Top 10 Zoom Shortcuts to Finish Work Faster

If you’ve been working remotely since the COVID-19 outbreak, you’re likely well-versed in using Zoom for meetings, conferences, one-on-one conversations, and more. Fortunately, just like other programs, some shortcuts can make your meetings and recordings even more productive and efficient. Zoom makes managing meetings easier than ever and since you can customize your own, it’s perfectly ready to become your best meeting tool.

Zoom has a host of great features and tools to improve meetings and collaboration. In addition to those, it also has a full list of keyboard shortcuts for Windows and Mac, along with select shortcuts for mobile use. There’s a full list on the Zoom support page that you can check out, but we’ll cover 10 of the most popular shortcuts here. 

The benefits of shortcuts include:

• The ability to work faster and more efficiently
• Increased precision and productivity
• Multi-tasking
• Easy access to everything 

Being able to save time means saving money, and in business, that’s what counts. Even if you shave just a few minutes off your Zoom usage each week, that adds up to hours, or even days, over a year. If your staff of 20 starts using the shortcuts, those hours turn into weeks, and even months, eventually, of time saved thanks to shortcuts. 

1. Alt + F1

This shortcut will allow you to switch to the active speaker view in a video meeting. It’s a handy way to switch from gallery view (Alt + F2) and can help you pay attention to who’s speaking by making them the main focus. 

2. Alt + V

With this shortcut, you can easily start or stop the video in the Zoom meeting, or when you’re making a pre-recorded video. 

3. Alt + A

This shortcut is a good one for everyone to keep on hand—it can save us all from the occasional embarrassment. Pressing this combination of keys will mute or unmute the audio, allowing you to speak when it’s called for and mute yourself when you’re done. 

4. Alt + M

For meeting hosts, this shortcut is great because it can mute or unmute all the participants of the meeting except for the host. That will allow you to get everyone’s attention and make sure that no one missed muting themselves. 

5. Alt + P

This shortcut allows you to pause or resume recording when you’re creating a pre-recorded Zoom video. This way, you can stop and start with ease and without having to navigate to the “pause” button every single time. 

6. Ctrl + T

If you’re using Zoom chat, this shortcut allows you to jump to the chat window with a specific user, depending on who you select. Zoom chat is often used along with video to provide a dynamic collaboration. 

7. Alt + Shift + T 

If you want to get a screenshot of a chat, you can use this shortcut. You might need to keep a record of a conversation, or you might just be capturing a conversation that needs to be shared with others. In any case, this will make sure that it’s easy to do. 

8. Alt + Shift + S

Screensharing is another great feature of Zoom. This shortcut allows you to stop and start screen sharing with any user simply by pressing a few keys. This will only work when the meeting control toolbar has focus, but it’s a useful one to know, nonetheless. 

9. Alt + R

If you use Zoom for recording, this is a good shortcut to know. It allows you to stop or start local recordings, giving you time to pause, edit, and make sure that you get the recording exactly right without having to click around the screen. 

10. Alt + C

This shortcut will stop or start a cloud recording. When you want to record a Zoom meeting or conference to the cloud, this shortcut makes it a breeze. You’ll never have to search for the navigational menu or make sure that you’re recording to the right place because the shortcut is specifically for the cloud. 

Lead meetings with efficiency thanks to Zoom shortcuts 

Zoom has changed the way that the entire world handles collaboration and virtual meetings. The workplace had to go remote and Zoom answered, fully ready to become the tool that helped people transition into the virtual space after COVID sent everyone home. The shortcuts discussed here are just a handful of those available. 

Users will also find shortcuts for macOS, iOS, and Linux, allowing everyone to utilize Zoom to their advantage in as many ways as possible. A note for Mac users—many shortcuts are similar, but the Cmd key will replace the Ctrl button from Windows. Zoom also allows you to edit shortcuts by clicking on them in the list and then changing them as you see fit. 

Whether you’re well-versed with Zoom already or you’re just getting acquainted, it’s time to embrace the available shortcuts so that you can make the most of this meeting tool. Take advantage of customizing shortcuts when you find ways to increase efficiency even more and feel free to pick and choose from the full list of shortcuts to determine which ones are best for your needs. 

Let us Zoom through your leads and increase your intake efficiency, too!

While you’re working on speeding things up, why not take another look at your incoming leads? If you don’t have solutions in place like a 24/7 answering system, you don’t stand a chance. When you partner with the virtual receptionists at Smith.ai, you’ll get dedicated assistance with lead intake, along with appointment scheduling, live website chat, and even outreach campaigns. 

Plus, we’ll tie it all together with a customized strategy to manage all the details, no matter what those entail. Our team knows what it takes to handle all of your admin and communication needs and we can make sure that you never miss a single opportunity. Learn more when you schedule a consultation or reach out to us at hello@smith.ai. 

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