The artist wants to see you in your best light!
- Share your link! Your event’s drawings will be added to a Dropbox folder that you can access anytime. The artist will post the folder location in the chat at the beginning of the event. (Note: if people join late, they can still be drawn, but they won’t see the folder address.)
The artist will draw one guest at a time, or two together as a couple. This means the artist will need to see each person’s face on the screen for up to 8 minutes to complete the sketch.
Note to parents hosting your child’s birthday party: The artist and the child being drawn IS the entertainment! The other guests need not be trying to focus on separate activities (like pre-delivered goodie bags) while the artist is working. Have the dance parties and scavenger hunts before or after the artist is on. The kids will have fun watching their friends’ face come to life on screen!
The person who is going to be the subject of the drawing must be part of the event. We draw live! Of course we can draw from a photo. If you prefer that please arrange it through our studio art page.
After your Zoom Party, Goofy Faces can provide a group caricature of all your guests. For just $5/face your artist will combine all the caricatures he or she drew during the party into one, fun image of the whole gang!
