How to Get Started LiveStreaming

(It is cheaper & easier than you think!)

Are you using Live Video and LiveStreaming to promote your business online? Learn how to get started LiveStreaming!

Live video and LiveStreaming is more important in today’s world of social media than ever before. This article will walk you through why you should be using Live Video for your business, the choices of Live Video platforms, ideas and examples for you to go-live on & how to get started for less than $75.

Why LiveStreaming is Important for YOUR Business

• A significant 61% of marketers plan on using live video services such as Facebook Live and Periscope, and 69% want to learn more about live video. (Source: SME Industry Report grab your report FREE) 
• The equivalent of 110 years of live video is watched on Periscope every day. (Source)
• Facebook users watch 8 billion videos per day. (Source)

How to Go Live: Facebook, Instagram & Periscope

The strategy to Go-Live is simple – start with a compelling title to entice your viewers to want to join in live with you, have 2-3 topics to discuss while you are live, end with a clear call-to-action.

Facebook Live

Scheduling a live video in Facebook is a little tricky, but I will walk you through the steps. First, you need to ensure you are an admin of the page you want to go live on. Next, you need to navigate to the Publishing Tools and then click on video library. You will see the +Live button this is where you will go to schedule your live video directly in Facebook. You will get a pop-up with additional information, but simply need to click next.

The next pop-up will allow you to enter what you plan to discuss on your live video, including a Video Title and Tags.

To schedule the Live Video click the down arrow next to the Go Live button and you can schedule your live video for a future date and time. In addition, you can create a custom image to share with your followers.

Use BeLive.tv to Schedule Your Facebook Live Broadcast

Think the above process is too complicated?

There is an easier way to schedule your Facebook Live broadcast using a free platform BeLive.tv. In order to get started with BeLive.tv you need to login using your Facebook account. Once you have done this you will have the option to create a Q/A broadcast or a Face to Face Interview Broadcast. Determine which works best for what you plan to do on your Facebook Live. From this point you need to enter the text you want to share with your followers about what you plan to discuss live and the email address you want to receive notifications. Pick your page you want to go live to and schedule the date and time. You can also upload an custom image, but it is not required.

 Instagram

To get started with Instagram Live, go to your Home Screen and select “Your Story” (with the + sign next to it on the top left)

This will take you to your Instagram Stories, where you can choose from the following options; Live, Normal, Boomerang, Rewind, or Hands-Free. To go live on Instagram choose the Live option. Instagram now allows you to save your Live video streams to your camera roll for re-purposing to other platforms, including your blog.

Periscope

Periscope is connected to your Twitter account and if you have a good following on Twitter you should consider going live on Periscope. It’s easy to do & follows the same basic concepts of all live videos. However, be wary of “internet trolls”. AKA “Trolls” on the interwebs that main mission is to disrupt and throw people off their game. Periscope unfortunately has a higher amount of trolls due to the larger audience. If you are looking to reach a large amount of people outside your circle Periscope is an amazing platform.

What to Go-Live About: Ideas & Examples

Are you unsure of topics or ideas to Go Live on Facebook to share with your audience? Consider the following ideas:

Behind the Scenes of Your Business

• Chat with employees or customers
• Tour the office
• Show your processes (as long as it doesn’t give all your secrets!)
• Ask your followers for feedback on new ideas or products – people love giving their feedback!

Live Question / Answer Sessions

• You have options here to host these Live broadcasts by taking live questions from your followers and bringing them online (be sure to use the Interview option) You may want to reach out to people prior to your scheduled broadcast to share the link and ensure they are prepared to come on LIVE with you.
• You can also ask for fans to submit their questions and you can Go Live to answer their questions.

Interviews with Partners and Related Industries 

• If your business has partners or related industry supporters your audience would be interested in hearing from, Live Interviews are a great way to promote and expose your followers to others they may be interested in hearing from about related topics.

Share Local Knowledge

• If you are a local business this is key tactic to gain a following. You can become the expert in your local area. Share with your audience about new businesses, your favorite coffee shop, park, ice cream shop, happy hours, etc.
• This is especially important if you know about a local “gem”. Your audience will be thrilled to be “in the know” about an amazing local spot, not everyone knows about yet!

Testimonials

•  Have raving fans? Ask them if they would be willing to go live on your Facebook page. You most likely can’t schedule this, but you can always ask. After all, it is much better when someone else boasts about your business than you saying how great you are, right?

Events

• Hosting an event? Promote it LIVE leading up to the actual event to get those who are attending excited about being there.
• Interview your special guests
• Chat with people who are attending the event
• Have sponsors? Feature them on a Live Broadcast.
• Go Live from the event venue!
• In addition, they will want to share with their friends – because we all know everything we do is better with friends!

What You Need to Go Live (and it won’t break the bank!)

You may be under the impression you need to be a video expert or have expensive video equipment in order to get started LiveStreaming, but that is not the case. You can actually get started with what you have in your possession currently, but a few small purchases will take your LiveStreaming to new levels!

We’ve all got what it takes to get started LiveStreaming in our pocket or purse. Use your iPhone or Droid doesn’t matter – both will do the job! There is no need to go buy an expensive camera, but as you progress in your LiveStreaming journey you may want to upgrade as quality does improve when you purchase high quality cameras.

Be steady! I highly recommend purchasing a tripod to ensure you have a steady video. You can grab a tripod from Amazon, but I highly recommend *Arkon Mounts – they have a variety of mounts to choose from, but a simple tripod is only $19.95 and you can save an additional 20% off when you use our discount code ERINCELL

In addition, if you are considering multi-streaming (which means to LiveStream to multiple platforms at the same time) Arkon Mounts offers a wide variety of solutions & they will work with you if you need something unique.

Get a good microphone – Great audio always beats great video! Have you ever started watching a video on Facebook and thought to yourself I want to hear this, but don’t need to see the video? This is why audio – ALWAYS – trumps video!

• Mini Lapel Microphone – Movo PM10 Deluxe Lavalier Lapel Clip-On Microphone – This is a must have if you plan to record videos in the real world. You may get away with not using one if you are at home & it’s quiet, but if you are outside, in a noisy place, in the public you really want a microphone. Just be sure you grab the adapter to make it work!Price: $17.95
• Interview Microphone – Grab this Movo Interview Microphone if you plan on doing interviews with others. Saves you from passing the mic back & forth. Price: $39.95

Please note some recommended items are affiliate links. We have tested many items and have found the recommended items to be our favorites. We would never suggest an item we haven’t tested ourselves. Affiliate links are noted with an *

About the Author:

Erin Cell, is the Founder & CEO of Socially Powered, LLC. I have been helping business owners “Power Up” their online presence since 2012. Socially Powered understands every business is unique & has different social media needs. We work together as a team to create & establish a social media strategy that works for your business.