# Run Webinar event-day operations

> Check everything before your Webinar goes live, help attendees who can't get in, reschedule or cancel sessions safely and match attendance afterwards.

Canonical: https://help.spacebrain.ai/sites/webinar-event-operations/
Last modified: 2026-09-25T00:00:00.000Z

This is your checklist for the day of a Webinar: what to check before people arrive, what to do during the session, how to reschedule or cancel, and how to match attendance afterwards. It's for the person running the event in Spacebrain, alongside whoever hosts the Zoom or Google Meet room. Use it after you've published the Webinar using [Set up, test, and publish a Webinar](/sites/webinar-setup-and-publishing/).

## Before you begin [#before-you-begin]

* **Permission:** you need editing permission to reschedule, cancel, retry or match attendance. Read-only users can view but not change.
* **Host access:** the host must be able to sign in to the Zoom or Google Meet account connected to the Webinar.
* **Two people if you can:** one runs Spacebrain, one hosts and moderates the video room.

## Where to find it [#where-to-find-it]

Open **Sites → Webinars** and select the Webinar. You'll use these workspace tabs:

* **Set up → Sessions:** the sessions, their provider sync, and **Attendance & replay**.
* **Set up → Schedule:** reschedule or cancel sessions.
* **People → Registrations** and **People → Attendees:** who signed up and who came.
* **Delivery → Provider health** and **Delivery → Activity:** the video account and what happened when.
* **Delivery → Automations:** reminders and **Message delivery health**.

## Before attendees arrive [#before-attendees-arrive]

1. **Run a rehearsal.** On the Webinar's **Overview**, use the launch command center and select **Run rehearsal** (or **Run again**). It should show **Cleared for launch**.
2. **Check Provider health.** Look at the reliability score, **Last successful sync** and **Operations requiring attention**. If you see **Reconnect**, reconnect the account now.
3. **Check Sessions.** Find today's session. Confirm the schedule, **Status**, **Sync** and **Capacity**.
4. **Sign in as host** in Zoom or Google Meet. Check co-hosts or panelists, the waiting room, recording and moderation settings there.
5. **Test the attendee path.** Register with your own email, open your attendee link and check the waiting room shows the right session and time.
6. **Check reminders.** In **Automations**, look at **Message delivery health** for failed or skipped messages. In **Activity**, look for anything that failed or repeated.

## While the session is live [#while-the-session-is-live]

* Presenting, screen sharing, chat, muting, removing people and recording all happen in Zoom or Google Meet. Spacebrain isn't a moderation console.
* Use Spacebrain to check registrations, access and **Provider health**.
* If someone can't get in, check their registration, payment (for paid Webinars), which session they registered for, and whether the join window is open. Do that before you change anything.
* Before you select **Retry** on a provider operation, check in Zoom or Google Meet whether it already worked. Retrying something that half-finished can create duplicates.
* Write down the time and details of any change you make, so you can match it up later.

## Help an attendee who can't join [#help-an-attendee-who-cant-join]

| What they say                 | What to check                                                                                          |
| ----------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| "My link doesn't work"        | They're using their own attendee link, for the right session, within the join window.                  |
| "It says the session is full" | The session's **Capacity** in **Sessions**. You can **Offer waitlist seat** when capacity is set.      |
| "I paid but can't get in"     | The payment has been confirmed by Stripe or Commas. Reaching the checkout thank-you page isn't enough. |
| "I never got the reminder"    | **Message delivery health**, their email address, and whether they registered after the reminder time. |

## Reschedule a session [#reschedule-a-session]

1. Open **Schedule** and select **Edit** on the session under **Existing schedule**. Cancelled and ended sessions can't be edited.
2. In **Reschedule session**, set the **New local start**.
3. If the session is part of a recurring series, choose **Apply change to**: **This session only** or **This and future sessions**.
4. Select **Confirm reschedule**.

Spacebrain updates the Zoom or Google Meet session, replaces pending reminders and may send calendar updates. Old reminder times no longer apply. Straight afterwards, check the new time and timezone, the provider session and **Message delivery health**.

You can also edit a single session from **Sessions** with **Edit**. That changes only that session.

## Cancel a session [#cancel-a-session]

1. Open **Schedule** and select **Cancel** on the session.
2. In **Cancel Webinar session**, choose **This session only** or **This and future sessions** for a series.
3. Add a **Cancellation reason**.
4. Select **Confirm cancellation**.

