Zoom Tips

This page covers standard practices for using HTA-CA Zoom webinars.

Overview
Tips for Presenters
Recording your Webinar
Create a New Webinar
Virtual Background
Waiting Room

Overview

There are 3 levels of control when creating or attending a Zoom webinar: Host, Panelist, and Attendee.

• Host
  • Creates webinar and defines all parameters.
  • Invites Panelists who present or moderate.
  • Invites, or provides the registration link for, Attendees.
  • Has full control over starting and ending the webinar.
  • Can stop and start recordings.
  • Can promote and demote Panelists and Attendees.
  • Can assign Co-Hosts with similar permissions.
  • Can control what format the Attendees view.
• Panelist
  • Panelist, Participant, Speaker, and Presenter are all considered Panelists. 
  • Can share their screen and present during the webinar.
  • Can join the webinar early to test audio and video.
  • Can attend practice sessions.
  • Can see and hear other panelists, but cannot see or hear Attendees.
  • Can see and answer questions posted in the Q&A box (but cannot write questions).
• Attendee
  • Must register to attend a webinar.
  • Are placed in a waiting room until the webinar is started.
  • Can see the presenter and panelists (View may be controlled by the Host).
  • Can type in the Chat.
  • Can ask questions in the Q&A.
  • Can see other’s questions and upvote in the Q&A.
  • Are not seen or heard by the Host or Panelists unless granted by the Host.

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Presenters

• Presenters will join as Panelists.
• They can join the webinar early to test video and audio and be allowed to present.
• Panelists will receive an invitation email a few weeks before the event, followed by reminders a week, a day, and an hour before the webinar. (Reminders determined by the Host when creating the webinar.)
• The invite email should say you are a Panelist at the top.
• Below the date and time, there is a “Click Here to Join” link.
• This is the link you must click to join as a panelist. If the email is lost, the host can send you another. If, for some reason you are admitted as an attendee, the host can promote you to panelist.
• To achieve high production standards and help you appear as professional as possible, the host may request you to attend a practice session.
• In the practice session, the host will:
  • Describe computer controls.
  • Advise best settings to share your audio and video.
  • Check your camera and microphone quality.
  • Provide lighting and background suggestions.
  • Practice Sharing your presentation
  • Explain the Question and Answer process

• On the day of the event, please join the meeting 20 minutes early so we can verify everything is working properly.
• Once you have joined the meeting and before it is your turn to present, start you PowerPoint (or whatever presentation app you are using).
• When it is your turn to present, “Unmute” your microphone at the bottom left of your Zoom window.
• Next, click the green “Share Screen” icon in center bottom of the Zoom window. You will be presented with the next image.

• This “Share” window will show you every app that is currently open on your computer.
• If you choose “Screen”, everyone can see everything on your desktop.
• Instead, select your presentation app or window you want to share by clicking on it. Attendees will only see that app.
• Then, at the bottom, select “Share Sound” and “Optimize for Video Clip”.
• These options are important for attendees to hear any sound from videos you may play and ensure they play smoothly.
• Finally, click the “Share” button on the bottom right and you are live!

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Recording

• You can configure Zoom to automatically record in the “Webinar Options” when setting up your webinar.
• Currently, we are allotted 1GB of cloud storage for recorded webinars.
• Our first recording created 3 files; 1 video, 1 audio, and a text file.
• The 2 hour and 43 minute video was 753MB, the audio only file was 148MB and the text file only 1.6KB
• Total size: 904MB or 90% of the 1GB storage limit
• Option: Pay $40/month for 100GB to store video at Zoom and make available to stream.
• Option: Choose “Save to Computer” when creating the webinar and it will download to the Host’s computer.
• Note: It takes time to render and save the video to the Host’s computer which starts immediately after the webinar is closed. You can interrupt this process and render later. But if you shut down, you may lose the video.

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Create a HTA-CA webinar – Step by Step

Use the HTA Webinar Template.

The template has the standard settings we use for a free webinar. You will need to customize a few settings each time you use it.

• Go to zoom.com and “Sign In” as President.
• On the Profile page, under “Personal”, click “Webinars”.
• Near the top middle, click “Webinar Templates”.
• Choose “HTA Webinar Template”.
• Choose “Schedule a Webinar with this template”.
• Change the “Topic” to the title of your webinar.
• Change the “Description” to describe your webinar.
• Set the Date and Time
• Click “Save”.
• Under “Invitations”, invite Panelists.
• No change required for “Email Settings”.
• Click on “Branding” if you want to add a speaker bio and picture. No other changes required here.
• Click “Polls/Survey”
• Surveys are not saved in templates. Must create a new survey. Exact survey questions required for CEUs by CPTA are as follows. We pose them as Yes or No. Click “Required” for all questions.
  • Were the course objectives met?
  • Was evidence provided to substantiate material presented?
  • Were personal experience and observation the primary source of information?
  • Was a commercial product promoted?
  • If yes, did you feel that product promotion was the sole purpose of the course?
• We add the following questions not required by CPTA. Click “Required” for all questions.
  • Dr. xxxx demonstrated a high level of proficiency on her topic and provided evidence to substantiate the material presented. Use a range of 1 to 5 with “No” as 1 and “Yes” as 5.
  • Would you recommend this virtual course to a colleague? Your comments are welcomed
    to help us improve our courses. Add a text box for comments.
• Click “Save”.
• Click “Edit Settings” for “How the Survey Shows” and check both boxes
  • “Show in the browser when the webinar ends”
  • “Show the link on the follow-up email”

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Create a webinar from scratch

These are the recommended settings for HTA webinars.

