You already know Microsoft Teams is a fantastic platform that helps you connect, collaborate, and get things done. But did you know you can tweak it to suit your style and workflow better? Let’s dive into five easy ways you can customize Microsoft Teams to experience the most benefits.

1: Change Your Microsoft Teams Theme

Changing the theme is one of the quickest ways to customize Microsoft Teams to make it feel more like your own space. Whether you prefer a clean and bright look or something easier on the eyes for long hours, Teams offers three main themes: Default (light), Dark, and High contrast. This choice isn’t just about aesthetics; it can make using the app more comfortable for your eyes and for your brain.

Here’s how you can change your theme:

Access Settings: Click on the three dots (more options) in the top-right corner of the Teams window, right next to your profile picture.

Navigate to Theme Settings: From the dropdown menu, select ‘Settings.’

Select a Theme: Under the ‘General’ tab, you’ll find the ‘Theme’ section. Here, you can choose between Default (light), Dark, or High contrast.

Apply the Theme: Once selected, the theme changes automatically—no need to hit a save button.

You can also adjust the chat density, which allows you to choose how compact or spacious the chat window looks. This is especially handy if you like to see more messages at once or prefer a cleaner layout.

From this menu, you can also customize language preferences to accommodate differences between UK English and US English, and to enable certain accessibility features.

2: Organize Channels to Your Liking

Have you ever felt lost in a sea of channels and chats? Organizing them can help you manage your conversations and stay on top of things. Teams are groups of people working together, while channels are specific conversations within those groups. By default, they’re arranged by creation date or activity, but you can rearrange them to match your preferences.

To organize channels:

Drag and Drop: Simply click and hold a channel or team, then drag it to a new spot in the left-hand sidebar. This way, you can prioritize the ones you use most frequently.

Pin Important Channels: For the channels or chats you use daily, right-click on them and select 'Pin.' This keeps them easily accessible no matter how far away you scroll.

This little customization can make a huge difference in your response speeds, especially when you're managing multiple projects or teams.

3: Create Custom Status Messages

Custom status messages are a great way to let your colleagues know what’s going on with you. Whether you’re stepping out for a quick break, in a meeting, or focusing on a big task, a status message can communicate your availability to your team without you having to say a word. You can even record a voicemail message updating your status to customize Microsoft Teams.

How to set a custom status message:

Click on your profile picture at the top of the Teams window.

Choose ‘Set status message’ from the options on the screen.

Just enter your message—something like “In a meeting until 3 PM” or “Focusing on a project, will respond later,” and it’ll be posted for you. The message appears next to your profile picture.

You can also set an expiration time for the message to automatically clear after a certain period.

This is useful in larger enterprises where sending individual updates to a team of hundreds is not feasible.

4: Update Your Notification Settings

Managing notifications well is vital for all office employees, especially remote and hybrid workers. The key is to stay updated without being overwhelmed. You can manage that by customizing your notification settings. This lets you control how and when you’re alerted, ensuring you’re not distracted by every ping.

To update your notifications:

Click on your profile picture and go to ‘Settings.’

Navigate to the ‘Notifications’ tab.

Here, you can configure settings for messages, mentions, replies, and more. You can choose to receive banner notifications (pop-ups) on your laptop screen, only see notifications in your activity feed, or turn off notifications for specific activities entirely.

This lets you decide what’s important and minimizes interruptions, helping you stay focused on your work.

5: Customize Your Meeting Backgrounds

Let’s face it: not everyone has the perfect home office setup. Customizing your meeting backgrounds in Teams can help maintain privacy or add some fun to your daily calls. Whether you want a professional-looking office backdrop or something more personal, like a scenic landscape, vacation photo, or intergalactic star cruiser, this feature has you covered.

How to change your meeting backgrounds:

During a video call, click on the three dots (…) in the meeting control bar.

Select ‘Apply background effects.’

You can choose from the pre-set backgrounds provided by Teams or upload your own image.

This customization not only adds a personal touch to your meetings but can also help reduce distractions for both you and your participants. After all, with a customized background, your fellow team members will have an easier time focusing on you instead of your dog playing in the background.

At The Maynard Group, we believe that taking the time to improve your digital environment can make work more enjoyable and your workday more productive. So go ahead, try out these tips, and make Teams truly your own.

Make Teams Customization In-Depth and Easy with The Maynard Group

By taking a few minutes to customize Microsoft Teams to your liking, you can create a setup that looks great and works efficiently based on your preferences and work style.

However, if you want to customize Teams to the Nth degree, The Maynard Group is here to help. As a trusted technology partner, we specialize in providing expert support, whether you need advanced integrations or personalized training.

Reach out today to see how partnering with The Maynard Group unleashes the full collaborative power of Microsoft Teams for you and your business.

Blog Feed

5 Ways to Customize Your Microsoft Teams