If live streaming isn't a part of your engagement plan, you're missing out on a significant amount of your target audience.
Learn how to take advantage of live streaming's tremendous potential for unmatched audience interaction.
What Is Live Streaming?
A powerful way to engage your target audience and give your message a personal touch is through live streaming. It's a simple procedure with a lot of possibilities.
You may broadcast live material to a large audience through social media, giving them an inside look at your business.
From $30 billion in 2016 to an expected $70 billion in 2021 and an estimated $184 billion by 2027, live streaming has experienced phenomenal development.
Marketers are responding to this exceptional rise by raising their live streaming investments by 28%.
Reasons Your Business Should Use Live Streaming
Live streaming is an effective tool for building true relationships with your audience because it gives them a glimpse of the real faces and voices behind your business, encouraging sincere brand association and steadfast devotion.
Let the data speak for themselves when it comes to the compelling reasons your business should adopt live streaming:
- According to Livestream, live streaming reached over 1.1 billion hours in 2019.
- A startling 80% of viewers choose to watch a live video rather than read a blog.
- Watching videos significantly increased brand association by 139%.
- According to 99 Firms, consumers are 39% more likely to share video content.
- According to Hubspot, an amazing 82% of viewers prefer live video to regular social media updates.
- One in five Facebook videos are live broadcasts
- According to LinkedIn, live broadcasts get a staggering 24 times more comments.
Individuals employ live streaming as a means to foster stronger connections with their brands. Chances are, your social media presence provides an ideal platform for harnessing this valuable tool.
Which Social Media Sites Offer Live Streaming Support?
The accessibility of live streaming for businesses is one of its greatest benefits; you don't need much to get going and can frequently go live on sites like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, and more.
If you already have a sizable following on these platforms, live streaming offers an instant way to engage a large audience. If you're just starting out, live streaming can be a useful tool to grow your online presence. Each platform has its own distinctive features and the potential to connect with different audiences.
Streaming live on Facebook
A startling 52% of live streaming, according to 99 Firms, takes place on social media platforms, with Facebook dominating due to its enormous user base of 2.7 billion monthly active users. Facebook Live has had a profound impact on the platform since its launch in 2016, dramatically changing the environment.
These data highlight the powerful impact of live streaming on Facebook and explain why 42.7% of businesses use this platform for their live broadcasts. Live videos "boast a remarkable 10 times more comments than their regular counterparts and enjoy a watch time that is three times longer.
Streaming Live on Instagram
While Facebook may have a larger monthly user base, Instagram's 1.15 billion active users give it a distinct demographic reach. Instagram Live makes use of the platform's visual strength and is especially well-liked by people between the ages of 18 and 34.
Although limited to mobile device live streaming, this restriction creates the opportunity to offer an incredibly intimate view into your business and lets you create content that is especially suited to your audience.
Streaming Live on YouTube
The first video-centric platform, YouTube, is still a major player in live streaming for marketers. It is the second-largest social media platform after Facebook and the second-largest search engine in the world, behind only Google, with a staggering 2 billion monthly active users.
Because of the enormous possibility this provides for marketers, it's not surprising that live streaming is so successful on this system. To put things in perspective, "Stratos Jump," a Red Bull live broadcast event, had an astounding 2.3 million concurrent views. The potential of live streaming on YouTube is obvious when you realize that during the 2017–18 NBA season, an average NBA game had 1.93 million viewers.
Your live videos on YouTube are kept for subsequent viewing, similar to Facebook, boosting their accessibility and longevity.
Streaming Live on Periscope
A live streaming tool called Periscope enables users to broadcast live events straight to Twitter. Although text-based material has historically been associated with Twitter, the social media environment has changed substantially, and video, particularly live video, now produces enormous interaction.
Compared to standard tweets, video content on Twitter has seen an astounding 10 times increase in interaction in recent months. Because of this change, is a powerful tactic for improving your Twitter profile.
Streaming Live on LinkedIn
With more than 766 million users globally, LinkedIn distinguishes out as a marketing and networking force. For individuals involved in sales or B2B activity, in particular, it shows to be a priceless platform.
Accessible to both individual users and pages, LinkedIn Live receives an astounding twenty-fourfold boost in comments and a remarkable sevenfold rise in reactions when compared to native video posts.
To optimize its impact, your video material must, however, be tailored to LinkedIn's professional audience.
How to Increase Engagement with Your Live Streams: Tips and Tools
There are lots of marketing-related technologies you can use to improve your live-streaming efforts. The most important thing is to take a strategic approach, avoid falling into the trap of subscribing to too many products, and instead perform in-depth research to find the package that best suits your company's requirements.
