Watch Page

The watch page is where your congregation watches online: the live stream when you are live, and your library of past messages the rest of the week. Publish > Watch Page is where you get its links, embed it on your website, choose how it looks, and decide whether viewers can chat or send prayer requests.

Where to find it

Go to Publish > Watch Page. It works in the web app and in Tech Manager. The Share your watch page link on Live Streams and Change on the watch page in the schedule form also open it.

Share your links

1. Go to Publish > Watch Page and find Your links.
2. Pick the link you need:
   • Watch page: the one link for your website and bulletin. It shows the live stream when you are live and your library the rest of the time.
   • Live stream: always opens the live player (a countdown before, the replay after).
   • Library: your past messages only.
3. Use the icons beside the address: copy the link, show a QR code (to print or put on a slide), get Embed code, or open it.

Each live stream can also have its own address, set in its details, and who can see a service is set per live stream: public, unlisted or private.

These links play your church's default encoder (its first). A live stream on a second encoder plays on that encoder's own watch page instead (next section), and on its own address if you gave it one.

Share the watch page of a second encoder

If your church has added a second encoder (on Publish > Live Streaming > Encoders), that encoder has its own watch page. Your church's watch page, its Live stream link, the player embedded on your website and the live banner on series pages never show it.

1. Go to Publish > Live Streaming > Encoders.
2. Pick the encoder in the list at the top right.
3. On its top card, find Watch page and click Copy.
4. Send the link to the people it is for, for example the parents of the youth group.

The address is your church's watch address followed by /live/ and the encoder's name in small letters with hyphens, for example ending in /live/youth-room. That page:

• plays only that encoder, and, like your church's page, never shows a rehearsal or a live stream's preview before Go Live;
• isn't linked from your church's watch page, and search engines leave it out;
• uses the look, buttons and links, order of service and prayer requests you set on this page;
• has live chat off, even when Live chat is on here, because Chat Moderation covers your church's page only;
• moves when the encoder is renamed; the old link keeps working;
• goes away when the encoder is removed.

Put the live player on your website

1. Go to Publish > Watch Page.
2. On the Live stream row, click the embed icon. The Embed the live stream dialog opens.
3. Click Copy and paste the code into your website. It sizes itself to fit.

The Watch page link itself cannot be embedded in another website; it shows as an empty box. For one series, your latest message, or the live stream with chat, go to Library > Settings > Embed on your website.

Choose how the page looks

1. Go to Publish > Watch Page and find Look.
2. Choose Classic (light, in your church colour; the default) or Cinematic (dark and full-screen, best when most messages have artwork). Click Preview your live page in Classic or Cinematic to see it.
3. Set the Church colour: click a suggested colour or type a hex code. It colours buttons, links and the wash behind the player.
4. Click Save. You see "Saved. Viewers see it the next time they open your watch pages."

The look applies to your live page, your library and every message page. The same choice is in the Library's settings.

Add buttons and links

1. Go to Publish > Watch Page and find Buttons and Links.
2. Fill in any of Give, Prayer request, I'm new here and Message notes with a web address. Only the ones you fill in appear under the player; Give also appears in the page's header.
3. Add your Church website to show it in the header.
4. For one more header button, fill in Custom button (its words, such as "Plan a visit") and Custom button link.
5. Click Save.

Turn on chat or prayer requests

1. Go to Publish > Watch Page and find Taking Part.
2. Turn on any of:
   • Order of service in the side panel: when a live stream is linked to a plan, viewers see the order of service and where the morning is. Only item titles show, never notes.
   • Prayer requests: private. Viewers sign in with their email and send a request; it lands in People > Prayer Requests and is never shown on the page.
   • Live chat: public. Viewers sign in with their name and email and post where everyone sees it, so someone needs to moderate.
3. Click Save.

Set chat rules

With Live chat on, a Chat Rules card appears.

1. Choose Approve messages before they show (every message waits for a host), Hold messages with a link, phone number or email address, and Hold messages with a blocked word.
2. Add Your own blocked words, one per line.
3. Pick Slow mode: Off, 5, 10 or 30 seconds between messages per person.
4. Pick Close chat after the service: When it ends, 15 or 30 minutes after, 1 or 2 hours after, or Never. What was said stays readable.
5. Click Save.

A held message is shown only to the person who wrote it, marked "Waiting for approval", until a host approves or hides it.

Moderate chat and blocked viewers

1. Go to Publish > Watch Page and find Chat Moderation. Held messages come first, then everything posted.
2. Use Approve for a held message, Pin or Unpin, Hide to remove a message, or Block to block a viewer and hide what they already said.
3. In Blocked Viewers, click Unblock to let someone back.

During a service, moderate from the live stream's run screen instead: its Live Chat card is where a host works, and it can Post as host.

Troubleshooting

"Buttons and Taking Part" says to set up an encoder first

The watch page plays what your encoder sends, so buttons and chat settings appear once an encoder exists. Click Encoders and add one. The look can still be saved.

"No public link right now: your church's address couldn't be loaded."

The page could not read your church's public address, so it shows no link rather than a wrong one. Reload the page; if it persists, ask on Pulse > Support.

The embed on our website is an empty box

You probably embedded the Watch page link. Use the Embed code from the Live stream or Library row instead.

The Prayer request link disappeared

While Prayer requests is on, viewers get a "Send a prayer request" button instead of your link.

A troll keeps coming back after being blocked

Blocking is by the email address a viewer verified, so someone can return with another one. Turn on Approve messages before they show and use the holds.

Good to know

• Chat is off by default because public chat needs someone watching it, and the watch link is public and permanent.
• These settings apply to every live stream; the schedule form only shows them.
• A second encoder's watch page uses these settings too, except live chat, which is always off there.