Live Videos for Social Media Marketing

Raise your hand if you’d rather watch a video to learn something new than read about it. And now raise your hand if you would rather that the information you were getting to be the most up-to-date and current. This is where live-streaming comes in. Live-streaming essentially is broadcasting of live video content to an audience over the internet through a platform such as social media or a website. And in this day and age everybody is doing it! Not just the young, hip kids. Businesses are able to take advantage of this communication practise to improve their social media marketing efforts, create a better sense of community and build their online brand exposure with a point of difference. Live video commands the attention of the business world. With projections showing that live video streaming will be worth $70 billion by 2021! Unlike ever before, people have a way of interacting with their favourite businesses and in real time. This creates the opportunity for potential customers to direct the action, and conversation to seek the most valuable information they are seeking.

Social Media Trends – Live Videos

Why is live video such a big deal? Live video streaming is one of the most powerful ways to reach and interact with your audience. You can use live video to engage your customers at the starting price of $0. So, what’s stopping you from jumping in and using live video, too? Here are the top three reasons why live-streaming is so important for your business and/or personal brand. If you haven’t started yet, you should!

One of the main reasons why live video streaming is so impactful, for businesses and individuals, is because of the level of engagement and interaction it is able to offer. No other platform or marketing strategy enables such a high level of interaction. Live-streaming also has the highest rate of engagement of all content types. On a live stream on Facebook, viewers are able to post their comments in real time and get a response instantly. This is also an opportunity for other viewers to interact with that person and for your business to interact as well. This instant gratification creates a deep connection between the viewers and your business. It also drives more viewers to engage with your content, in the hopes of reaching you. Offering your customers the best platform of communication directly with your business.

The fact that a live video stream is actually live, brings a human element to it. Anything can go wrong, at any time. If presenters make a mistake, stutter or laugh about something, viewers see the authenticity and identify with them. But people love this as it humanises your business and makes it more relatable.

And lastly live video streaming can help you reach more people. For example, if you go live on Facebook, the chance of your followers seeing it on their newsfeed is higher than if you share an image or a video. YouTube will also favour live videos on its searches, as will many other platforms. With increased exposure, you can generate more leads for your business or get more followers. Within social media, it’s also easier to get people to find and share live videos. Since it requires immediate action, they’ll need to share your content right away, so their friends can also see it.

Where you can be streaming

Your platform of choice will largely depend on your target audience. Once you choose your platform, live-streaming is simple. And with a little bit of practise your business will be amazing at live video streaming in no time. So if you are like most beginners, you will be stuck on which platform to choose that will be best for your businesses needs. Luckily, live video is versatile, and most platforms are quick and easy to set up. You can use Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, or a variety of other platforms.

Better Live Videos for Your Business

When starting your live video streaming it is highly important to be prepared and have a set agenda, to ensure that you are getting all the information out to your audience that you want.

These are our five steps to ensure a smooth and successful live social media video.

Plan - Know the logistics of your live stream, who will be watching, what topics you will be talking about, and where you will be going live (which platform ie. Facebook).
Choose your platform - as different platforms offer different ways for your audience to interact with your business.
Make sure you have all the equipment required - whether that be a laptop, phone with tripod or tablet, ensuring you also have great sound quality to have a professional end result.
Practise first - Think of this like a dress rehearsal, ensuring you know what you will be presenting and all your equipment is working properly
And lastly before you start it is very important to promote your live video stream to ensure that your audience is aware that you will be live.

How live video streaming can help your business social media campaign

Through live video streaming your business can offer your audience with live product tutorials, Q&A’s, and educational content to help make their final decision if they will convert. As they are able to make the most of the resources you are providing to them, this may be the difference between your business and your competitors. Being able to take advantage of this marketing tactic and really stand out from the crowd.

At Firefly, we offer a range of different social media services and if your business is looking to stand out and really make an impact online, give us a call today for a no obligations quote 0800 440 714.