How to Set Up Interactive Webinars

Interactive webinars allow both presenters and attendees to share their microphones and webcams in the live webinar room.

Interactive webinars are highly interactive, real-time events best suited for meetings and round tables where attendees participate with mics + webcams actively. Presenters and attendees will both see the default webinar room, and there is no delay, allowing for seamless audience participation. Interactive webinars have stricter system requirements: attendees must have high-speed internet and a modern browser like Chrome or Firefox.

Note: Webcast mode will be automatically required for all attendees once your webinar reaches 50 registrations (250 if 64 cameras mode is enabled), to ensure the best possible attendee experience.

How do I make sure my webinar is set up to be in interactive mode (not webcast mode)?

When first creating your webinar, under Live Event Experience, click the Interactive button. 

This setting can also be adjusted for existing webinars on their Manage Webinar tabs, under Live Webinar Settings. 

Will my attendees be prompted to share their microphones and webcams as they enter the webinar room?

To ensure attendees will immediately be able to share their microphones and webcams, we'll next go to the Edit tab of our webinar. Under Advanced Settings, we'll make sure to enable:

1. Attendees can share mics and webcams
2. Prompt attendee to share camera and mic on enter
3. Use simple view to just turn on web cam and mic

With the above settings in place, attendees will be prompted to share their microphones and webcams as soon as they enter the webinar room.

Inside of the webinar room, attendees will be able to adjust these settings using the icons at the bottom of their screens.

Can I control attendees' mics and cams?

As an admin* inside of the webinar room, you'll be able to see which attendees have enabled their microphones and webcams. The list of attendees will be available to you when you're in the Presenter View, on the people tab (as shown in the screenshot below).

*To give any presenter admin access inside of the webinar room, make sure to check the Can access Host Control Panel in live webinar room box when adding them as a presenter on the Presenters tab of the webinar.

For any attendee who's enabled their microphone and/or webcam, you'll be able to make adjustments as needed, like muting/unmuting their microphone or turning off their webcam.

Clicking either the microphone or camcorder icons, you can enable or disable the attendee's devices (as long as the attendee has already allowed BigMarker to access them).

To assist attendees in enabling their microphones or webcams:

1. Find the attendee in this list, and then click "⋮" next to their microphone and webcam icons
2. From there, hover over either Manage Mic or Manage Camera
3. You'll be able to click Request Control
4. The attendee will then receive a notification of your request
5. As soon as the attendee clicks Allow (Recommended), you will be able to make adjustments to their microphone or webcam by using the toggles available, and then clicking Next
6. At that point, you'll see the attendee's icon(s) change to blue in the control panel
7. The attendee will see these changes reflected in the icons at the bottom of their screen

How can I make sure my attendees are setup to be able to share their microphones and webcams?

Anyone wanting to share their microphones and/or webcams in a live webinar room should test their system setups using the BigMarker System Check. 

Just like presenters, attendees will want to follow the instruction below:

• Use either Chrome or Firefox as your browser (especially if you intend to use your microphone and webcam in the webinar). Make sure your browser is updated to its latest version.
• If you have slower than required upload and download speeds, seen in the BigMarker System Check, please hardwire into your router or set up as close to your router as possible.
• If you experience issues with your webcam display due to slow internet speeds, please consider joining the webinar with microphone only.

For my interactive webinar, what settings do I need to use under "Webcam Experience" on the Manage Webinar tab?

Most often, you'll want your webinar to utilize Up to 64 Cameras mode. This will ensure that, even if you collect more registrants than expected, your small group can still share their microphones and/or webcams.

To select either Up to 64 Cameras mode or Up to 9 Cameras mode on the Manage Webinar tab of your webinar, scroll down to the Webcam Experience section. From there, select your preferred mode.

Below, we'll discuss the differences between Up to 64 Cameras mode and Up to 9 Cameras mode: 

• 64 Cameras Mode reduces CPU and network bandwidth usage, allowing you to share up to 64 webcams at one time.
• 9 Cameras Mode keeps webcam streams separate, allowing up to 9 people to share webcams at the same time.

When should I use the "Up to 64 Cameras" mode?

In general, we highly recommend using Up to 64 Cameras mode for interactive webinars. This option will help to ensure that all users sharing microphone and webcam can be seen and heard, improving their overall experience - even if a handful of users don't have ideal setups*.

*Anyone wanting to share their microphones and/or webcams in a live webinar room should test their system setups here.

Importantly, selecting Up to 64 Cameras under Webcam Experience on the Manage Webinar tab will delay BigMarker's switchover to Webcast* mode until your interactive webinar has collected 250 or more registrants.

*Webcast mode automatically blocks attendees from sharing their microphones and webcams. This mode is implemented to create the best possible experience for larger groups of attendees.

When should I use the "Up to 9 Cameras" mode?

If you expect 9 or fewer presenters and attendees to share their microphones and/or webcams in the live webinar room, the Up to 9 Cameras option can function well.

As noted earlier in the article, BigMarker will automatically switch into Webcast* mode if your interactive webinar collects 50 or more registrants - if your webinar has been set up to use Up to 9 Cameras under the Webcam Experience section of the Manage Webinar tab.

*Webcast mode automatically blocks attendees from sharing their microphones and webcams. This mode is implemented to create the best possible experience for larger groups of attendees.

What branding opportunities do I have in an interactive webinar?

Unlike webinars utilizing Webcast mode, those using Interactive mode will appear to attendees as shown in the screenshot below.

You will be able to update the logo visible in the room at upper left, and you will still be able to take advantage of BigMarker's Audience Engagement tools (eg Handouts, Offers, and Polls).