Managing Chat and Q&A during the Event (Webex Webinars)

Attendees may have a couple of different ways to communicate with organisers during the event. The conference organisers may opt to disable chat and/or Q&A. If in doubt, please reach out to the conference organisers directly.

This article will guide you through the various ways of managing both the Chat and Q&A panels during your Event.  For instructions on how to enable and disable Chat and Q&A in Webex, see this article on Setting up your Live Stage.

If enabled, the chat and Q&A panels are located in the bottom right-hand corner of Webex.

Managing Q&A

What is Q&A?

Q&A allows the attendees to ask questions. These questions will not be visible to other attendees when first asked.

Who can ask questions?

Only attendees can ask questions in the Q&A panel.

Who can answer questions?

Only hosts, co-hosts and panelists can answer questions in the Q&A panel.

How can attendees ask a question?

Attendees should first click on Q&A in the bottom right-hand corner to open the panel. Once opened, attendees can input a question and choose to send it to all panelists or specific roles only. Attendees cannot make questions visible everyone.

How can panelists answer questions?

Incoming questions from attendees can be seen in the Q&A panel. Blue circles indicate that a new question has been posted.

To open the Q&A panel, you need to click on the ellipses at the bottom of the screen for 'More Panels' and click on Q&A.

Next, click on the question you wish to answer, type a response in the text field and either hit Send or Send Privately. If you hit Send, the question and answer will be visible to everyone in the meeting. If you send the answer privately, only the person who asked the question can see the answer.

Is there a way to share questions with the team?

Yes! To do this, right-click on a question and assign it to a specific person.

How can I prioritise questions that come through during a session to ensure we answer key questions during the Q&A?

You can rank questions by high, medium and low priority. To do so, right-click on the question and set the level in the Priority menu.

If questions are prioritised, it is possible to filter by priority level as shown in the image below.

How do I know if a question has been answered? Can I skip a question if it is not relevant; or possibly answer a question in a later session?

If the question has been answered through Webex, you will see the answer in the Q&A panel. You can keep track of questions answered verbally or questions that you are not going to answer or answer later. To do this, right-click on the question and select Answered Verbally, Defer or Dismiss.

What should we do if we don't have time to answer all questions in the session? Can I save the Q&A content?

Absolutely! We recommend that stage managers save a copy of any content in the chat, Q&A, polls and notes (if using). To save content, click on the Webex Meetings menu at the top of the app > Save as > select what you wish to save.

You can only save these if content is actually in the system. If there is no information in the Chat, you cannot save the chat.

Viewing Questions when screen sharing

When you're screen sharing the navigation bar will appear at the top of the screen.

You will then see some quick links in this toolbar. Select More to see options and to open your Q&A panel. 

Managing Chat 

Who can use the chat feature? Can I limit who attendees can chat with in Webex?

By default, attendees can chat with all panelists, specific panelists, and everyone. This can be limited in the Participant menu at the top of your Webex screen > Assign Privileges > change the setting in the pop up window and click Assign to save them.

How can attendees post a message in the chat?

Attendees can click on the Chat feature in the bottom right-hand corner of Webex. They can type in a message and select the recipient(s) from the drop-down menu just above the text field.

Are messages private or visible to everyone?

It depends on how the message was sent! Webex will indicate if a message was sent to everyone or if it was sent privately. Panelists can use the drop-down menu above the text field to reply privately or begin a private chat with a specific person.

Do Panelists have the same permissions as the host in the chat feature?

This depends on the settings in the Participant menu at the top of your Webex screen > Assign Privileges > All Panelists. You can limit panelists chat permissions here. Be sure to click Assign to save them.

Can attendees use the chat to message other attendees privately?

No. In Webex Webinars, it's not possible for an attendee to directly chat with another individual attendee. 

Can I save the chat?

Absolutely! We recommend that stage managers save a copy of any content in the chat, Q&A, polls and notes (if using). To save content, click on the Webex Meetings menu at the top of the app > Save as > select what you wish to save.

You can only save these if content is actually in the system. If there is no information in the Chat, you cannot save the chat.