Live streaming and social media stories have become increasingly important throughout the course of 2019, and should form an essential element of social media strategies for all as we go into 2020.
Sharing content through Stories, or live streaming on social media platforms is not simply about filming live event actions, there are a number of ways that live streaming or stories can be used to provide a variety of engaging content for viewers. Some of the most effective types of content for social media live streaming and stories include:
– Live coverage of events, launches and company announcements
– Holiday greetings and messages
– A themed series of tips and tricks, Q&A’s, AMA’s (Ask Me Anything’s)
– Extending interviews, panels, speeches, debates
– Giving demos, tours, tutorials, guides
– Sharing content from behind the scenes , from meetings, brainstorms, shoots, event set up, and training sessions
– Profiling employees, trusted/liked experts, and management
– Work with influencers and/or stakeholders, for example through channel takeovers
When it comes to live streaming, there are a few key points to remember in order to maximise the opportunity presented and get the best results:
1. Promote the session in advance
Tell people you’re going to be doing a live streaming – advise the time, date and topic in advance, and across multiple channels.
2. Have a hashtag
Organise questions, comments and feedback through a unifying hashtag, which can also be used across multiple channels.
3. Keep introducing yourself
If not immediately obvious, every 2-3 minutes, tell everyone where you are, who you’re talking to and thank people for tuning in, for newcomers joining the stream mid-event.
4. Cross promote
Shout out other social media channels and the website throughout the stream, in order for people to follow the conversation and for more information.
5. Give a series the proper framework and structure
Set a weekly time, date and subject for any live streaming series so that people know what to expect, when and where.
6. Ask for interaction
Poll the audience and ask questions, in order to determine how the rest of the video will go, and what people want to see
7. Don’t be predictable
Build suspense and tease people about the rest of the content.
With Stories specifically, there are a few additional points to bear in mind:
1. You need to grab attention
You have seconds to grab my attention so make your content pop – keep your focus on the visual subject and make sure it is engaging.
2. Posts should be (or seem!) immediate and spontaneous
With short-exposure content like stories, it needs to be timely – immediate shares and spontaneous (or at least spontaneous seeming) messages. That’s not to say it can’t be managed and strategic – but it needs due consideration to be so.
3. The story needs to feel real
Share ‘unpolished’ raw content to create a personal/intimate feeling and be more engaging and relatable to your audience – this is not the place for professional brochure shots and ad graphics. Make sure you are authentic, personal and genuine.
4. Offer variety
Use pictures, videos, gifs, graphics (testimonials, quotes, stats, holiday greetings), screenshots (media coverage, new web content/newsletters), third party content/shares, professional photos and smartphone pictures throughout your story content to give people variety and keep them interested.
5. Use tools available to you
Options such as countdowns, polls, and questions will get much more engagement from your audience, as well as potentially giving you valuable insights into your following, and can help to evolve your communications strategy moving forward. Using emojis and filters have also been proven to encourage more engagement.
6. Maximise the life and reach of your content
Use highlights to ensure permanency – think about creating highlights in themed categories – these might be key events, tutorials, quotes, staff/customers, or product/service/brand streams, etc.
When it comes to compiling a strategy for live content and stories, it is the same principles as with all social media content. Make sure you are clear about what you want to achieve – have SMART specific objectives, deliverables, timeframes and measurement. At the same time ensure you research your audience properly, beyond the simple demographics, and use social media insights as a guide of the best times to go live, where, and how often. Once you start sharing, make sure you use your other social channels, and hashtags, to direct traffic to live content – and at the same time, let those following your live content where they can get more information (ie the website or other social channels).
Social media continues to develop and evolve at breakneck speed, so make sure you test various approaches and keep measuring and evaluating your progress and success on a regular basis. If you’d like to know more, or have any questions about live streaming, stories, or anything else related to social media, then please do drop us an email sam@footstepcommunications.com or in the comments here.