1. Go to zoom.com and “Sign In” as President.
2. On the Profile page, under “Personal”, click “Webinars”.
3. Click the “Schedule a Webinar” button.
4. In the “Topic” field, type the title of your webinar.
5. Add a description in the next field. This will display in the invite emails and on the registration page.
6. You can select the standard HTA Webinar Template or continue to configure the options yourself.
7. Set the Date, Time, AM or PM, the Duration and Time Zone. Unless you are repeating your exact webinar over several days, leave “Recurring Webinar” unchecked.
8. Check “Registration Required” to force Attendees to submit information (Name, email, credentials, license).
9. You can uncheck “Require Webinar Passcode”. It is an extra security step which we do not see as needed at this time.
10. Select “On” for both Host and Panelists in the Video section. “Off” will require the Host to perform extra step to enable Panelists to turn their camera on.
11. Select “Both” in the Audio section. This allows Attendees and Panelists to join audio via the telephone, handy if audio over the internet fails. Note: these are not toll free numbers.
12. “Webinar Options” – Check the following:
    1. Q&A
    2. Enable Practice Session
    3. Automatically Record – Then choose “On the local computer” or “In the cloud”. (See “Recording” section above for details.)
13. Leave “Alternative Hosts” blank. If needed, you can promote Panelists to Co-Host after the webinar has started.
14. Click “Schedule” and review the settings before proceeding.
15. Scroll down to “Invitations”, find “Invite Panelists” and click “Edit” on the right side of the window.
16. Add a Panelist’s name, email address, and select “Send invitation to all newly added panelists immediately”.
17. Click “Save”.
18. Next box down is “Invite Attendees” with the “Registration Link”. Who we give the link to or where we place it depends on how and if you are charging Attendees. We are not using the “Source Tracking Link” at this time.
19. Next is “Registration Settings”. Click “Edit” on the right to configure these.
    1. “Registration Required” should already be checked.
    2. Select “Automatically Approve”.
    3. Leave “Notification” unchecked, unless you want Lori to receive hundreds of emails.
    4. For “Other Options”, check
       1. “Close registration after event date”
       2. “Restrict number of registrants” to 500
       3. “Allow attendees to join from multiple devices”
    5. Ignore “Tracking Pixel” for now.
    6. Click “Questions” at the top of the Registration window. Select “Required” for last name.
    7. Click “Custom Questions” at the top of the Registration window and click the “New Question” button and add 2 questions.
       1. Choose “Short Answer”, type “Credentials”, select “Required”, and click “Create”.
       2. Do the same to ask “License number”.
    8. Click “Save All”.
20. Next, click “Email Settings” and click “Edit” on the right.
21. Change “Email Contact” to HTA-CA Webinar or something similar and the email address to “education@hta-ca.org”
22. Click “Save”.
23. You can review and edit the “Invitation” and “Confirmation” emails if you like.
24. Click “Edit” next to “Reminder Emails for Attendees and Panelists” and select all 3 options.
25. Click “Save”.
26. Click “Edit” next to “Follow-up email to Attendees”, click “Send follow-up email to Attendees”, select “1 Day after Scheduled End Date”. You can add additional text if you want.
27. Click “Save”.
28. Do the same for “Absentees” and click “Save”. You can add additional text if you want.
29. Click on “Branding” to customize the “Invitation” page.
    1. A HTA-CA logo has been loaded in the template.
    2. You can add a second logo to the side, which we don’t.
    3. You can change the “Title”.
    4. You can add information and a picture of up to 3 speakers.
    5. You can adjust the color theme. Our colors are purple #433b96 and blue #4fc5d3 and set in the template.
    6. You can set where Attendees are directed after a webinar.
30. Click on “Polls/Surveys”.
    1. Polls are mostly custom designed for each webinar and are not included in the template.
    2. Surveys are not saved in templates. Exact survey questions required for CEUs by CPTA are as follows. We pose them as Yes or No. Click “Required” for all questions.
       1. Were the course objectives met?
       2. Was evidence provided to substantiate material presented?
       3. Were personal experience and observation the primary source of information?
       4. Was a commercial product promoted?
       5. If yes, did you feel that product promotion was the sole purpose of the course?
    3. We add the following questions not required by CPTA. Click “Required” for all questions.
       1. Dr. xxxx demonstrated a high level of proficiency on her topic and provided evidence to substantiate the material presented. Use a range of 1 to 5 with “No” as 1 and “Yes” as 5.
       2. Would you recommend this virtual course to a colleague? Your comments are welcomed
          to help us improve our courses. Add a text box for comments.
    4. Click “Save”.
    5. Click “Edit Settings” for “How the Survey Shows” and check both boxes
       1. “Show in the browser when the webinar ends”
       2. “Show the link on the follow-up email”
31. Click on “Q&A” and then click “Edit” on the right side.
    1. Select “Allow Attendees to view all questions” and “Attendees can Upvote.”
32. That’s it. There is nothing in the “More” section we use.

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Virtual Background

• For best virtual background results, use a solid color backdrop.
• Go to Settings > Background & Filters
• Check the “I have a green screen” box
• Click the “+” near the pictures to add an image
• The backdrop does not need to be green. You can change to the color backdrop you are using by clicking on the green square.
• Do not wear the same color clothes as the green screen or other backdrop you are using.
• Click the picture below to download this virtual background.

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Waiting Room

Instructions to customize the waiting room are here.

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