Simulcast Presentations with Zoomifier

In this video, we will guide you through how to present using Zoomifier, using simulcast.

The Simulcast feature allows users to remotely deliver presentations and media in real-time using Zoomifier. Through Simulcast, presenters will be able to:

• Stream videos to participants directly from Zoomifier’s servers, as opposed to screen-sharing tools that try to share the presenter’s desktop.
• You use Simulcasts when presenting to remote audiences; all participants need to be connected to the internet.

Once you login to Zoomfier, you will see tabs for all all the options available in Zoomifier. To start or schedule a Simulcast, click on Simulcasts.  

Once you are on the Simulcasts page, you will have two options for starting a Simulcast: New and Schedule.  Use the New Simulcast button to immediately start and Simulcast and invite participants; use the Schedule Simulcast button to schedule a Simulcast for the future and send invitations to participants.

New Simulcast

Before starting your simulcast, the console prompts to access the hosts and the participants’ microphone respectively, as in the image below. This allows for open discussion between the host and the participants. Once you Join with Audio, your simulcast presentation begins.

The New Simulcast Button launches a separate Simulcast window and lets you invite participants.  Once the a separate Simulcast window opens, you can access the Simulcast Link change the Settings of what your participants can see.

The Show Participants settings if enabled by the hosts allows the for the following on the participants’ side:

1. Participant Audio only becomes available at the time the host enables this function, wherein the participant is prompted to Join with Audio tab, along with the microphone icon becoming available on their screen.
2. Participant Video is also prompted by an Allow Simulcast to access video tab, along with the video camera icon becoming available on their screen when the host enables this function.
3. The participants can see the list of other participants with their name if Participant List is enabled.
4. Side Thumbnails refer to the settings icon, participant icon and chat icon respectively, which participants can see if enabled by the host.
5. Notes appears at the bottom of the participants simulcast presentation screen, when enabled by the host.

To share the Simulcast Link, click on the link to select and then copy it using CTRL+C/Command+C or right-click and choose Copy. Once copied, you can paste the link into an email and send it to participants to join the Simulcast.

The Media Settings automatically picks up the in-built microphone and video camera; however if you wish to choose an alternative microphone and video camera you can do so by clicking on each drop-down.

As Participants join the Simulcast you will be notified by an on-screen alert with the name and email address of each new Participant. You can also see the Participants present in the Simulcast by clicking on the Participant Icon on the right-hand toolbar.

The simulcast window allows the user to select the content they want to present by clicking on the screen, as in the image below. 

Once you click to select content, your Zoomifier List View opens with access to all your folders. Click on the My Work folder to access your presentations or one of your company’s Public Folders to access public content. 

All content that is Published and available for presenting will show the Add to Simulcast button as shown in the image below. Click on the Add to Simulcast button to show it in the Simulcast. Note: Only content that has been Published can be selected (see the post on Personalizing Presentations for more info on publishing).

The selected content now appears in the Simulcast window. As the host, you can see all the slides at the bottom of the screen along with the duration and the list of participants at the top right of the Simulcast screen.

Only once you click continue will the new content will be visible to all your Participants. 

You can navigate through slides by:

• Clicking on the right or left side of the slide
• Clicking on the thumbnails below
• Clicking on the previous and next arrows
• Selecting a slide from the drop down menu, as in the image below

TIP: An additional advantage to using Simulcast is that your desktop cannot be seen by your participants. This allows you to view your Speaker Notes, view the slide thumbnails, and even view other content on your computer without distracting your audience.

As the host you can turn on your video camera and add yourself to the presentation. To do this, click on the camera button on your right-hand toolbar. This will place your video on the slide in the upper left-hand corner of the slide. Wherever you see your video image on the presentation is where your participants will see it as well.

Once your video is visible on the slide, if you draw your cursor over your image, as in the picture below, you can manage and adjust your video as follows:

1. Click on your video to drag it anywhere you like on the slide.
2. Click on the blue arrows to move your video to any of the 4 corners of the screen/presentation.
3. Click one of the 3 circles below to adjust the size of your video from small to large.
4. Drag the blue circle on the bottom of your video around to adjustable the opacity of your video.
5. Click on the 3 dots to change the video from a circle to a square.

Once you shift the cursor from the video, only the circle with the hosts’ video can be seen.

The host also has the ability to allow the participants to turn on their video.

The host gives permission to the participants by simply clicking on Allow Participant Video that features in the settings icon, similar to the image below. Each participant needs to separately turn on their own camera by clicking the camera button to be visible to the host and other participants.

If you want to switch to another presentation, just click on the blue Select Content at the top of the screen, browse or search for the new content, and click on the Add to Simulcast button. Once you have done that, a confirmation screen will appear to confirm the new selection before adding it to the Simulcast, as in the image below. 

If at any time you need to switch to your previous presentation you can select it from the drop-down menu at the top of your screen.

At the end of the presentation when you wish to stop presenting, you can simply click on the Stop Simulcast button. You’ll see a confirmation pop-up to confirm that you want to end the Simulcast for everyone. 

Scheduled Simulcast

In addition to New Simulcasts, the system has a provision to schedule future Simulcasts. Scheduled Simulcasts have the advantage of email invitations going out to participants as calendar invites. Each Scheduled Simulcast has a unique invitation link, ensuring participants don’t inadvertently get access to Simulcasts they have not been invited to.

Scheduled Simulcasts also allow you to have a Co-Host or Co-Presenter. A Co-Host must be another Zoomifier User and must be invited to join the Scheduled Simulcast using the Add Participant function.

Under the Simulcast tab, click on Schedule.

Once you click on the Schedule Simulcast button, it opens a new screen allowing you to pick the date and a time for your Simulcast. 

Once you have scheduled the date and time, you can invite participants to the Simulcast by Adding Participants. By entering their email, they will be sent an individual and unique link for them to access the simulcast. This is where you need to add any Zoomifier Users who you want to be able to present during the Simulcast as a Co-host.

Once you have added the desired participants to the scheduled simulcast, it will be shown in the Simulcast List (similar to the image below). To start a Scheduled Simulcast click on the Start button. The Simulcast window will open. Once started, the functionality in a Scheduled Simulcast is the same as an Instant Simulcast.

You can find all the Simulcasts in your Simulcast List by using the View and Sort options at the top of the list.

Once completed, you can view the Simulcast Meeting Report right from the Simulcast List by viewing Completed Simulcasts and then clicking on the Insights button for the desired Simulcast.