You can run one session of your recurring Zoom webinar live, then let it go right back to running on autopilot. There is no need to build a second campaign or move your registration page. You temporarily switch your existing campaign from Like-Live to Live for the one session you want to host in person, present, and then switch it back.
This guide walks you through the whole switch, and how to move your webinar back to its automated schedule once the session is over.
Overview
Your evergreen webinar normally runs in Like-Live mode, where AEvent signs into your Zoom account and plays your recorded video as if you were presenting live. When you want to actually go live for one session, you change a single setting, Event Automation (presentation), from Like-Live to Live. In Live mode AEvent still handles all of your registration, reminders, timeline actions, and follow-up, but you host the session yourself in Zoom.
This setting lives on the campaign, so changing it affects every occurrence of your recurring event, not just one. That is why the workflow is "flip it right before, flip it back right after." Your registration page and form never change, so anyone who registers still lands in the same place.
Before You Start
An active AEvent account with a recurring (evergreen) Zoom campaign already running in Like-Live mode.
Access to the Zoom account that is connected to this campaign. This is often a dedicated Zoom account, and it may be different from the personal Zoom you use day to day.
Your recorded video is optional here. In Live mode you present yourself, so no video is played.
Which Setting Am I Changing?
AEvent has two settings that both use the words "Live" and "Evergreen," and it is easy to mix them up:
Event Automation (presentation), the setting in this guide, controls who runs the session: Like-Live (AEvent plays your video) or Live (you host in person).
Calendar Type (Live Calendar vs Evergreen Calendar) controls how your timeline is laid out and dated. That is a different setting, covered in Difference Between a Live Timeline, an Evergreen Timeline, and Converting Between The Two.
For this guide you only touch Event Automation (presentation). Leave your Calendar Type alone. For a full tour of every automation option, see Event Automation.
Step-by-Step Guide
Timing matters. Because this change applies to every occurrence of your recurring event, make it shortly before the session you want to host live, not days in advance. A good habit is to switch it a few hours before, and at a minimum 30 minutes before the scheduled start. Then switch it back as soon as the session is over. If you forget to switch back, your next automated session will also expect you to host it live.
Step 1: Open Event Info and find Event Automation. From your dashboard, open your campaign, then stay on the Event Info page. Scroll to the Event Automation card. It shows your current Presentation mode (Like-Live) along with your Planned Live Time.
You should see: the Event Automation card with a Presentation value and an Edit button on the right.
Step 2: Switch Presentation to Live. Click Edit on the Event Automation card. In the Edit Event Automation panel, open the Event Automation (presentation) dropdown and choose Live. Because Live means you are hosting, the recorded-video options drop away.
You should see: the presentation dropdown now reads Live, and the video selection options are hidden.
Step 3: Set your Planned Live Time and click Update. In the same panel, set Planned Live Time to roughly how long your session will run, in minutes. Always overshoot rather than undershoot. For example, use 90 minutes for a session you expect to run about an hour. This value tells AEvent when to assume your presentation is over so it can pull your attendance list from Zoom, so a little extra is safer than cutting it short. Click Update.
You should see: the Event Automation card now shows Presentation: Live with the Planned Live Time you set.
Step 4: Log into the right Zoom account and go live. Open the Zoom app and sign in to the Zoom account that is connected to this campaign, not your personal Zoom. Start the scheduled webinar as the host and present your session. AEvent keeps handling your registrations, reminders, and timeline actions in the background while you focus on presenting.
You should see: your webinar available to start in that Zoom account, with you joined as the host.
Step 5: After the event, switch Presentation back to Like-Live. Once your session is over, return to Event Info, click Edit on the Event Automation card, and set Event Automation (presentation) back to Like-Live. If you want to use a recording of the session you just ran going forward, upload it and select it as your video now. Click Update.
You should see: the Event Automation card back to Presentation: Like-Live, so your next occurrence runs automatically again.
Step 6: Log out of the Zoom app. As a final safety step, sign out of the Zoom app on your computer. This keeps a leftover host session from colliding with your automated events. AEvent protects your scheduled events, so if that Zoom account is busy on another call when an automated session with registrants is due to start, AEvent may end the other session to make sure your event runs.
You should see: the Zoom app signed out of the connected account.
Troubleshooting
All of my occurrences are now going live: the Presentation setting is still on Live. Open Event Info, click Edit on the Event Automation card, set Event Automation (presentation) back to Like-Live, and click Update.
I do not see a Presentation option like this: this setting appears for Zoom and GoToWebinar campaigns. AStream (like-live streaming) campaigns are always automated and do not have a Live host option.
Does this work for a Zoom Meeting as well as a Zoom Webinar: yes. The switch works the same way for both.
Zoom will not let me start the event, or I only see my personal meetings: you are likely logged into the wrong Zoom account. Sign out and log into the Zoom account that is connected to this campaign.
I want the video to play and only come on live at the end: that is the Hybrid option, not Live. See Run a live pre-show before your automated presentation (Hybrid event).
Still stuck? Contact support with your campaign name, and we will walk through it with you.