Effective participant management ensures the right people have access to your Q&A session with appropriate permissions. This guide covers how to add participants, manage roles, and control access to your sessions.
Understanding Participant Roles
The Q&A module uses three distinct participant roles:
Participants
- Can submit questions through the participant interface
- Can vote on questions to help prioritize content
- Cannot moderate or manage other participants
- View published questions but not pending ones
Moderators
- All participant permissions plus additional controls
- Can moderate questions by approving or hiding them
- Can add new participants to the session
- Cannot manage other moderators or hosts
- Cannot change session settings
Hosts
- Full session control including all moderator permissions
- Can manage all participants including other hosts and moderators
- Can modify session settings at any time
- Can control presentation mode and session flow
- Can add hosts and moderators
Adding Participants
To add participants to your session:
- Navigate to your session management page
- Click the Participants tab
- Click New participant
- Select users from the dropdown menu
- Users are automatically added as participants
Managing Session Access
Host Management
Hosts have the highest level of control. To add a new host:
- Go to the Session Access tab
- In the Hosts section, click New host
- Select the user from the dropdown
- The user immediately receives host privileges
Important: Hosts can manage other hosts, so only add trusted users to this role.
Moderator Management
Moderators help manage question flow without full session control:
- Navigate to the Session Access tab
- In the Moderators section, click New moderator
- Choose the user from the available options
- The user can immediately begin moderating questions
Participant Communication
Sharing Session Links
All participants need the session link to access the Q&A interface:
- Copy the Shareable link from your session settings
- Distribute via email, chat, or meeting invitations
- Include instructions for first-time users
- Consider sharing the link early so participants can prepare questions
Setting Expectations
Communicate clearly with participants about:
- Session timeline and when questions will be accepted
- Question guidelines and appropriate topics
- Moderation process and approval delays
- Anonymous option availability if enabled
Access Control Best Practices
Role Assignment Strategy
Hosts:
- Session organizers and primary facilitators
- Senior team members who need full control
- Backup facilitators in case of technical issues
Moderators:
- Subject matter experts who can screen questions
- Team members who can help during live sessions
- Support staff for large events
Participants:
- All attendees who should be able to ask questions
- Team members, customers, or event audiences
Security Considerations
For Organization Sessions:
- Only organization members can access the session
- No additional security measures needed
- Automatic user verification through organization membership
For Private Sessions:
- Manually add each participant
- Regularly review participant list
- Remove participants who should no longer have access
For Public Sessions:
- Anyone with the link can participate
- Consider enabling question moderation
- Monitor for inappropriate content
- Have clear community guidelines
Troubleshooting Common Issues
Participants Can't Access Session
- Verify the link was shared correctly
- Check session mode matches intended audience
- Confirm user permissions if using organization/private mode
- Ensure session hasn't expired or been deactivated
Too Many Questions to Moderate
- Add more moderators to help with question review
- Enable auto-approval if appropriate for your audience
- Communicate delays to participants if manual moderation is needed
Next Steps
With participants properly managed:
- Begin moderating incoming questions
- Prepare for your live presentation
- Monitor session engagement and activity
Continue with: Moderating Questions
