It’s a fact: there’s been a surge in live video streaming over the last year due to apps like Periscope, Facebook Live, and Snapchat. Sure, we’ve seen tearfully boring streams of someone waiting for the cable repairman or that guy live streaming his decision of which soda to purchase from a vending machine, but these apps chart unprecedented territory when it comes to businesses. How can we use these apps to build our brands well? We’ve broken it down for you here.
Don’t neglect equipment and location
You can have the best personality, product, and content, but if your camera is at an odd angle and you’re sitting in a dark room, well … that’s not going to push your brand any further than a twenty-pound tumbleweed. Get a small tripod, test out angles and backgrounds, and make sure viewers have a clear view of you. Use the top third of the screen of your smartphone; when commentary is turned on it can block the lower half of the screen.
Create an irresistible title
The title of your stream is the first contact from your brand to your potential audience. Because of this, it’s of paramount importance for you to come up with a compelling title that will beckon users to tune in. A call to action in the title lets the user know what kinds of questions to ask when they are part of the broadcast.
Use wording that suggests exclusivity or backstage passes to draw the audience in. Of course, straightforward titles like “watch our live unveiling of…” work, too. An invitation for educational or experiential streams where you share wisdom from your market is also a popular way to gain an audience.
Respond to comments in real time
On Periscope, people tuning into your stream have the ability to comment and like on your broadcast, with other viewers able to see the comments along with likes (hearts) on your video. Those hearts matter: the more of them you have, the closer your username can rank among “Popular People to Follow,” increasing your visibility by the boatload.
Rack up a ton of hearts and you’ll find yourself among the “Most Loved” section where users with the most likes are displayed. Because of this, you will want to keep your engagement with your audience to the maximum. Answer questions out loud, acknowledge users, and genuinely engage with your audience. More love from your audience equals more hearts for you, more hearts equal ranking higher in popularity, and ranking higher in popularity means you finally get the chance to sit at the cool kids table. Or at least increase your brand visibility.
It may sound crazy, but we wanted to build the closest thing to teleportation.”
“It may sound crazy, but we wanted to build the closest thing to teleportation,” Periscope’s founders said. And essentially they have: where else can you view glimpses into CEO’s apartments or glean wisdom from big brand’s founders while they’re on their Sunday trip to Wholefoods? In this disconnected age, people are hungry for connection and live streaming is quickly proving to be an unprecedented way to reach an audience that wants to engage.
Are you using live streaming to add revenue and grow your brand visibility? If you need a jumpstart, get the step-by-step process for using Periscope to grow your business (while having tons of fun!).
