Using Interactions on Altar Live

Interactions are a great way to engage your audience and get to know the people behind the screen.

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Interactions Overview

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There are two types of interactions on Altar Live - Polls and Announcements. 

Polls can be used in a multitude of ways. You can ask fun questions like: “What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?”, or use it to find a solution to something like meeting times. If a poll is public, all attendees will also see the results. If the poll was private, only Hosts and Greeters will see the results. Otherwise, attendees can check on the poll's status in the side panel.

Announcements are a great way to quickly connect with your audience.  Use them to announce plan changes, coffee hour, giving links, and more! Anyone who is a host or greeter can publish announcements.

There are three formats for announcements:

• Modal - pops up in the middle of the screen

• Notification - pops up as a traditional notification

• Panel - can be found in the side panel

After an attendee dismisses an announcement, they can find it again using the side panel - perfect for sending easy-access links and notes.

You can create interactions as you need them or create templates for use over and over. You can also schedule interactions ahead of time to automatically send during events, or save them as drafts for a Host or Greeter to send out manually.

Creating Interactions During Events and Meetings

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For Announcements

Step 1. Click on the megaphone icon on the right side of the screen. This will open the announcement pane.

Step 2: At the bottom of the page, click the “Add New Announcement” button.

Step 3: Select the “notification type” drop-down menu and choose an announcement type.

Step 4: Fill out the title and description fields ‍

Step 5: (Optional): If you want to add an external link to your announcement, simply press the “add a button for an external link” box. Then, type in the button text and add the button link. Note: when clicked, this button will open a new tab online or take the user to the browser on their mobile device 

Step 6: Once every box is filled out and the desired links are added, press the “Publish” button and your announcement will be sent to all attendees. 

For Polls

Step 1: Click on the little icon on the right side of the screen. This will open the polls pane.

Step 2: At the bottom of the page, click the “Add New Poll” button. 

Step 3: Fill out the title and description fields. 

Step 4: Select whether or not everyone can see the results and whether or not multiple options are allowed.

Step 5: Fill out the options for the poll.  You can add up to 5 options.

Step 6: Once every box is filled out and desired links are added, press the “Publish” button and your interaction will be sent to the attendees. 

Note: If you want to save an announcement without publishing it, press the “Save As Draft” button at the very bottom of the page. This will save the announcement under drafts and it can easily be edited later by hovering over the three dots. 

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Creating Interaction Templates Before Events and Meetings

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Instead of typing in the same interactions week after week, you can save them for reuse as a template.

Admins, Hosts, and Greeters can create templates by going to "Settings" and selecting "Templates".

Step 1: Make sure you select whether you want to create an announcement or a poll, then click "Add New Template" or "Add New Poll".

Step 2 (Announcement): If creating an Announcement, you will then be prompted to give your template a title, text (body), and a button link (optional). You can also select what type of announcement style it will be: panel, modal (pop-up), or notification style.

Step 2 (Poll): If you're creating a poll, you'll be prompted to fill in the poll title, text, options list, and the poll's settings.

Step 3: Once you're done, hit save.

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Using Interaction Templates in Events and Meetings

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To use an announcement or poll template during an event or meeting, simply click "Use Templates" (located under the publish button), and select the template you want to use.

Scheduling Interactions Before Events and Meetings

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When scheduling an interaction, you can either create a new interaction or use a template.‍

Step 1: During event creation/editing, select the "Interactions" page. From there, if you want to create a new interaction, select "Add New Interaction" and fill out the required fields. If you want to use an existing template, select "Use Interaction Template" and select the template you want from the dropdown menu.

Step 2: Once you've selected or created an interaction, you can schedule at what time you want the interaction to be sent.

Note: Post times are calculated from the start of the event. For example, if you would like your interaction to be sent 30 min. from the beginning of the event, set the send time to 00:30:00.

Step 3: If you want your post to be sent out automatically, turn the "Post Automatically" toggle on. If you'd rather have a host or greeter send out the interaction manually at the specified time, turn the toggle off.  The Interaction will be saved as a draft for a host or greeter to send.

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And that's using interactions on Altar Live! You're well on your way to engaging further with your digital community.
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Looking for inspiration hosting online church, conference, and other events online? Check out our templates here!

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