If you're hosting a virtual event, this support article will help make sure your virtual guide is a success! Generally, your guide can be set up similarly to an onsite event guide with the same Guidebook features: a schedule, lists of information and resources, and engagement options. There are a few pro tips we'd like to share based on the most common virtual event questions we receive from clients.
If you're interested in a specific topic, you can use the links on the right to take you to a given section.
Your Guidebook Web Page
Your Guidebook Web page is a critical component to any virtual or hybrid event because it provides schedule, custom list information, and engagement opportunities via a web browser rather than a mobile app. Any of your users who are using a computer for the event will use your Guidebook Web page.
Your app and the complementary website are designed simultaneously. For each menu item, visit the Settings tab to configure your guide for app users and for web users. On the guide-building canvas, a ribbon in the navigation menu informs you whether a feature is available on the app, on web, on both, or on neither.
As you prepare your Guidebook Web page, we recommend enabling the schedule, as well as any custom lists of information you have available within your guide. This will help ensure the Guidebook Web experience is full of content.
In recent months, we've added session discussion, live poll functionality, and embedded session video into Guidebook Web, with more features on the way. Bringing parity to Guidebook Web and mobile is top-of-mind for us. For updates, you can reference this article, or speak with your account manager.
The Guidebook Web page has the same privacy setting as your guide. If your guide is passphrase protected, users will need to enter a passphrase to view the page. They will not need to enter the passphrase a second time unless they clear cookies or use a different browser. If your guide has the invite-only privacy setting, users will need to log in using a Guidebook account to view your Guidebook Web page. Similarly, as long as they don't log out, clear cookies, or use a new browser, users will stay logged in.
On your Guidebook Web page, the session times on your schedule will match the time zone that the user has set on their computer. See the time zone section below for more pro tips regarding time zone.
Meeting Links
Setting up meeting links properly in your guide is crucial to running a successful virtual or hybrid event. For specific information based on the platform you're using to run virtual meetings, see our complete resource here: Link video and live streams.
Generally speaking, if you are using YouTube, Vimeo, or Twitch, you can use the video linking information. If you are using Teams, WebEx, or another provider, you'll want to include the meeting link directly in the description field of the session, as well as be sure to select the option to “Open link in new tab.”
You must set your meeting links to open in a new tab or else the links will not work correctly on mobile devices.
We are continuing to work to build helpful integrations for virtual and hybrid events.
Video
The video linking tab currently supports YouTube, Vimeo, and Twitch, whether videos are pre-recorded on these platforms or live streams. Videos are embedded within sessions on the Guidebook Web page and videos can be docked, so users can continue watching the video while perusing the rest of Guidebook Web.
If you're interested in using YouTube Live or Vimeo for your virtual event, you can check out these resources for more details:
Engagement
Engagement is always a key component of an event, and at a virtual or hybrid event, it's even more important to make these opportunities available.
On Guidebook Web and on mobile, users can communicate within sessions via session discussion. Live polls are also available on both platforms, and setting them up for various sessions is a great way to keep users engaged and excited!
We strongly encourage clients and end users to download the mobile app version of the guide, as there are more ways to connect and engage with content on mobile. As well, we are continuing to build upon the current offerings on Guidebook Web, particularly in regards to connection between users.
On the mobile app, users can take advantage of Connect and Chat as long as you've added the Connect feature to your guide. You can also set up user interests so your users receive suggested connections. Interact is a newsfeed feature for users to share photos, ask questions, and connect, and it's a place where you can share announcements and add sponsored content.
Again, we are working hard to add more engagement features to Guidebook Web, so keep your eyes on this article or talk to your account manager for updates!
Removing Guide Location
If you're hosting a virtual event and you have no need to have a guide location there are a few steps to take to remove the location from all aspects of the guide.
When you set the location for your guide it will be visible at the top of the menu bar, in the General Information module, and on your Guidebook Web page.
Remove the Location from the Menu
To remove the location from the menu, tap Edit guide details in the lower left of the guide editor, and tap the location tab. Remove the content in the “Address Specifics” beneath the map and click Save.
Remove the Map from the General Information feature
You cannot remove the map from the General Info module, however, you can create a custom homepage for your guide and disable the General Info module.
We often recommend making Interact the homepage, but if you'd like to have a similar homepage to the General Info menu item, you can make a One-Tap Menu Item to create a page with the same information as shown in the General Info module. You can include your cover image and icon as header and thumbnail images. As an overview, you will create a custom list with a custom list item in the list. You'll then pin the item to the menu, and disable the custom list.
Once you have created a One-Tap Menu item, select it on the menu, and navigate to the Settings tab. From there you can change the name, icon, and enable the “Home page” toggle to make sure this is the first thing your users see.
You can disable the General Info module via The Settings Tab of the General Info menu item.
Note that the information in the General Info description will show up on your Guidebook Web page, so you still want to keep it up to date.
Remove the Map from the Guidebook Web Page
To remove the map from your Guidebook Web page, navigate to your Guidebook Web configuration page from your Guide Dashboard or via the Promote section under the Web tab. Select the “Details” tab and toggle the “Location enabled” option off.
Time Zones
The event's time zones is able to be set as "Locked" or "Unlocked". When locked, Schedule sessions will appear on users' devices according to the guide’s time zone. When the time zone is unlocked, Schedule sessions will appear on user’s devices according to their local time zone. For in-person events, we recommend locking the time zone.