Tips for speaking in and moderating Sessions

If you're invited to speak in and moderate a standard Session, this guide will help ensure a seamless experience on the day of the event. It includes preparation steps, tips, and an overview of how a Session room works, including Session types, sharing screens, and attendee engagement features. 

Preparation checklist

• Check your browser: For the best experience, use the latest versions of Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Microsoft Edge (Windows 10 and up) on your laptop or desktop computer. For more information, check our guide on Browser compatibility. 
• Check internet connection: Run a speed test (e.g., https://www.speedtest.net/) to ensure you have 30Mbps+ for download and upload speeds for the best experience and highest resolutions across the event.
• Check internet settings: Ensure VPNs, proxies, or firewalls are disabled. 
• Complete our pre-event test: Test your local device setup with our test. For detailed steps, refer to our guide on RingCentral Events Pre-Event Check.
• Conduct a test run: Contact the Organizer to share the direct Session link with you and assist with a rehearsal. Registered Speakers can access the online event venue before the start time. 
• Test your audio and video: Use headphones to eliminate echo and background noise, and put the camera at eye level. In a Session, you can blur your background. 
• Check out our general troubleshooting tips for audio and video issues.

Session types

There are several types of Session rooms: open, invite-only, moderated, and studio.  

Open Session

Anyone inside an open Session can join the screen anytime by clicking Join Stage.

Invite-Only Session

In an invite-only Session, only assigned participants can go on-screen anytime by clicking Join Stage. Other Attendees cannot join the screen, and they won't see this option.

Moderated Session

A moderated Session has assigned Moderators who can join the screen anytime. Attendees and Speakers can request to join the screen by clicking Join Stage and waiting for a Moderator to approve their request. 

Moderator view

When Attendees request to go on-screen, the Host Controls icon will display a red badge with the number of requests. Open Host Controls and go to Moderation to approve or decline these requests. 

Additionally, to mute a speaker for everyone, remove them or their screen share from the screen, hover over the selected speaker or screen share tile, click the Menu icon ••• and click Mute for everyone or Remove. 

Joining the screen

To join the screen:

1. Click Join Stage. If a Session is moderated, you'll need to wait for a Moderator or an Organizer to approve your request.
   
2. In the Audio/Video settings, you will be able to:
   • Select hardware sources for your camera, microphone, and speakers.
   • Enable/disable your microphone and camera.
     Note: You can join the screen without a camera by using only your microphone, making it possible to participate with audio only if needed.
   • Customize your tag's first name, last name, and headline.
   • Upload a new profile image. 
   • Under Background appearance & effect, blur your video background or add a virtual background.
   • Under More settings, enable additional video and audio settings.
   • Run a pre-event check.
3. Once ready, click Apply Selection.
   

Speaker controls

Once you are on screen, you will have the following Speaker controls at the bottom center of the Session:

• Microphone: Turn on and off your microphone.
• Camera: Turn on and off your webcam.
• Settings: Opens the audio/video settings where you can customize your name tag and change the hardware selection for your camera and microphone.
• Screen share: Opens a screen-share menu.
  • YouTube sharing (if enabled): Opens a pop-up to enter a link to share a video directly from YouTube.
    
    Tip: Check on our Sharing your Powerpoint and Sharing computer audio guides to screen share like a Pro.
• Emoji reactions (if enabled): Select an emoji to place on your video tile for a few seconds to express your sentiment during the presentation. 
• Raise hand (if enabled): Raise your hand to indicate your desire to ask a question or contribute a point. 
• Fullscreen: Make the entire Session fullscreen. 
• Closed Captions: Turn on and off closed captions. 
• Sound: Mute and unmute the whole stage if needed.

Finally, click Stop sharing Audio and Video to leave the screen anytime.

Sharing screen

Once Speakers join the screen, they can share their screen and content from other platforms like YouTube, Miro, or Figma (if enabled in the Session settings). To do so, open the Share menu and select the preferred option.

Moderators can share content without joining the screen. The Share menu option stays accessible at all times. 

Attendee engagement

RingCentral Events provides various engagement features for Speakers and Moderators to enhance presentations and captivate attendees. Feel free to utilize the following tools to make your presentation more exciting and engaging.

Activity panel

The Activity panel on the right-hand side includes multiple tabs, such as Chat, Q&A, Polls, and additional features depending on the event setup. These tabs are designed to maintain audience engagement throughout the event.

As a Speaker or a Moderator, you can create and manage polls. When Q&A moderation is enabled in the settings, Moderators can approve and delete questions in their respective Q&A tab.

Displaying an in-session banner with a custom button

Moderators can create a call-to-action banner to encourage attendees to participate in a survey or visit a webpage. Open Host Controls and select New Session Banner. For more information, refer to our guide on Creating a call-to-action banner in a Session or Expo Booth Session.

Breakout rooms

Moderators can create Breakout Rooms to divide attendees into smaller groups and organize interactive activities. Open Host Controls, select Breakout Rooms, and click + New breakout. For more information, refer to our guide on Managing breakout rooms in a Session.

Confetti

Confetti is an engagement feature that enables attendees to express appreciation by sending confetti. If this option is enabled within the Session, attendees can trigger this effect by clicking on the video tile or screen share during the session. It provides a fun way to acknowledge a speaker or highlight presented data on the slides.

As a Moderator, you can disable the Confetti option. Open Host Controls, go to Attendee Engagement, and toggle off Confetti. 

Emoji reactions

You can use emoji reactions when participating on screen to communicate your sentiments without causing interruptions during the meeting. To trigger the effect, they need to click the Emoji icon in the Speaker Controls and select one of the available emojis. The emoji will be placed on your video tile for a few seconds and disappear automatically.  

As a Moderator, you can disable the Emoji reactions option. Open Host controls, go to Attendee Engagement and toggle off Emoji reactions.  

Raising hand

You can raise your hand (if enabled) to signal your intention to ask a question or contribute to the discussion without interrupting the flow of conversation. To trigger this, click the Hand icon in the Speaker Controls. The hand icon will be placed on the speaker's video tile to notify other speakers. After speaking or once your question has been addressed, click on the same Hand icon to lower your hand. 

As a Moderator, you can disable the Raise hand option. Open Host controls, go to Attendee Engagement and toggle off Raise hand. 

Changing a screen layout

Moderators can customize the screen setup by changing the screen layout. Open Host Controls, go to Layouts and select the preferred layout. Five pre-set screen layouts are available. For more information, refer to our guide on Changing a layout in a Session.

Highlighting a chat message, question, or poll

Finally, Moderators can showcase a chat message, question, or poll from the activity panel on the screen. In the activity panel tab, hover a message, question, or poll and click Highlight. For more information, refer to our guide on Displaying a chat message, question, or poll on the screen in Sessions.