Hopin Platform Basics
If you want a ton of great information on how our Hopin events run, you can visit this page for loads of great details.
On-Stage Speakers
The section below will help you understand how to easily join the broadcast as a speaker. If you are NOT speaking on the Main Stage, you do not need to read this information
Before the broadcast
Make sure you have the following:
- A laptop or desktop with a webcam and mic.
- A recent version of Chrome or Firefox.
- A strong internet connection. Just like Skype, you must have a strong internet connection for it to work well. If possible, connect to your router with an ethernet cable instead of using WiFi.
- We recommend wearing earbuds or headphones to prevent audio echoes.
If you don’t have a laptop or desktop, then you can join on your phone. But the experience is usually best on a laptop/desktop. On Android, we recommend the Chrome browser. On iOS, you must use Safari.
If you’re on iOS 14.2, we recommend updating your device before joining. iOS 14.2 has some issues with audio stuttering.
Joining the broadcast
When the time comes, follow these steps to enter the broadcast studio:
- The host should provide you with a link before the show. Open the link in a supported browser for your device and you’ll be taken to their broadcast studio.
- Allow StreamYard to access your camera and mic.
- Make sure you have the correct camera and mic selected.
- Enter a display name. Use your actual name or the name of your brand. Then enter the studio.
The host will be informed that you’ve arrived. You won’t be part of the broadcast until the host decides to add you in. The page will update to let you know when you’ve been added. Then everyone will be able to see and hear you. This is your time to shine!
Remember, the host asked you to join because they want to hear what you have to say. Have fun!
Guests FAQ
What can guests do?
- Participate on-stream with camera and microphone
- Share screen, videos, and slide presentations
- Communicate with other participants using private chat
- View comments from destinations being streamed to
- Use Virtual Background/Greenscreen effects
What can’t guests do?
- Start/Stop broadcast
- Change broadcast settings
- Add themselves or their shared content to the stream
- Control graphics (overlays, video clips, etc) and layouts
- Show comments/banners on-stream
- See other participants backstage (only on-stream)
Sponsor Schedule (EST)
Expos (Sponsors Only)
Creating your expo booth is relatively simple. We have prepared this article to help you through this
Exhibitor Name
The name of the company, product, idea, or content. For example, an Exhibitor name could be “Acme Co” or “Sign up list.” It’s up to you and your use case.
Exhibitor Email
The email where all emails from attendees who click the Register Interest button will be delivered.
Exhibitor Headline
Any short text about the Exhibitor, e.g. Exhibitor motto or key message.
Live Preview (Desktop)
Real-time preview for the Expo Booth size Background image and Logo. Make sure to have the Background and Logo image content centre-aligned to fit multiple screen sizes.
About
A few words to make the booth more descriptive for the event attendees.
Tags
Labels or filters to sort booths by categories and help attendees to quickly navigate through multiple booths during the event.
Content Provider
There are multiple ways to display content on the Expo.
Note: If you are sharing a video, be sure to check the privacy settings to ensure your audience can view it during your Event.
Pre-recorded videos
You can place pre-recorded videos from YouTube, Vimeo, or Wistia on the Expo. Select the Content provider, choose the provider, and paste the video ID from the hyperlink. Click Save.
Note: The Stream identifier field is for the ID only, NOT the entire URL. If the entire URL is used, or the timecodes are added to the link (e.g. LXb3EKWsInQ&t=26) an error will occur.
E.g. for the YouTube URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXb3EKWsInQ please use only LXb3EKWsInQ — the part after the “=” symbol.
YouTube playlist
Adding a YouTube playlist will let attendees select which video(s) they want to watch.
Note: The playlist link must include https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=
You can find the link by clicking the Playlist name at the bottom right corner of the YouTube window.
YouTube Live Stream video
Go Live with your camera or via RTMP on YouTube Studio, then send the stream to your Expo Booth on Hopin.
Google Slides
The link to any Slides presentation that is published to the Web.
Tip: The published Slides link will always start with https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/e/ VS https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/ if not published to the web.
Publishing Slides to the web is easy with File > Publish to the web menu on the Slides page.
Note: Once published, be sure to copy the link that’s inside the popup window (not in the Browser address bar at the top of the page). If the presentation is set up on the Slides to auto-advance, it will not translate through in the booth.
Note: Mini sized booths will not have a ‘Live’ icon over them if they are in Session mode. The live tag is only available on large, medium, and small expo booths as long as they are currently in live sessions mode when the user loads the expo page. If they are switched to the fallback provider, they no longer appear as live.
- Social Links
- Call to Actions and Register Interest
- Apps and Additional Information
Expo banner
Large Booth (Platinum+, Platinum, Gold)
- Recommended size: 2000 x 500px (4:1 aspect ratio)
- Minimum size: 1000 x 250px
- Used in: Large-sized Expo Booths
Medium Booth (Silver)
- Recommended size: 1500 x 750px (2:1 aspect ratio)
- Minimum size: 1000 x 500px
- Used in: Medium-sized Expo Booths
Small Booth
- Recommended: 1500x1000px (3:2 aspect ratio)
- Minimum size: 1000 x 670px
- Used in: Small-sized Expo Booths
Website link
The link that will bring to the Exhibitor’s website in case the Button action is set to Link to website.
Twitter link
The link to Twitter profile to get in contact with the Exhibitor on social media.
Facebook link
The link to Facebook profile to get in contact with the Exhibitor on social media.
Instagram link
The link to Instagram profile to get in contact with the Exhibitor on social media.
