Recording in-person meetings with Fathom – Workarounds
This article outlines practical methods for using Fathom, a virtual meeting assistant, to capture and summarize in-person meetings. It covers four main approaches: creating a virtual bridge via video conferencing platforms, capturing audio-only meetings, implementing a hybrid meeting setup, and recording post-meeting voice notes. The article also addresses best practices for audio quality, privacy considerations, and how to maximize Fathom's features once content is captured.
Understanding Fathom's capabilities
Fathom transforms virtual meetings through automatic transcription and summarization of discussions. It delivers AI-generated meeting summaries within 30 seconds of conclusion, enables sharing video clips instead of text notes, integrates with productivity tools, supports multiple languages with translation capabilities, and provides an AI assistant for interacting with recordings.
The tool typically saves users about 20 minutes per meeting. For regular meeting participants, this adds up to roughly 1.5 weeks annually.
Workarounds for in-person meetings
1. Create a virtual bridge
The simplest approach is creating a virtual meeting that runs during your in-person conversation.
Set up a meeting on your preferred platform (Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams) on your laptop. Position your device to capture participants if visual recording matters, and ensure your microphone can pick up everyone clearly. Join the meeting with Fathom enabled and let it run throughout your discussion.
A marketing team meeting in a conference room could position a laptop at one end of the table running a virtual meeting with Fathom enabled. The laptop would capture the brainstorming session, with Fathom providing a transcript and summary afterward.
2. Audio-only capture
When video isn't necessary, focusing solely on audio can be less intrusive.
Start a virtual meeting on your device with video disabled. Position your device centrally for optimal audio pickup, possibly using an external microphone for better sound quality. Enable Fathom for this audio-only meeting.
During client consultations, a financial advisor could discreetly place their phone on the table running a meeting with Fathom enabled. This allows complete focus on the client while ensuring all details about financial goals are captured for later reference.
3. Hybrid meeting approach
For larger gatherings or meetings with some remote participants, a hybrid approach works well.
Set up your meeting room with standard video conferencing equipment. Have in-person attendees gather around the conference room setup while remote participants join via your usual platform. Enable Fathom to capture the entire session.
A product team with distributed members could host quarterly planning with some members in the office and others joining remotely. The conference room setup would allow Fathom to capture both in-person and remote contributions.
4. Post-meeting voice notes
For informal meetings when setting up a virtual meeting isn't practical, create a summary immediately afterward.
After your in-person meeting, start a quick solo virtual meeting. Verbally summarize the key points, decisions, and action items. Let Fathom capture and process this summary, then share the AI-generated notes with participants.
Following a casual coffee meeting with a potential partner, a founder could spend five minutes recording a summary using Fathom. This provides a structured record without disrupting the natural conversation flow.
Best practices for in-person recording
Optimize audio quality
Clear audio is crucial for Fathom's effectiveness. Position your device centrally when possible and consider using an omnidirectional external microphone for larger groups. Test your setup before important meetings. Ask participants to speak clearly and avoid talking over each other. Minimize background noise by closing windows and doors.
Address privacy and consent
Recording in-person conversations requires proper privacy considerations. Always inform all participants that the meeting is being recorded and obtain explicit consent. Explain how the recording will be used and who will have access. Be aware of local laws regarding audio recording. For formal or sensitive meetings, consider having written consent forms.
Enhance the experience
Bring a charger or power bank to maintain device power. Consider using a dedicated device just for recording. Select meeting locations with good acoustics. Have speakers state their names before speaking to help with identification. Designate someone to monitor the virtual meeting to mark highlights in Fathom.
Limitations to consider
These workarounds have limitations. Audio quality might not match purpose-built recording equipment. Speaker identification may be less accurate in groups. Visual cues and body language won't be captured effectively. Creating virtual meetings for in-person conversations adds complexity. Battery life and internet connectivity can affect longer meetings.
Leveraging Fathom's features after capture
Once your in-person meeting is recorded, you can use Fathom's features: review the AI-generated summary, search the transcript for specific topics, share clips of important moments, ask the AI assistant questions about meeting content, export action items to task management systems, and integrate notes with your CRM.
