Accessing Digital Events with Zoom – basic tutorial
As we enter the second half of June, it is now clear that the transition to digital meetings, events, and artistic performances will be more than a temporary blip. Overnight, like many of you, ELAN’s team moved from using Zoom periodically to relying on it several times a day – first for internal meetings, then for external webinars and workshops, and soon for bigger events like our Schmoozers and AGM. Having jumped to embrace this new format, we now want to take a few steps back and ensure that members have the tools required to join us. We will be sharing resources for online streaming, event monetization, and digital accessibility in the upcoming weeks, but first wanted to be sure that our own online events, hosted via Zoom, are accessible.
The ELAN team and board considered hosting a full workshop on the basic functions of Zoom – how to host a meeting, how to access one, how different browsers or devices might interact with the software – but ultimately agreed that Zoom’s extensive training material was thorough, and that ELAN is better positioned to share it than to recreate it.
Getting started with Zoom
To begin, here are a few resources for getting started with Zoom. The following links provide both a written and video tutorial on the following topics:
If you experience trouble with any of these commands, please reach out to us at admin@quebec-elan.org.
After you’re set up:
Beyond basic access to joining/hosting a Zoom meeting, there are tutorials for features such as:
- Enabling breakout rooms (our June 17th Schmoozer will utilize these, if you want to see them in action)
- Enabling closed captioning (whether directly through Zoom or via a third party)
- Opting for a webinar format rather than a meeting
A few other things the ELAN team has observed about Zoom so far…
- Online activities should be scheduled for shorter durations than in-person ones. If your activity exceeds an hour, it’s helpful to incorporate breaks.
- If possible, add a co-host for online events (instructions here). One co-host can assist with meeting controls (such as muting participants, enabling breakout rooms, etc.) while the other facilitates.
- It’s helpful to introduce basic Zoom functions at the beginning of an event. For example, we like to remind participants of the mute, name change, and chat functions.
Beyond Zoom
Beyond Zoom and ELAN events, there are lots of other platforms you might want to explore when digitizing your art. Some of these will be covered in Quebec Relation’s June 25th webinar, Live-streaming and Monetization. Later in the summer, we’ll share learnings from our own experiences hosting online events. This series will be ongoing, and we hope to track and expand based on member needs. If you have specific topics that you would like to see covered, or ideas that you would like to share with our community for maximizing your online resources, please reach out to us at admin@quebec-elan.org.
To register for Québec Relations’ Webinar on Live-streaming and Monetization taking place on June 25th, please email Nick at research@quebec-elan.org to register!