Linkedin link
The link to Linkedin profile to get in contact with the Exhibitor on social media.
Offer
Use this field to write a special offer for booth visitors. It could be a discount, special access, coupon code, or anything. It’s optional text, not tied to anything programmatically.
Button text
Any short text used as a click to action for the attendees.
Button action
It can be either Register interest (sends attendee emails to the Exhibitor mail) or Link to website (opens any website or external resource for downloading more content from the Exhibitor).
If an Attendee clicks on the Register interest button, you will get an email that looks something like this:
You can add additional information to the booth for your attendees by using the content area. Follow this guide to set that up.
Expo Chat
Once the event is live, attendees can also chat with the Exhibitor in a dedicated Booth chat.
Note:
Please use a third-party screen-recording tool (OBS, Camtasia Studio, etc.) in case you would like to record the Expo Booth and store the recording locally on your computer.
The maximum number of Expo booths you can create and run at the same time is unlimited.
The maximum number of participants (speakers or screen shares) on the Expo booth set to Session type is 10. The maximum number of attendees who can watch the Expo booth set to Session type is 5,000. For more info on participant and viewer limits in expo booths check out our Max On-Screen and Viewer Limits article.
That’s it! Now you know how to create and adjust the Expo Booth at your online event.
Sessions (Sponsors Only)
Controlling and running a session is, thankfully very simple. Check out the instructions below for tons more information, or click here to go directly to Hopin’s support centre.
Who can watch
Attendee permission to find and view selected sessions on the Sessions tab.
- Anyone (all attendees can find and watch the Session during the event)
Who can share audio/video
Attendee permission to participate with Video/Audio on during the Session.
- Moderated: only Organizers and specified Moderators will control which attendees will have permission to participate with Video/Audio. Moderators have to be registered for the event and can be assigned after setting the session to be moderated
Before speaking in or moderating a Session
- Ensure you’re using an up-to-date version of Chrome or Firefox.
- Check to make sure Chrome has access to your Camera and Microphone. Mac setup video here and PC setup here.
- Ensure you can access the following website domains to use Hopin. You may have to check with your IT department if using a device or network provided by your employer.
*.hopin.to *.tokbox.com *.pusher.com *.herokuapp.com *.mux.com *.twilio.com
See here for more information on network connectivity.
- Check your browser’s and network’s compatibility with our streaming software here.
- Test your audio (best practice is to use headphones; this eliminates echos and background noise)
- Check your video; put the camera at eye level (put books under computer if needed)
- Silence any distracting notifications on your computer & phone (Do Not Disturb)
- Have a glass of water nearby
- Try not to move your device or rustle any papers while you are speaking
- Check out general Hopin troubleshooting tips here
Session limits
- The maximum number of speakers on a Session is 20 for both recorded and non-recorded Sessions.
- The maximum number of attendees who can watch a Session is adaptive with an average of 500.
Moderator view
Moderators can go on screen by clicking the Share audio and video button. When an attendee requests to go on-screen, their name and profile picture appear under the Moderation Panel at the bottom left.
The moderator can hover over the profile picture of an attendee they would like to add on-screen and click the “+” sign to add that attendee on-screen.
Attendee view
Attendees (non-moderators) see a blue button that says “Ask to Share Audio and Video.” They must click this button to be added to the queue for moderators to then add attendees on-screen.
Tip: If you are using Windows, it possible to share audio from both the entire screen or a Chrome tab. If you are using Mac, it is only possible to share audio from a Chrome tab by checking the box.
- Click Screen sharing icon at the bottom of the page
- Switch to Chrome Tab on the popup window and choose the required browser tab
- Check the Share audio box
- Click Share to start sharing
E.g. Sharing a Google Slides presentation or playing a video in a browser tab with sound can be supported on the latest version of Google Chrome browser.
Note: Firefox browser doesn’t support sharing a tab with Sound yet.
3. Select the tab or application with your presentation. If possible, set up a separate monitor to be able to view the event chat and your slides.
If you’re sharing a presentation on a Chrome tab instead of an application window, copy the URL of the presentation, open them in a new Chrome window.
Back on Hopin, select the new Chrome window when sharing your screen. Then position both windows side by side.
Tip: If you’d like to see your notes while presenting, click on Present -> Presenter view in your Google Slides; then a “Presenter view” pop up window will appear which will allow you to see your speaker notes.
Note: Make sure to exit full-screen mode on your Chrome or Firefox browser and PowerPoint when sharing the screen. If not, the PowerPoint will not appear in the list of applications due to full-screen mode limitations on Mac.
4. Present from the Backstage, so you can toggle between Backstage chat and Event chat.
Please mind that all Stage segments are automatically recorded! The recordings will be available to the event Organizers once the event is over.
Note: Screen sharing option is limited to one person at a time and will be greyed out for the other speakers/presenters until the person stops sharing their screen. If you have 4 speakers for a session, and one of them decides to share their screen, the Screenshare will be counted as the 5th person.
In case you don’t have an option to choose content for screen sharing on macOS: please make sure to allow the browser permissions to access the Screen Recording.
- Open the System preferences
- Navigate to Security & Privacy > Privacy
- Check the box next to the browser you are using
Tip: can click on the webcam icon to turn off the webcam and make sure the slides cover the entire screen.
Check our Powerpoint tutorial for more tips on screen sharing your content.
Video Content
Click the YouTube icon on the iconbar.
Then, paste the URL to a YouTube video and click Share Video.
The video will start sharing for all attendees on a Session.
