Switching your delivery type between a Zoom Webinar and a Zoom Meeting does not mean starting over. AEvent keeps your existing registrants and their join links through the change, as long as you make the change the right way. This guide walks you through it.
Overview
AEvent stores each event's delivery type as a mode: Zoom Webinar or Zoom Meeting. Zoom is the source of truth. When you convert the event inside Zoom, AEvent reconciles its own mode to match the real Zoom object. Your registrants stay attached to the same event, and AEvent sends its own stable join links, so the people who already signed up keep working through the switch.
The short version: convert the event in Zoom first, then update the Delivery Application in AEvent. Do this before the event, not during it.
Before You Start
Warning: Convert the event in Zoom FIRST, and convert every additional event too. Two things have to be true in Zoom before you touch AEvent:
Convert the event to the type you want using Zoom's own "Convert to Meeting" or "Convert to Webinar" control. If your campaign runs multiple or additional events, convert each one in Zoom.
Make sure "restrict the number of registrants" is DISABLED on the Zoom event.
AEvent shows this same warning in red when you change a Zoom event's delivery type in the scheduler: you must convert the event and any additional events within Zoom, and confirm that "restrict the number of registrants" is disabled.
Do this before the event starts, not while it is live. Reconciliation is not always instant.
Prerequisites
An active AEvent account with a Zoom integration connected. If you have not connected Zoom yet, see our How to Connect Zoom to AEvent guide first.
An upcoming campaign event that uses Zoom as its delivery platform.
Admin access to the Zoom account so you can convert the event inside Zoom.
For Zoom Webinar specifically: a Zoom plan that includes the Webinar add-on or license. Without it, the Zoom Webinar option is not selectable in AEvent.
Step-by-Step Guide
Step 1: Convert the event inside Zoom first
Convert the event to the type you want inside Zoom before you change anything in AEvent. The steps differ depending on which direction you are converting, so follow the subsection that matches.
Whichever direction you convert, the meeting or webinar ID stays the same, the old registration link redirects to the new one, and people who already registered can still join with the same link. Your registrants transfer with the event.
Convert a Meeting to a Webinar
Sign in to the Zoom web portal at zoom.us/signin.
In the navigation menu, click Meetings.
Click the name of the meeting you want to convert.
Scroll down and click the Convert this Meeting to a Webinar link, to the right of Start, Edit, Delete, and Save as Template.
Confirm by clicking Convert.
The meeting ID stays the same. The registration link changes slightly, but the old link auto-redirects to the new registration page, so people who already registered can still join with the same link. Your meeting settings and registrants transfer to the webinar.
You should see: the event now listed as a webinar in Zoom, with the same registrants attached.
Convert a Webinar to a Meeting
Sign in to the Zoom web portal at zoom.us/signin.
In the navigation menu, click Webinars.
Click the name of the webinar you want to convert.
Scroll down and click the Convert this Webinar to a Meeting link, to the right of Start this Webinar, Edit, and Save as Template.
Confirm by clicking Convert.
Warning: Converting a webinar to a meeting removes webinar-only features. You lose Q&A, multiple-answer poll questions, webinar-related email settings, and post-webinar surveys.
The registration page URL changes, but the old page redirects to the new one and keeps the logo and banner from your branding. If the webinar used registration, panelists become registrants, and people who already registered can still join with the same link.
Reports move too. The registration report moves from Webinar reports to Meeting reports, and the attendee report moves to Usage and Active Hosts, which admins can access. If a recurring webinar already ran sessions before the conversion, those sessions' reports stay under Webinar reporting.
You should see: the event now listed as a meeting in Zoom, with its registrants attached.
Step 2: Disable "restrict the number of registrants" in Zoom
Still in Zoom, open the event's registration settings and make sure "restrict the number of registrants" is turned off.
You should see: the "restrict the number of registrants" option unchecked.
Step 3: Open the event in edit mode in AEvent
In AEvent, go to your upcoming event and click the edit-schedule icon on it. The scheduler opens in edit mode: the heading reads "Edit Event" and the save button reads "Update Event".
You should see: the scheduler open with the heading "Edit Event".
Step 4: Change the Delivery Application
In the scheduler, find the Delivery Application dropdown and change it to the type you want. The two options in the dropdown are labeled Webinar and Meeting (for a Zoom Webinar or a Zoom Meeting).
When you change a Zoom event's delivery type here, AEvent renders a red warning telling you to convert the event and any additional events within Zoom, and to confirm that "restrict the number of registrants" is disabled. If you completed Steps 1 and 2, you are covered.
You should see: the Delivery Application set to your chosen type, and the red convert-in-Zoom warning.
Step 5: Click Update Event
Click "Update Event" to save the change.
You should see: the scheduler close and your event listed with the new delivery type. Your existing registrants stay attached.
What Happens to Your Registrants and Links
Your existing registrants carry over. They are not deleted and you do not recreate them.
The meeting or webinar ID stays the same through a Zoom conversion. The registration link changes slightly, but the old link auto-redirects to the new registration page, so people who already registered can still join with the same link.
AEvent registrants use stable join links, so people who already registered keep working through the change.
When you convert a Webinar to a Meeting, webinar-only features are lost: Q&A, multiple-answer poll questions, webinar-related email settings, and post-webinar surveys. If the webinar used registration, panelists become registrants and may need to re-register.
Reports move when you convert a Webinar to a Meeting. The registration report moves to Meeting reports, and the attendee report moves to Usage and Active Hosts. Sessions a recurring webinar already ran before the conversion keep their reports under Webinar reporting.
If Zoom cannot convert the event in place (for example, the original Zoom event was deleted rather than converted), AEvent schedules a new Zoom session and re-registers everyone automatically. Nobody is left stranded either way.
If you want a refresher on attaching AEvent to a Zoom event, see Automating a Pre-Scheduled Zoom Meeting or Webinar.
Troubleshooting
The Zoom Webinar option is greyed out or disabled: The Delivery Application dropdown only offers Zoom Webinar if the connected Zoom account has a Webinar plan or license. The tooltip points you to enable Zoom's webinar plan and reconnect. Switch to Zoom Meeting, or upgrade the Zoom plan and reconnect the integration.
You changed the type in AEvent but not in Zoom: The red warning in the scheduler is telling you to convert the event in Zoom first. Convert it (and any additional events) in Zoom, confirm "restrict the number of registrants" is disabled, then update the event in AEvent.
Panelists need to re-register: When a Zoom Webinar is converted to a Meeting, Zoom turns panelists into registrants, and real-world results are mixed. A panelist may need to re-register. Check your panelists after converting.
The change did not seem to take right away: Reconciliation is not always instant. Make the change before the event, not during it, and give AEvent a moment to reconcile with Zoom.