Are you looking to boost your engagement on social media? Social media is about sharing information and moments instantly. Before you could snap a photo and upload it to Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
Now there are live mobile streaming apps like Meerkat and Periscope where video is playing a vital part to have in your online presence. Live streaming video is a great way to interact with your audience in real time. There are a number of ways to use these functions to help connect with your audience and potentially increase engagement. In this blog, you will learn how to use live streaming video for your business.
Broadcast live events
Sharing live events with your audience can make them feel more connected to your company or industry. The key here is not just showing the event but also letting users be a part of it.
Create stories for your viewers. If you just show what is happening in one location, viewers are likely to get bored quickly and disconnect. Instead, walk around to show them the event. Be your audience’s eyes and ears.
Keep an eye on their comments too and when possible, reply to them. Ask viewers what part of the event they want to see and whom they would like to meet.
Interviews
Brands and companies are centred on people and in fact, people is one of the seven P’s of the extended marketing mix. However, companies sometimes forget this and become too promotional.
Do short live interviews with employees or clients to increase engagement. These interviews not only show the human side of your company but also offer personal ideas and opinions.
Do not promote your brand too much during these sessions. Provide fresh content to your viewers while keeping the intrinsic aspect of your business as part of the video. Remember to acknowledge your audience and reply to their comments. If you are streaming an open discussion, ask viewers for their opinions. If it is an interview, let your audience ask questions and then select the most interesting ones.
Creation of product(s)
Your audience typically cannot see how your products or services are created. With live streaming video, you can show them what it takes to go from concept to product completion. This is a great way to give your audience a glimpse of what is involved in building your brand.
Remember that users see only the final result from your company, your product or service. Any step in between is a story of value and likely will increase engagement with your brand.
Behind the scenes look
Another way to use live streaming is to show users behind the scenes of something they normally would not have access to.
Keep in mind that you can go beyond just your company location. Anything that is typically off limits or provides a different point of view, this will interest many users. Showing how content is produced is a great way to engage with your audience. You can enhance this type of stream by involving viewers in the session. Ask for their opinions of reply to some of their comments.
Conduct training
Most people are avid learners if the content is interesting to them. Use this to your advantage by becoming your audience’s go to reference for a particular topic.
Live streaming from mobile is obviously limited when compared to desktop because you cannot share your screen and include additional content with the stream. However, this does not have to be a roadblock for live streaming training sessions. After all, one of the reasons why Meerkat and Periscope are growing so quickly is their mobility.
Use a small tripod to hold your phone and talk to the camera while gesturing with your hands. If you need to show a specific detail, simply grab the phone and show a closeup. Do not think of live video training as a session where you lead your audience step-by-step through a process. You can simply discuss a topic you are knowledgeable about and let viewers ask you questions about it.
The key to training is repetition and interaction. Make your sessions ongoing by scheduling them daily or weekly. Scheduling content helps users remember when your live streaming session airs. Remember to allow time for viewers to ask questions or simply answer questions during the broadcast.
Q&A sessions
Organise sessions where you let the audience ask you about their concerns or areas of interest. This is a great way to increase engagement because you are showing people that you care about their thoughts and opinions.
Acknowledge questions that are interesting and can provide value to your viewers. Mention the name of the user asking the question to further increase engagement. If you get comments from trolls or abusive users, simply ignore them. Selecting a specific topic for the Q&A, rather than letting users ask random questions is a better way to increase engagement. Plus it helps you filter questions and select only the most interesting.
They also take advantage of Meerkat’s content-scheduling option by creating custom images for upcoming streams with a call to action pointing to the Subscribe box. Users who subscribe to a stream receive a notification on their smartphones when the event starts.
Live streaming video offers seemingly endless possibilities for connecting with your audience. Keep in mind that you can combine some of these ideas to create something unique. Run different sessions to find what resonates best with your audience.
When broadcasting your video, be mindful of any copyright issues and user privacy. When approaching individuals, let them know they are on a live video stream and if they do not want to participate, respect their decision.
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