Using Poll Everywhere with Microsoft PowerPoint for Windows
Using Poll Everywhere from the Web is an easy, reliable way to present your activities to participants. However, you can also embed your activities into your PowerPoint presentation to engage your audience, gather feedback, or present real-time results directly from PowerPoint, so you don’t disrupt your presentation. You can integrate Poll Everywhere slides into PowerPoint after following a few basic steps:
- Install/check for the Poll Everywhere PowerPoint app
- Sign in to the Poll Everywhere app
- Insert your activities
- Present your activities
This guide will walk you through using activities with PowerPoint and some troubleshooting considerations. Before you begin, consider the following:
- This guide is meant for Windows, for macOS devices commonly found in classrooms, check out: Using Poll Everywhere with PowerPoint for macOS.
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Do not use the Poll Everywhere Add-in found within the Add-ins menu of PowerPoint, it will not function.
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Step 1: Install/Check for the Poll Everywhere PowerPoint App
First, you’ll need to have Poll Everywhere installed. While activities are normally launched and utilized from the website, presenting them in PowerPoint requires a separate app. You'll want to ensure that the Poll Everywhere for Windows app is installed on the presentation computer if the device is different than the one you created the presentation on.
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.
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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.
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No matter what type of computer you are presenting from, Poll Everywhere will display the same steps to log 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
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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 once you're logged in. Although not all 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.
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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 app. To insert activities into your PowerPoint presentation:
- Open the Poll Everywhere tab in Microsoft 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.
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For an in-depth guide on inserting activities, visit Poll Everywhere's guide on inserting.
Step 4: Presenting Your Activities
Activities are only activated and displayed while in presentation mode. To use your activity during your presentation, switch to Slide Show/Presentation mode as usual 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.
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.
- Users on macOS must keep the separate Poll Everywhere app open during their presentation for activities to function properly.
- 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.
Troubleshooting and Fixes
The PowerPoint slide displays correctly but doesn’t show the live activity or allow responses.
- Make sure you’re in Slide Show/Presenter mode.
- Try deleting the current activity slide and using the Poll Everywhere area to insert the activity again.
- On a Windows device:
- Make sure you are logged into the Poll Everywhere tab in PowerPoint.
The slide doesn’t display correctly when in Slide Show/Presenter mode, or the Slide has a static preview image only, or the activity is offset/running off the screen.
- If you’re using screen-sharing software, like MS Teams, make sure you are sharing the entire screen instead of just the PowerPoint app.
- Try using the Sync -> All option within the PowerPoint tab.
- On a Windows device:
The Poll Everywhere activity works on a personal device, but not in a classroom/meeting room computer.
- Make sure Poll Everywhere is installed on the presentation computer.
- Make sure you're logged into the Poll Everywhere tab in PowerPoint with your UIW account.
- Log in by opening PowerPoint > Poll Everywhere tab > Log in.
- Try using the Sync -> All option within the PowerPoint tab.
I adjusted my display resolution, but the activity slide is still wonky and doesn’t display properly.
- Update to the latest version of Poll Everywhere.
- On a Windows device:
- Open PowerPoint > Poll Everywhere tab > Check for Update.
- Try downgrading to a prior version of Poll Everywhere.
My issue is still not resolved
If you have a different issue with Poll Everywhere or you cannot resolve the problem, consider the following support options:
- If you need detailed and quick support for Poll Everywhere
- If you have an issue using Poll Everywhere on a classroom computer
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