Work or school Google Slides accounts can offer a choice of who may submit Audience Q&A questions. Review that scope before a mixed internal and external event. A visible audience link does not necessarily mean every person who receives it can participate under the same conditions.
Open the submission controls
In the computer presentation’s Presenter View, choose Audience tools. Google’s help describes changing Accepting questions from… for accounts used through an organization. Inspect the choices actually available to your account.
Choose the appropriate audience
Select the scope permitted for the event and consistent with organizational policy. Do not promise a public submission option when the account does not offer one. If an external audience needs access that is unavailable, involve the event owner or administrator instead of attempting to bypass the restriction.
Communicate any sign-in requirement before the session begins. That gives participants a chance to use an appropriate account rather than discovering the restriction only when they try to ask a question.
Test from a representative account
Open the Q&A link through an account matching the intended audience and submit a harmless test question. Confirm its arrival in the presenter tools. Review the scope again if you start or resume another session. The optional “Ask anonymously” label should not be described as a guarantee of untraceable participation; it concerns the audience-facing submission behavior. Keep sensitive personal or business information out of public questions and inspect a question before choosing to display it to the whole audience.
References
Reviewed against the linked official product guidance on November 3, 2026. Features, limits, screen labels, and access can vary by account, platform, region, and organization policy.