If you're invited to speak in and moderate a Session, this guide will help ensure a seamless experience on the day of the event. You'll find preparation steps, tips and an overview of how a Session room works, including Session types, sharing screen and attendee engagement features.
Note: Speaker are Moderators are two district roles with different permissions. Reach out to the Organizers to clarify your role. For more information on roles and permissions, refer to our guide Are Speakers and Moderators the same?
Preparation checklist
- Check your browser: Use the latest versions of Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Microsoft Edge for Windows 10 and up on your laptop or computer for the best experience. For more information, check our guide on Browser compatibility.
- Check internet connection: Run a speed test (e.g. https://www.speedtest.net/) to make sure you have 30Mbps+ for both 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. For detailed steps, refer to our guide on RingCentral Events Pre-Event Check.
- Conduct a test run: Reach out to 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 & video: Use headphones to eliminates echos and background noise and put the camera at eye level. In a Session, you can blur your background.
- Check out our general troubleshooting tips: Audio & Video issues.
Session types
There are three types of Session rooms: open, invite-only and moderated.
Open Session
Anyone inside an open Session can go on-screen at any time by clicking Share Audio and Video.
Invite-Only Session
In an invite-only Session, only assigned participants can go on-screen at any time by clicking Share Audio and Video. Attendees cannot go on-screen and they won't see this option.
Moderated Session
A moderated Session has assigned Moderators who can go on-screen (share their audio/video) at any time. Attendees can request to go on-screen.
Attendee view
Attendees and Speakers (non-moderators) need to click Ask to Share Audio and Video and wait for a Moderator to approve their request.
Moderator view
When Attendees request to go on-screen, the Host Controls icon will display a red tag with the number of requests. Open Host Controls, go to Moderation to approve or decline these requests.
Additionally, to mute a speaker for everyone, remove them or their screen share from screen, hover over the selected speaker or screen share tile, click the Menu icon ••• and click Mute for everyone or Remove.
Sharing screen
Upon sharing their audio and video, Speakers can share their screen, as well as content from other platforms like Youtube, Miro or Figma (if enabled in the Session settings). Open Share menu and select the preferred option.
Moderators can also share content without activating their own audio and video on screen. The Share menu option stays accessible at all times.
Note: When you're sharing content and your audio & video at the same time, click Stop Sharing Audio and Video to get of the screen. To stop sharing your screen, open Share menu and click Stop sharing.
Attendee engagement
RingCentral Events provides a variety of engagement features for Speakers and Moderators to enhance presentations and captivate attendees. Feel free to utilize the following tools to make your presentation more interesting 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 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 to organize interactive activities. Open Host Controls, select Breakouts 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, providing 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
To communicate your sentiments without causing interruptions during the meeting, you can use emoji reactions when participating on screen. 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 you video tile for a couple of 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
To signal your intention to ask a question or contribute to the discussion without interrupting the flow of conversation, you can raise your hand (if enabled). To trigger this, click the Hand icon in the Speaker Controls. The hand icon will be placed on their video tile to notify other speakers. After speaking or once your question has been addressed, click on the same option 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. There are five pre-set screen layouts 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, a question or a poll and click Highlight. For more information, refer to our guide on Displaying a chat message, a question or a poll on the screen in Sessions.