The following is a comprehensive guide to passing the presenter role in popular collaboration tools such as Join.me, Webex, GoToMeeting, Zoom, and Google Meet.
1. Changing the Presenter Role in Webex
If you are the host, you will be the default presenter in any Webex online meeting. For best results, Webex recommends all presenters use a desktop PC or Mac. Right-click on any participant’s name to change their role to a presenter or host. The difference between the two is that a host has additional privileges such as recording the meeting, ending the meeting, and muting/unmuting the participants. If you don’t plan to leave the meeting midway, just use the “Presenter” mode for attendees. The participant can now go to the “Quick Start” and “share content” in the meeting. In the next step, the participant gets the choice to share their screen, open a whiteboard, or share files and photos from various cloud apps. To run a PowerPoint presentation, they must select “share screen.” The PowerPoint can run from a participant’s laptop or other device. If on a mobile phone, they may use Google Slides to play an engaging presentation. The new presenter’s screen can now be viewed by the meeting host and other participants alike. To end their presenter privilege, simply right-click on your own profile and switch yourself back as the presenter.
2. GoToMeeting
To pass the presenter role as a GoToMeeting host, go to “People” and select your new presenter. You may give them additional privileges as an “organizer” which works similarly as a Webex host. The new presenter has to simply click a “screen share” icon to capture everything on their device screen. It should blink green. They can now run many things on their device including PowerPoint, videos, and PDF files. The new presenter’s screen should be visible to the host as well as other GoToMeeting attendees. At any time you can dismiss their presenter role through a simple right-click.
3. Zoom
As a Zoom organizer, you’ll find that the options to pass the presenter role are slightly different from the above tools. You can either ask the participants to just “start a video” or “make them a host” which is similar to giving them a presenter role in Webex or GoToMeeting. Currently, there is no separate option to change the meeting host in Zoom. The new presenter has a number of presentation options including screen share for PowerPoint, whiteboard, and cloud apps integration. As meeting host, you can terminate a participant’s sharing privileges any time.
4. Google Meet
If you are using Google Meet to collaborate over a video chat, it is very easy to share your screen from “Share screen” on a three-dot menu in the top-right corner. You get a choice to select the entire screen or toggle over to an application window. Click “Share” to finalize the screen sharing.
5. Passing the Presenter Role in Join.me
As a Join.me host, you will be able to see all the participants in a “participant list” bubble. Select one of the meeting participants and pass them the “presenter role.” The new presenter will need to click a phone app icon on their bottom-right for screen sharing. At any point, the meeting host can “reclaim presenter role” by hovering over the participant’s name. These are the ways the presenter can be switched for various online collaboration tools. Learn more bout some of these apps in the best video-conferencing apps for 2020. Did you ever run into a snag or technical issue while interacting with meeting tool participants? Please share your feedback in the comments.
