Remote work and distance learning is now part of everyday life, and enterprise video services like Microsoft Teams and Zoom are becoming more prevalent than ever. 

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When you use Microsoft Teams, you have the option to add a virtual background to your video call. Custom backgrounds are an option for if you have kids or pets, or simply don’t want people to see the inside of your home. For your most important business meetings, you can even create a custom background that links to your digital business card.

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Once you download the Microsoft Teams web app, adding a virtual background to your video call is fairly straightforward. After opening the web app, start a video call and follow these steps:

1. Click the three dot menu and then select “Show background effects”

2. Select “Add new”

3. Upload your own virtual background

4. Scroll down, select your virtual background, and click "Apply"

Sometimes Microsoft Teams has a mirroring effect—while your background may appear backwards to you, it will display correctly to everyone else on the call. If your entire background image isn’t showing or gets cropped, you may need to adjust the size of your window.

If you want to create your own personalized background to use on Microsoft Teams includes your logo, name, title, company and a link to your digital business card—you can do so with  HiHello. Once downloaded, you can add your virtual background to your computer by following the same steps shown above.

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HiHello backgrounds also work on Zoom. If you prefer Zoom, read our blog post on how to add a virtual background to Zoom.