The downside to Zoom calls? Hundreds of people see your home – and how well you clean. While 73% clean more, 18% feel “house shame” and use virtual backgrounds.

NEW YORK – A Zoom meeting brings colleagues into your home, and many remote workers found personal space suddenly on display during videoconference calls – and that motivated them to spruce up their nest, a new survey shows.

According to a Cinch Home Services survey, 73% of Americans say they cleaned or tidied up their homes prior to virtual Zoom calls. The survey, which gauged how the pandemic changed Americans’ cleaning habits, found that 18% of respondents felt some “house shame.” Most of these people used a digital background to hide their untidy home.

The people who cleaned their homes say they felt more productive at work after doing so: 68% say cleaning increases their feelings of productivity, 65% say it makes them feel more in control and 58% say it’s motivating.

Clutter-avoidance appeared in other ways:

  • 64% intentionally cut back on purchases to stall clutter
  • 70% went on a cleaning spree since the pandemic began
  • Nearly 45% of consumers say their spaces are much cleaner now than they were pre-pandemic.

Source: “Turns Out, the Era of Zoom Calls Has Helped Declutter Homes,” Apartment Therapy (June 13, 2021)

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Author: marlam