Polling - Complete Guide

Click here to open this guide in a new browser tab. You can also watch either of the Video Guides on Polling:

• The first video focuses on Setup and Event Day Moderation (Topics 1-5 below)
• The second video focuses on Leaderboards and Custom Avatars (Topics 6-7 below)
  

 Topics Covered:

1. Accessing Input and Output
2. Phone Design, Output Design, and Asset Manager
3. Create Question Groups, Questions, and Answers
4. Using the Playlist
5. Generating Questions using Question Magic
6. Leaderboards
7. Custom Avatars and Names
   

i. Accessing Input and Output

At any time, you can view the Video Board Output by opening the Left Nav and clicking on Input/Output Links. Then, click "Open URL" in the lower right corner of the Default Output as seen in the image below.

To view the Phone Design from the fan's perspective or to simply test your Poll, first make sure that the Polling app is Playing and then scan the Polling QR code. This code is also located in the Left Nav, in the Input/Output Links section. (If you scan the Polling QR Code before the Polling app is Playing, you'll be placed on the "Waiting to Start" screen until Polling begins.)

ii. Phone Design, Output Design, and Asset Manager

One of the first steps when setting up Polling is to configure your graphics for Phone User Input and Video Board Output. You can access the Phone Design and Output Design using the Left Nav.

If you've uploaded graphics to the Asset Manager, those will be used automatically as default assets for Polling.

In the Phone Designer, you can set up your post-show Redirect. To set up a redirect, select Phone Design in the Left Nav and then select Polling in the first dropdown. You'll see the Redirect Field on the right side of the page.

You can use the Output Designer to customize the look of Polling on the output.

When you design your Polling output, you can use the dropdown menu at the bottom of the page to adjust the layout when 2, 3, or 4 answers are present. Note that you aren't selecting 2, 3, or 4. You are designing 3 variations of the same page. The appropriate version will be used depending on how many answers a given question has.

iii. Create Question Groups, Questions, and Answers

The next step is to create question groups and questions. When you create these, you're creating an archive of questions that you can draw from and use later in a playlist.

Question Groups are used to organize your questions, similar to a folder. The groups don't have any effect on the output. You can create a new question group by typing a group name into the field at the bottom left. Once you've created a question group, that group's questions will appear in the middle column. You can add questions to the group by typing a question in the field at the bottom of the middle column, and then clicking the add icon.

You can create multiple question groups and switch between them at any time by clicking the pencil icon next to the group's name in the left column. After adding a question to a group, the question becomes visible in the center column and there are a few options that you can set. 

Review of Steps:

    1) Create Question Group at the bottom of left column
    2) Click the Pencil icon to select a Question Group, and add questions to it

    3) Create Questions by typing them into the field in the bottom center of the middle column

    4) Click the Pencil icon to select a Question, and edit the answers

You can display 2 answers minimum, up to 4 answers max. You can also upload a thumbnail image to display next to each answer. And lastly, you can select one of the answers to be the correct answer. If you enable a correct answer, it will be considered a Trivia Question and have a trivia icon in the playlist. If there is no correct answer set, it will be considered a Poll Question and will have a poll icon in the playlist.

When Editing a Question:
    1) Click the Pencil Icon to edit a question

    2) Add the first 2 answers (required). Optionally, you may add a 3rd or 4th answer

    3) Enable a Correct Answer to make it Trivia. If no Correct Answer is enabled, it will be considered a Poll

    4) Upload a thumbnail image for each answer

iv. Using the Playlist

Now that we've covered how to create questions and question groups, we will review how to add to and use the playlist. The playlist functions similarly to a music playlist. It's the content you've chosen, in the order you've chosen.

Questions are added to the playlist by clicking the add to playlist button, next to the Question Group name. When you add a Question Group, it copies all questions to the playlist but they are no longer grouped in any way. They are now individual entries on the playlist.

There's also an "Add to Playlist" button next in the Middle Column, next to the currently selected Question Group as seen below:

Once you've added questions to your playlist, the next step would be to reorder the playlist as you see fit. You can do this by clicking the 2 horizontal lines and dragging the entries up or down in the list. You can also freely delete questions from the Playlist, the original Question that you created will be unaffected.

