Have a proper agenda, if available, use a bulleted points list that could / would be discussed.
Join by default on “Muted” option
Preferably use headphones (mic inbuilt)
Be loud, clear and slow in communication (There is no Words/min record to be beaten). No harm explaining the point again especially in a patchy connection.
Before going ahead, introduce / say hello (specially if its big room 10+ guys with new members) and ask if you were audible
Before going ahead with screen-share/presentation, please check once if the screen-share is visible
While presenting and talking – Try using your mouse and pointing to the data that you want others to follow.
If you’re presenting numbers, worksheets As a rule of thumb zoom 2 points (120% in modern browsers).
If there is a long silence, there is a good chance you’ve got disconnected. Confirm with the audience if you’re audible and then reconnect
Still a long silence ? if you’re expecting an answer or comment from somebody, ASK THAT GUY/GAL. Or take a lead and ask, “shall we move on?”
As soon as you’re done talking, mute yourself (Ctrl+D on google meet) is a nice toggle shortcut in google-meet.
If going through periodic/weekly-syncs, it’s good to give a brief intro of the task and then give details on it.
Give verbal signals in long conversations that you’re not dead and following the conversation, eg. “hmm..”, “ok…” Backchannel (linguistics)
Before the end of the call, reiterate the points finalized and get an agreement from everybody. (I learnt this from Manwar)
Say a goodbye and then drop-off the call, Don’t just simply exit.
Don’ts
As a listener, try avoiding to read / work on something else, it’ll lead you to ask, “sorry could you repeat that ?” (Even I’ve been the culprit many times :/ ). The poor guy at the other end has to reiterate and explain things. You might as well drop-off from the meeting.
Don’t have long monologues. Keep your statements short and direct.
If you plan to have a longer discussion, others might not be interested. Schedule another call (let’s take it offline) with the concerned person and keep the current meeting light and specific
Long distance commn. is difficult. It’s difficult to get emotions across correctly, Please refrain from using accusative language, harsh words.