Use Poll Everywhere with PowerPoint for Windows
You can easily use Poll Everywhere on the web to present your activities to participants. Additionally, you can embed your activities into your PowerPoint presentation. This allows you to engage your audience, gather feedback, or present real-time results directly from PowerPoint without disrupting your presentation. You can integrate Poll Everywhere slides into PowerPoint by following these basic steps:
- Install/check for the Poll Everywhere app.
- Sign in to the Poll Everywhere app.
- Insert your activities.
- Present your activities.
This guide will walk you through using activities with PowerPoint on Windows and some troubleshooting considerations. Before you begin, consider the following:
- This guide is meant for Windows users. For those using macOS devices, please refer to: Use Poll Everywhere with PowerPoint for macOS.
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Avoid using the Poll Everywhere Add-in found within the Add-ins menu of PowerPoint, as it will not work.
Step 1: Install/Check for the Poll Everywhere PowerPoint App
First, Poll Everywhere needs to be installed on your device. Although activities are typically used on the website, presenting them in PowerPoint requires a separate app to run alongside your presentation. Ensure that the Poll Everywhere for Windows app is installed on the presentation computer if it's different from the one you used to create the presentation.
To check if your device has Poll Everywhere installed:
- Log in to the presentation computer, whether it's a classroom computer or your device.
- Open Microsoft PowerPoint and check if there is a Poll Everywhere tab towards the top of the app.
Step 2: Sign in to the Poll Everywhere app
To ensure that everything runs smoothly, make sure to log into your Poll Everywhere account using the app. This is usually not an issue when using your personal computer, but it may be problematic if you're presenting from a classroom computer. Follow the steps below to log into your Poll Everywhere account on the presentation machine.
From the computer you'll present from, open Microsoft PowerPoint and:
- Select the Poll Everywhere tab.
- Select Log in and continue with your university credentials.
No matter what type of computer you are presenting from, Poll Everywhere will display the same steps to sign in. Follow the steps below.
- Select Launch log-in window
- Enter your UIW email and select Next
- Select Log in with the University of the Incarnate Word
- Select Authorize
Once you've logged in, you can insert and present your activities from PowerPoint. You can directly manage, sync, and insert your activities from the Poll Everywhere tab in PowerPoint. Although not all of the presented options are relevant, please take note of the following.
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Sync: This option syncs all your slides with Poll Everywhere, ensuring the latest changes are saved in your presentation.
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Insert: Insert a poll or activity slide into your presentation.
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Contact support: Trouble with understanding Poll Everywhere? Contact their dedicated support line.
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Check for updates: This checks for the latest version, ensuring Poll Everywhere is up to date and ready to be used.
Step 3: Insert your Activities
Once you're logged into Poll Everywhere, you'll need to insert activities into your slide deck from the Poll Everywhere tab. To insert activities into your PowerPoint presentation:
- Open the Poll Everywhere tab in PowerPoint
- Select Insert
- Select Activity
- Within the pop-up window, select the activity you want to insert into your presentation
- Select the Insert Slides button
For an in-depth guide on inserting activities, visit Poll Everywhere's guide on inserting.
Step 4: Presenting your Activities
Activities only take responses while activated, which happens in presentation mode. To use your activity during your presentation, switch to slide show/presentation mode to begin your presentation. You can do this in three different ways:
- Press the F5 key on your keyboard.
- Select the Start From Beginning command on the Quick Access toolbar.
- Click the Play Slide Show command at the bottom of the PowerPoint window.
The activity will remain locked and unavailable for response until you navigate to that slide during your presentation. Once you do, the live activity will be displayed and (by default) unlocked and ready to receive responses. Once you navigate away from the slide, the activity will be closed to further responses.
You can check that your activity is working properly by hovering through the bottom area of the slide and finding the toolbar, which has the clear responses option. If the toolbar appears, you're good to go. If not, visit the FAQ section for troubleshooting.
Tips for Success
- You must log in to the Poll Everywhere app on each computer you plan to present from.
- If you teach or present in multiple spaces, it’s considered best practice to log into Poll Everywhere via PowerPoint before the presentation in that space.
- You cannot use embed code collected from pollev.com to record responses in PowerPoint.
- Poll Everywhere slides can be re-arranged in your presentation after insertion. This will not break activities.
- Check regularly, and ensure the latest version of Microsoft PowerPoint is installed on your device.
Video Guide
If prompted, sign in with your university credentials to view the video.
FAQ
The activity slide launches but doesn't activate or allow responses, or the toolbar doesn't display
You can tell your activity isn't working if you see the multi-colored squares in the corners of the slide and the prompt at the bottom of the slide, pictured below.
Common solutions to this issue are:
- Ensure you're logged into to Poll Everywhere tab and that it's open and running during the presentation.
- Restart PowerPoint.
- Try using the Sync > All option within the Poll Everywhere tab, then try again.
- Remove the current activity slide and use the Poll Everywhere tab to reinsert the activity.
The activity launches, but the slide spills off-screen
This is due to the display resolution of the screen.
The slide doesn’t display correctly or activate while I'm sharing in a Teams meeting
If you’re using screen-sharing software, such as MS Teams, ensure you are sharing the entire screen instead of just the PowerPoint app from the "Windows" option in the share menu. Do not use the PowerPoint Live feature in Teams.
The Poll Everywhere activity works on a personal device, but not in a classroom/meeting room computer.
Remember, Poll Everywhere must be installed on the device you are presenting from, not just from the device that created the presentation. Contact the UIW Help Desk or a local Technical Support Specialist for assistance to check if Poll Everywhere is installed on the presentation computer. Then, follow this guide for the presentation computer to ensure it's installed, you're signed in, and your activities launch properly. It's best practice to try your presentation in a space you plan to teach or present from.
I adjusted my display resolution, but the activity slide is still wonky and doesn’t display properly.
Sometimes, when everything's been checked, PowerPoint needs to restart for the presentation to launch properly. Try restarting PowerPoint after troubleshooting.
My issue is still not resolved after troubleshooting
If you have a different issue with Poll Everywhere or you cannot resolve the problem, consider the following support options:
- If you need further detailed and quick support for Poll Everywhere
- If you have an issue using Poll Everywhere on a classroom computer