Another available option is the Repeat Playlist button. If you want to run the output longer but might run out of content, you can enable Repeat. This will cause the playlist to start over at the beginning should it ever play the entire playlist. You can also click the Eye icon to Skip / hide any upcoming questions that you no longer want to display.

When you are ready to begin playback, simply click the play button at the top. You'll see the two windows displaying the On Air question, and the Up Next question. The moderator will manually advance all slides; this is done by clicking the next arrow in the top right.

When playing the Playlist, you can have Live Results ON or OFF. When Live Results are OFF, the fan results are shown on a separate results slide. When Live Results are ON, the fan results are shown at the same time as the question.

Slide Sequence with Live Results OFF

• Poll: 1st slide is the Question, 2nd slide is the Fan Results
• Trivia: 1st slide is the Question, 2nd slide is the Fan Results, 3rd slide is the Correct Answer

Poll, Live Results OFF (2 Slides)

Trivia, Live Results OFF (3 Slides)

If the Live Results option is toggled On, the playlist tempo is slightly faster because the fan votes are shown at the same time as the questions, and so there's one less results slide to display.

For a Poll, the only slide displayed is the Question along with fan results. For Trivia, the first slide displays the question and fan results. The second slide displays the correct answer.

Slide Sequence with Live Results ON

• Poll: 1st slide is the Question and Fan Results
• Trivia: 1st slide is the Question and Fan Results, 2nd slide is the Correct Answer
  
  

Poll, Live Results ON (1 Slide)

Trivia, Live Results ON (2 Slides)

v. Generating Questions using Question Magic

The final feature is Question Magic. You can allow the AI to generate some sample questions for you to use or draw inspiration from. To use Question Magic, first create and select a question group for the generated questions. Then click the Question Magic button to open the dialogue.

Simply select if you'd like Trivia, Polls, or a Mix. Then select the number of questions you'd like, and the number of answers for each. Lastly, describe the theme of your questions, and click Process. The generated questions will be created and you can edit them and add them to the playlist if you want to.

vi. Leaderboards

Topics Covered

• Prizes vs No Prizes
• Enabling Data Fields so you can contact the winners
• How to view Current Leaders (while Poll is playing)
• How to remove players
• How to view Official Winners (once Poll has ended)
• How to view Winners' Contact Info
• How to set up Winners End Page + Redirect
• Adding Leaderboards to the Output (Final Leaderboard, Leaderboard Overlay, Inline Leaderboard)
• Customizing Leaderboards
• "Jump to End" button

The Leaderboard functionality allows fans to complete against each other in an attempt to place at the top of the leaderboard. Answering Trivia correctly gives points, and answering faster than other players gives even more points!

The scoring system is already in place, and cannot be modified. Simply run Polling like you normally would, and you can view the winners at the end. (Note that Poll Questions can be used freely in the same playlist as Trivia Questions, but no points are awarded for Poll Questions since they are opinion based.)

There are 2 general ways to use the Leaderboards:

Method 1, Just for Fun

• The 3 winners see a "Winners End Page" and a "Winners URL Redirect"
• There are no prizes awarded
• The Moderator doesn't need to contact the winners and so Data Fields are NOT required for Onboarding

Method 2, Prizes are Awarded

• The 3 winners see a "Winners End Page" and a "Winners URL Redirect"
  
• There ARE prizes awarded
• The Moderator needs a way to contact the winners once the Poll has ended, and so Data Fields MUST be used for Onboarding

Enabling Data Fields so you can contact the winners after Polling ends

1. In the Left Nav select Phone Design
2. Select Polling in the first dropdown
   
3. Double check that you are on the Onboarding Tab, switch there if needed
4. Scroll down and then Toggle ON the Name and Email fields
5. (Optional) Scroll down a little more and click the Required checkbox next to each. This will force fans to fill out these fields before they can advance
6. Click the SAVE button

How to View CURRENT LEADERS (before a Poll has ended)

While a Poll is still playing, you can preview the Current Leaders using this slide-out menu. While there are profanity filters used for Custom Names, its possible a fan could submit an inappropriate name without using a bad word. If this occurs, you can instantly remove and ban that mobile device from the Leaderboard system by clicking the Kick button next to their name.

In addition to viewing the Current Leaders, this menu is where you will Police the names on the Leaderboard if needed.

