Thinkific has a live streaming feature that allows course and community owners to create, host, and deliver live content to their students.
The platform doesn’t have a native live streaming feature; however, it does have Zoom direct integration.
Examples of Thinkific live streams include live lessons, Q&As, webinars, and coaching.
Key Takeaways:
- Thinkific offers direct integration with Zoom
- Users can also stream using YouTube Live, LiveStream, and other platforms
- Thinkific supports live streaming in both communities and courses
Thinkific Live Streaming Feature
Thinkific has a comprehensive live streaming feature in its communities and courses.
Live streaming on Thinkific allows users to create dozens of different digital products by using them differently.
Here are some examples of how subscribers use live streaming:
- Courses – Creators can stream to produce live lessons. This is a great option for teaching topics that require student interaction, such as educational classes.
- Membership and Community – Going live inside communities can increase engagement by having two-way discussions.
- Webinars – If you’re looking to teach a topic in a more long-form way, you can host a webinar that also allows users to post questions.
- Q&A – You can host Q&A sessions based on a specific topic that gives community and course members an opportunity to have their questions answered.
- Coaching – This can be used to enhance the learners’ experience by providing group or one-on-one coaching to enhance their results.
All these examples use cases of live streaming that can be included with the course and community access or be sold separately.
What Thinkific Plan Do You Need to Livestream?
Due to the different types of live streaming available on the platform, the plan requirements for each user will also differ.
The primary difference is if you want to live stream inside of your community or within a course.
Therefore, to help you better understand the Thinkific plan required for your business, we’ve listed the Thinkific feature and what it enables below.
- Zoom Integration
- Meetings
- Webinars
- Live Lessons
- Virtual Live Course Lessons
- Live Events
- Workshops
- Q&A’s
- Office Hours
- Coaching
To access all of Thinkific’s live streaming features and tools, users must be subscribed to the Start Plan or above.
| Thinkific Subscription | Zoom Direct Integration | Zoom Integration (Meetings and Webinars) | Live Events | Live Lessons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free Plan | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Basic Plan | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Start Plan | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Grow Plan | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Expand Plan | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Plus Plan | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Expand Plan | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
How to Livestream on Thinkific
As Thinkific doesn’t have a native live-streaming feature, customers must use a third-party integration. The most popular platform to use is Zoom, as Thinkific has a direct integration.
Therefore, this tutorial will use Zoom as the example platform for creating a live lesson on Thinkific.
There are two parts to setting up a Zoom live stream; the first step is integrating the platforms:
- Navigate to Thinkific.com.
- Log in to your account; if you don’t have one, you can create one on this step.
- Once logged in, you’ll be redirected to your dashboard, where you’ll need to select Apps, which are on the left-hand-side panel.
- Click on the Zoom app, and then you’ll be redirected to the Zoom listing on the App store.
- You’ll then be prompted to sign in to your Zoom account, where you can link the platforms together.
Now that you’ve successfully integrated Zoom with Thinkific, you can now start live streaming on the platform.
Here’s how to create live lessons:
- From your dashboard, select Manage Learning Products and choose Courses.
- Next, select the course you’d like to add the live lesson to. In this example, we’re adding it to the SupplyGem Live Course.
- Now, select Add Lesson and then choose Live.
- Choose the settings for your live lesson.
- Select Save.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can You Livestream on Thinkific?
Yes. Thinkific supports live streaming on the platform. Subscribers have the choice of using the Zoom direct integration or other providers such as YouTube Live and LiveStream.
Can You Use Zoom to Live Stream?
Yes, Thinkific has a direct integration with Zoom for users to connect the platforms. Subscribers can then use Zoom to live stream, host Q&As, webinars, and coaching.
How Do You Livestream on Thinkific?
After you’ve integrated Zoom with your Thinkific account, you can add live streams to your courses by selecting Add Lesson and then selecting Live. To host a live stream inside of a Thinkific community, users can create an event, select an online event, and then copy the live link for users to join.
