Video conferencing platforms like Zoom lets you host a webinar which is slightly different from regular Zoom meeting. Everyone is starting to host virtual seminars via Zoom. But many of us are doing it in the wrong way.
Basically, the premise is the same, and it’s just that the host has more control over attendees. Plus, you can also set panellist, and co-host while conducting a Zoom webinar. Also, to hold one, you need a premium upgrade on Zoom plans. In this segment, we explore the webinar feature, and we also teach you on how to conduct a Zoom Webinar ideally.
How to Host a Zoom Webinar
First, you need to schedule your webinar. Here you need to invite a co-host, panellists, fix the date and time of the webinar. Usually, all the attendees will need to register for a webinar in advance, or you can even turn the registration feature off so everyone can attend your Zoom Webinar. We will get into every detail but let’s first start on with scheduling. For that, you should follow the steps below.
Schedule a Zoom Webinar
- Log in to your Zoom account from the website. Once logged in, select My Webinars.
- Now, choose to Schedule a Webinar.
- Enter the topic name and description.
- Select the date and time of the webinar,
- You can even choose the recurring options, in that case, mention the intervals at which the webinar will repeat.
Registration Options in Zoom Webinar
- In Invite Attendees select edit. Here you can customize the options where participants can either join the webinar directly or first they need to register for it and then you can either manually approve individual requests or automatically allow all the registered attendees for the webinar.
- Choose any of the options that suit best for your scenario. It’s best practice to ask attendees to register first; that way, you can ask them specific questions, conduct a survey and know more about them. It’s also an excellent way to collect participants’ data.
You can easily create a Webinar enrollment form via Google Form, JotForm or almost any other service that you seem fit.
Q & A Settings for Zoom Webinar
Furthermore, you can even set Question and Answer settings for your Zoom Webinar. In this, you can enable it to allow participants to ask questions where they can see all the questions or even conduct an anonymous Q & A.
- Here, in Webinar Options, check the Q & A feature and click on schedule. Now during the webinar, you can answer the question live or by typing it.
Zoom Webinar Features
Zoom webinar tries to replicate the exact situation of a conference hall. Here you have a co-host and a panel who give their talks just like a real seminar. Ideally, you might want to conduct a webinar when there is a broad audience.
Zoom allows you to set 100 panellists, and an unlimited number of Co-hosts. There’s A limit to 10,000 participants in a single webinar which most of the time is sufficient. But it all depends on the upgrade that you choose. Webinar is a paid feature of Zoom, and you cannot use it with free accounts.
There are few webinar options that you can explore to have a smooth experience; among them, we have listed a few, have a look.
- You can record webinars automatically.
- Turn host and panellist’s video/audio on or off.
- Mandatory password authentication before joining the webinar.
You can even have a practice session with panellists and co-host to make sure that everything works fine.
The last thing you might want to do is save the webinar you just created as a template. This will help you in a quick setup for a weekly series of webinars, or different events. Finally, after you schedule the webinar, you must see all the details such as Webinar size, Link of the event, event ID and password.
Conclusion:
Many of us are stuck in pandemic situations, and it isn’t easy to network, meet new people and even conduct Seminars and Conferences. Thanks to Zoom Webinar, you can seamlessly hold significant scale events and talks online.
Furthermore, you can also integrate payment gateways and monetize your Zoom webinar. But, make sure to follow Zoom Safety features and make your webinar a grand success. Do share your thoughts on what technical challenges did you face while hosting a Zoom Webinar in the comments section below.