How to view OFFICIAL WINNERS (once a Poll has reached the Final Leaderboard and ended)

i.  Click the "View Leaders" button - this moves you to the Capture page with the "Polling Leaders" filter enabled

ii.  Once on the Capture Page, you'll see the Cards for each of the top 10 finishers. Note that only the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishers are considered "official winners", however the top 10 leaders are all displayed on this page. Also, the important information is on the reverse side of the cards, so you'll need to click the DETAILS tab at the top of each Card to view the back side.

Use these steps to view Winners' CONTACT INFO

1. Click DETAILS

2. Observe Name + Email. Double click the Name or Email text to highlight, then right click and select COPY

3. Observe Final Polling Position

4. Contact them outside of the Suite with whichever means you prefer, using the data collected here

How to set up Winners End Page + Winners Redirect

The top 3 finishers are considered the "Official Winners" - they see a special End Page and URL if you'd like them to:

1. In the Left Nav, select Phone Design
2. Select Polling in the dropdown
3. Click the End Card tab
4. On this tab you can set the redirect for Winners, and for all others
5. On this tab you can also upload a custom End Card images for Winners, and for all others
   
   

Adding Leaderboards to the Video Board Output (3 options)

There are 3 ways you can display the leaderboard rankings on your output. The first way is the standard method that should always be used. The 2nd and 3rd methods are options that you can choose to include in addition to the 1st method.

1. Final Leaderboard

The Final Leaderboard is a results slide that's automatically added to the end of your playlist. When you advance to this slide, it displays the top finishers in a leaderboard format.

2. Leaderboard Overlay

This is a full-screen leaderboard display that can be toggled on or off at any time. Use the toggle switch at the top of the playlist to activate or deactivate this leaderboard. When it becomes activated, a full-screen leaderboard is displayed. When it's deactivated, the output returns to the exact state it previously was.

3. Inline Leaderboard

This is a smaller leaderboard that you can add to the output right next to the question and answer options. On the Output Design for Polling, you can unhide the Inline Leaderboard to have it always display on your Polling Output. Note that you'll have to shift some of the assets to make room for this leaderboard if you decide to use it.

Customizing All 3 Leaderboards

You can customize these 3 leaderboards by using the Inline Leaderboard customization menu. For the (1) Final Leaderboard and the (2) Leaderboard Overlay, you can upload a 1920 x 1080 background at the bottom. For the (3) Inline Leaderboard, you can select some styling options as well as how many players are displayed.

1. In the Left Nav, select Output Design and choose Polling in the dropdown

2. Scroll down until you see the Inline Leaderboard option

3. Click the eye icon to hide/display the Inline Leaderboard

4. Click the Pencil to open the Customization Menu

vii. Custom Avatars & Custom Names

These two features allows fans to have more control of their Polling identity. By default, users are automatically assigned a random avatar and name when joining a Poll. You have the option to allow them to select their own avatar, name, or both.

To access these settings:

1. In the Left Nav, select Phone Design
2. Select Polling in the dropdown
3. On the Onboarding tab, scroll down to the Avatar Creation section
   
   

By default, Avatar Creation will be hidden/disabled. This causes fans to skip Avatar Selection, and Custom Name selection. To enable either of the options, Unhide Avatar Creation and Save. Then, click the Pencil to Edit

Auto-assign Avatar: This is defaulted to ON. If you'd like fans to select their own Avatar, turn this option OFF

Allow Custom Names: This is defaulted to OFF. Turning this ON allows fans to submit a custom name

Custom Name Prefix: If you allow fans to submit a custom name, they get 1 attempt. If they submit an invalid name, they are instantly assigned an autogenerated name based on the Custom Name Prefix you're using. The default Custom Name Prefix is "Player". Anyone who submits an invalid name will automatically receive the name "Player1234" or "Player5678" etc.
You can change this prefix field to cause them to be renamed something else, such as "Superfan2345" etc

Blacklist: You can add any additions words to the Naming Blacklist, or remove them with a single click

Display Name Text Color: The moderator can decide what color text all avatar names are displayed in

Custom Font Dropdown: Use this dropdown to upload or select a custom font

Avatar Colors: By default, there's only 1 choice for Avatar Background Color. Use this section to add more choices for Avatar Background Colors. Click the PLUS to add another choice, and then click that choice to assign a color

This concludes the guide on Polling. Please use the support chat for any additional questions. Thank you.