Faculty and staff may schedule a Zoom Webinar by filling out the "Reserving a Webinar form" for planned events.
- Note: To request use of the university's webinar license, which is managed by the Office of Events and Conferences, you must complete the required form.
Zoom Webinars are used for large academic events and educational lectures. Think of webinars like a virtual lecture hall or auditorium. Learn more about the details of the various videoconferencing options.
If you are hosting a Zoom Webinar, here are some tips and best practices to create the best experience for your panelists, co-hosts, and attendees.
- Note:If this is your first time hosting a Zoom webinar, consider going through the Zoom Webinar resources Zoom provides. Please also schedule a practice session with the Office of Events and Conferences after you fill out this form to schedule a Zoom webinar.
2+ Weeks Before your Scheduled Webinar
- Confirm the date, time, title and description for your webinar.
- Decide the webinar roles: host, co-hosts, panelists, and attendees.
- Fill out this form to schedule a Zoom webinar, and the Office of Events and Conferences will follow up with a consultation.
- Meet with panelists or alternative hosts to confirm the webinar's structure and content.
- We recommend assigning a webinar host/moderator and someone who could focus on Zoom during a webinar to monitor chat and participants during the webinar.
- Plan and design how the webinar will flow:
- How will it start (host on screen or Presentation Screen)?
- How will transitions occur? Verbal handoff to the next panelist/presenter or slides.
- Who manages slides/audio/video?
- What are the transition queues (verbal, hand gesture, etc)?
- Decide if you want to add poll questions to your webinar and write out the poll questions to share with the Office of Events and Conferences staff during your consultation.
1 Week Before your Scheduled Webinar
- Schedule a Practice session: After you consult with the Office of Events and Conferences, schedule a practice session.
- During Practice Session:
- Check Mics/Video
- Check Polls
- Show how to view Q&A, etc., while in Presenter Mode
- Turn off mics/video
- Check the following Settings:
- Allow Panelists to turn on Video
- Allow Panelists to Share
- Allow Attendees to Chat with "No One"- use chat as a backchannel for Host/Panelists during the Webinar
- Turn on/off "Raise Hand"
30 Minutes Before
- Start the webinar via your host calendar appointment.
- Note: This is created by the Office of Events and Conferences.
- Enable Practice Session so that only the host and panelists can join
- Greet panelists and review everyone's roles
- As panelists join, confirm that their audio and video are running smoothly
- Set up and manage webinar tools:
- Chat: Click the "More" menu at the bottom to allow or disable attendee chat.
- Participants: Click the"More" menu at the bottom to allow panelists to start the video and mute on entry.
- Q&A: Click the"Options" menu at the top to allow or disable anonymous questions.
- Polls: Select"Polls to prepare to launch the poll.
15 Minutes Before
- Mute all panelists; they will remain muted until the presentation starts
- Use the "Broadcast" button to move from practice to start mode and allow attendees to join
- Attendees will join muted; they will be able to see and hear the panelists
- Moderator: Welcome the attendees and let them know you'll be getting started soon
Webinar Start Time
- Start Recording, unless you have enabled automatic recording.
- Unmute yourself and start the video.
- Begin the presentation with welcome and housekeeping items.
End the Webinar
- If recording, remind all participants that a recording will be made available.
After your Webinar
- Send a follow-up email to attendees
- Be sure to include the webinar recording
- Include a call to action (what you want them to do next) - for example, a post-webinar survey link.
- Note: These settings will have to be set up by the Office of Events and Conferences Staff.
What will the Attendees See?
- "Gallery View" for Attendees will only show Panelists whose "Video" is turned on.
- The Host/Panelists will see all Host/Panelists in "Gallery View"
- Note: Users with their video turned off will appear as their name or profile image.
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