Here are some of my top recommendations for live-streaming technologies to help you make an educated decision.
Restream.io
Restream.io is the answer if you've been wondering how to stream concurrently on various platforms.
It provides a comprehensive live-streaming solution that enables you to broadcast on more than 30 social media networks at once. It gives you the ability to plan live streams and recorded movies, interact with your viewers in chat, and gather all of your analytics in one handy place.
Live interviews, Q&A sessions, and AMAs are made possible by Restream Studio's support for Full HD (1080p) streaming and the ability to invite visitors straight to your stream. Just provide your visitors with a special link and wait for them to enroll.
Promotional Social Media Scheduling Tools
Increasing your audience is essential for your live streams to have the most possible impact. Key tactics include following up with viewers and effectively promoting your live streams.
In social media marketing, consistency is key, and creating interesting content frequently is crucial. Make this process easier by using scheduling tools. Although the requirement for quality material still exists, these tools make it possible to plan your posts without having to check into each social networking site independently.
Tools for Image Creation
A key component of promoting your live streaming is visual material. You have the choice to add eye-catching thumbnails to your reminders in Restream.
It's crucial to understand that the standard of your live streaming must match the quality of the photographs you use. The creation of excellent live material should be accompanied by excellent promotional visuals. Consider it as a whole package where marketing is just as important as how well your live stream is executed.
A significant 94% boost in views is observed for posts with relevant visual material compared to those without. Custom images come into play in this situation.
You are able to create great pictures and perfectly adapt them for your target audience with the help of tools like Canva and Pablo. Include text, filters, and eye-catching design components to draw viewers in and keep them interested in your next live streaming.
The best part is that both of these programs allow you to produce stunning bespoke visuals for marketing your live streams with simplicity because they both provide free accounts.
Tools for Editing Video
A live stream's real-time element is what makes it unique, but it is also crucial to save it for later use. A live stream that has been recorded becomes a flexible video asset that may be easily incorporated into your overall marketing plan.
You might discover the necessity for a few minor tweaks after saving your movie. You no longer have to offer your video in a live style, therefore you are completely free to do so. With the help of video editing programs like Lumen5 and WeVideo, you can improve your content by including explanatory graphics that help to make points clear and adjust the video format to suit your particular needs.
This strategy not only allows you to reuse your live broadcasts but also guarantees that you get additional value out of them, increasing their usefulness in your marketing initiatives.
You'll Need This Equipment for Great Live Streaming
It's not necessary to have expensive equipment to create engaging live feeds. To produce interesting material for websites like Facebook and YouTube, all you need is a smartphone.
However, purchasing the appropriate equipment becomes crucial if you intend to produce more ambitious live feeds. The caliber of your laptop, lighting configuration, camera, and microphones are important factors.
Any live stream's audio quality is vital, so be sure you have microphones that produce crystal-clear audio. Options like the Shure MV88+ Video Microphone Kit, which is made to integrate with your smartphone, offer simplicity of use and give a touch of professionalism that can differentiate your live streaming.
How to Make Your Live Stream Videos' Content Engaging
The caliber of your content is the key to an effective marketing plan.
Understanding your audience's requirements, concerns, and issues is crucial to fostering participation; after you have a firm grip on your target market, you can create a rough outline for the goals of your live stream.
Remember these important details:
1. Live streaming is inclusive: Before going live, interact with your audience to learn about their interests and get feedback. This will help you determine the focus of your stream and make sure you answer their queries.
2. Keep a fluid schedule: Although planning is necessary for comfort, live streaming is an opportunity to demonstrate spontaneity and your true self, so be open-minded.
3. Remain responsive: Encourage audience participation by paying attention to comments and suggestions and letting the audience lead the conversation. Live streaming gives your fans the chance to develop a sincere relationship with your brand.
4. Keep in mind your objectives: Building lasting relationships is the main goal of live broadcasting, not pushing items. Always keep in mind the value you offer viewers, and try to improve it whenever you can.
Takeaway
We've looked at the amazing possibilities of live streaming to establish a direct connection with your audience. It's a dynamic medium that enables you to interact honestly, forge connections, and produce insightful content.
Keep in mind the significance of high-quality content, audience participation, adaptability, and a clear focus on creating meaningful connections as you begin your live streaming adventure.
Now, go no further than Video Supply if you're trying to advance your live streaming or need expert video production services. We are your go-to partner for all things video production thanks to our extensive experience and team of professionals.
Let us assist you in making your dreams of live streaming a reality. Join forces with us right away to maximize the potential of your video material.