Pending reminders are cancelled. Registrants may receive your cancellation message and a calendar cancellation, if that message is turned on in **Automations**. Check **Message delivery health** rather than assuming everyone was told.

### Cancel the whole Webinar [#cancel-the-whole-webinar]

There's no single "cancel everything and tell everyone" button. To cancel completely:

1. Cancel each upcoming session, choosing the right series option.
2. Leave the cancellation message turned on until it has been sent.
3. Check **Message delivery health**.
4. Select **Unpublish** so nobody new can register.

Don't delete the Webinar instead of cancelling. Deleting doesn't notify anyone.

## Check registrations [#check-registrations]

Open **Registrations**. Filter by **Confirmation** (**All registrations**, **Confirmed**, **Needs confirmation**). Each row shows when they registered, their CRM contact (**Open CRM**), **Provider sync** status (**Registered**, **Not required**, **Pending**, **Payment pending** or **Failed**) and source.

For a Zoom Webinar, a registration that didn't reach Zoom can show **Retry Zoom**. Check the error and look in Zoom first: the first attempt may have worked, and retrying again can create a duplicate.

## Match attendance after the session [#match-attendance-after-the-session]

1. Open **Sessions**. For a live session that has ended, select **Reconcile**, or use **Re-sync attendance** on the **Attendance & replay** card.
2. The card shows **Registrations**, **Verified**, **Unmatched**, **No-shows**, **Partial** and **Identity match**.
3. Open **Attendees** to see each person's attendance: **Attended**, **Partially Attended**, **Left Early**, **No Show**, **Registered** or **Reconciliation Pending**.

Filter **Attendees** by session, attendance, engagement segment (hot, warm or cold), registration date or **Reconciliation problems only**. Select **View** to see a person's watch time, engagement, timeline and follow-up history.

If Zoom or Google Meet didn't provide a value, it shows **Not available**. That doesn't mean zero.

## Match an unmatched attendee [#match-an-unmatched-attendee]

Sometimes Spacebrain can't safely tell which registration a Zoom or Google Meet attendee belongs to. It never guesses.

1. In **Attendees**, set the attendance filter to **Unmatched provider observations**.
2. In **Unmatched provider attendance**, find the person and select **Associate**.
3. Confirm who they are using a reliable source outside this screen, such as their email in Zoom.
4. In **Associate provider attendance**, choose their **Registration** for the same session.
5. Select **Confirm association**.

This changes their attendance, engagement score and which follow-up messages they get. Never match on display name alone if you have better information.

## If something goes wrong [#if-something-goes-wrong]

| Symptom                                                      | Check before you act                                                                                       |
| ------------------------------------------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Attendee can't join                                          | Their registration, payment confirmation, session, join window, capacity and attendee link                 |
| A provider operation shows **Retry scheduled** or **Failed** | What actually happened in Zoom or Google Meet, then **Retry** or **Cancel** in **Provider health**         |
| Reminder didn't send                                         | The message is turned on and saved, the recipient, the session time and timezone, and when they registered |
| Follow-up after the event hasn't sent                        | The session has ended and attendance has been matched                                                      |
| Attendance shows **Not available**                           | The session ended, the provider sent attendance, and reconciliation has run                                |
| Recurring sessions are at the wrong time                     | The **IANA timezone**, the preview, the weekdays and daylight-saving changes                               |

When you contact support, include the Webinar and session, the message or status you see, the provider, the time and timezone, and what you last did. Never send attendee links, passwords, payment details or private replay links.

## FAQ [#faq]

### Does Spacebrain record the session? [#does-spacebrain-record-the-session]

No. Record in Zoom or Google Meet. You can then add the recording as a replay. See [replay, analytics, and lifecycle](/sites/webinar-replay-analytics-and-lifecycle/).

### Do late registrants get every reminder? [#do-late-registrants-get-every-reminder]

No. People who register after a reminder's time skip that reminder.

### Can a read-only user match attendees? [#can-a-read-only-user-match-attendees]

No. They see **You have read-only access. An editor can associate unmatched attendance.**

## Next step [#next-step]

After matching attendance, set up the replay and review results in [Webinar replay, analytics, and lifecycle](/sites/webinar-replay-analytics-and-lifecycle/).