Do you think live Streaming is for special moments sharing or communicating with distant relatives? Nowadays, it is much more than that. With social media platforms improving their live streaming services, live streaming has evolved. It is now a marketing strategy used by brands and businesses in nearly every industry. A research by AYTM suggests that 89% of people who watch live streams have watched content from brands at least once.

Real-time connection

Streaming enables brands to reach customers in a genuine channel in a way they were not capable before. Live streaming gives you the ability to be reactive and transparent. The real-time connection is indeed interactive and transparent. It also allows people to ask questions which are responded to in improvisation, thus authentic. For customers, these benefits build trust that cannot be formed through traditional channels. The result is a stronger connection between customers and businesses.

Rich content

Rich content is another advantage of live streaming. It does not require a high amount of time and money for capturing and editing. However, live videos can still capture consumers’ interest, a much as videos on-demand. Besides, live streaming offers rich tangible content without needing any annoying ads.

Global and social media enabled

Streaming can reach a worldwide audience thanks to the widespread use of social media. It may help small businesses to find clients without geographical limits. For example, one of the most successful live stream videos drew 162 million viewers in both live and replay counts. It was created by a woman who simply wanted to share her experiences. This shows that businesses aware of their target markets and groups can effectively use live stream marketing.

Contents of live streaming

• Events: live streaming can be used for any kind of events. It helps to give immediate information about what’s happening while generating a big audience. One of the event types that live streaming changed via social media platforms is webinars. Streaming enables webinars to be held free. Nowadays, smartphones are good enough to hold webinars by eliminating expensive recording devices. This advancement will cause webinars to spread, and more participants across the world will benefit from them.
• Behind the scenes: another way to use live streaming is to show users the “behind the scenes” of something they normally wouldn’t have access to.
• Product creation phase: customers typically cannot see how the products are created. With live streaming, it is possible to show how the assembly process takes place. This may enhance the value of the product in customers’ eyes. This technique can be applied to services as well as products.
• Q&A Sessions: this way of communicating is great because you are showing people that you care about their opinions and thoughts. Points that are not understood by the customers are clarified in such a way.

Live Stream Platforms

Businesses are using live streaming more and more in order to reach the masses. Since live streaming is getting popular, competition increases. Following are some of the biggest platforms you can use.

• Facebook Live: it currently leads the live stream Big brands unveil new products, conduct Q&A Sessions and stream major events on Facebook. Although it does not have many exclusive features, Facebook Live is so appealing thanks to the network’s global penetration.
• Instagram Live: it allows you to stream live video content within Instagram Stories. The moment you go live, notifications are sent to all followers. After 24 hours, the video expires just like Instagram Stories, which helps your live stream feel unique. Instagram Stories have recently overtaken Snapchat, the most popular platform among millennials. Therefore, if your targets are aged up to 30, it is the perfect platform. Both to organize live company events or Q&A Sessions.
• Periscope: owned by social media giant Twitter since 2015, Periscope allows you the record live videos without time limits. Professional directors might prefer Periscope to Facebook because of GoPro integration. Periscope also allows you to sketch during the live This is great if you are recording an explainer video, for example. Like Instagram, Periscope live videos are deleted after 24 hours, creating a rush feeling for customers to watch them.
• YouTube Live: with more than one billion total users, YouTube is a huge platform which is also connected to Google accounts. YouTube Live provides opportunities to broadcast live games, music, and Therefore, if your company has a certain number of followers, there are up to a billion people to reach. Keep in mind that there is a minimum subscriber amount required to stream on YouTube.

In Conclusion

Live stream marketing opens new perspectives that bring customers to companies. Thanks to live streams, customers now have access to information they did not have before. About production processes, behind the scenes and any event. These were not possible otherwise, due to physical constraints. Having said all of this, the most important thing is how much your followers engage with your brand. Having tons of followers, but little to no engagement, might lead to not so valuable live streams.

Author: N. Serkan Atalay
Graphics: Zhanar Zhengisbay

The post Why Livestreams is Key for Today’s Marketing appeared first on Craftoon Video Marketing Blog.