LIVE from ELE! Livestream Tips for Beginners!

Live streaming is everywhere and, in case you haven’t noticed, the ELE team is on the bandwagon and getting the hang of it, if we do say so ourselves! So today we’re focusing on what you need to know to do a well-executed, engaging, and successful social media live stream. We’ve learned our livestream lessons the hard way, so you don’t have to, so whether you’re going for a long-planned live interview or a spontaneous burst of creative content, we have a few things for you to keep in mind. 

Planning the basics

1. Set your goals: what do you hope to achieve? 

   1. What does success look like? This can be the message of the stream itself, to attract more viewers and engagement, to sell a product, or to increase awareness around a brand or event. 

   2. It’s never a bad idea to set some benchmarks for success - how many people would you like to see viewing? When is the best time of day to attract an audience? What topics are trending? For planned live streams, consider what information your audience needs and the best way to deliver that information. 

   3. For spontaneous livestreams, you might not have detailed outcomes and a plan mapped out, but your audience should still be able to discern a reason for the live - you don’t want to be wasting anyone’s time! These kinds of impromptu live streams are best for live events (sigh, maybe next year), product/sale announcements, or other high-energy content. The focus here should be on creating energy and excitement on your feed.

2. Choose an audience: Which platform will you choose to broadcast your live? 

   1. Understand your audience on each platform and consider who will be most receptive or interested in that content. (Pro tip: using the analytics function, look at the demographics of your audience. If possible, look at the demographics from previous posts with thematically similar content).

   2. If you want to find a way to stream to multiple accounts or platforms, check out our Restream review. (Keep in mind that not all platforms are included).

   3. No matter whether you are planning out your live stream weeks ahead of time or are recording something awesome spur of the moment, consider where your audience is, considering the time of day, type of content, and what you already know about your following (analytics). 

3. And our next guest is….. 

   1. Will this perform better as a duet? Do you know relevant experts on your topic? If so, choose a guest host! Most popular social media platforms offer this feature, the exception being LinkedIn. 

4. Research: When is your audience most active?

   1. After choosing a platform (and possibly a guest host), use the analytics function of that platform to find out when your followers are online (if you have a guest host with a significant following, look at their analytics as well to find overlapping times). Check out this guide for Facebook.

Rehearse*

1. Have show notes prepared with a topic and outline for your show

   1. While you definitely want the atmosphere to be natural and conversational, it is a good idea to have a general outline to lead that conversation. (Pro tip: have links at the ready for outside resources that support your message; drop those links into the chat box for your audience to explore afterward).

2. If you have a guest host, try to find time in your schedules (we know it’s hard) to rehearse together. Especially if one (or both) of you are beginners at live streams!

*If you’re doing an impromptu livestream, make sure you’ve done it before and leave a little wiggle room for initial start-up time! 

Okay, But what could go wrong? 

1. Technical Difficulties: Live streams can be very unforgiving when you don’t have contingency plans! 

   1. Technical difficulties are all a part of the process; the most important advice is to stay calm and always have someone on standby to assist in moments of crisis. If your guest’s video is cutting out- make sure to fill the time it takes for them to return with engagement for your audience. If the tech difficulties are fatal and they cannot return, have a plan to close out without them. Briefly acknowledge the issue (so it does not become more of a distraction to your audience) and then keep the content going!

2. No one shows up (Small audience)

   1. It’s a serious disappointment when you have a small turnout to your live stream. You worked hard, invested time, and you have amazing content to share: people need to see this. Record your live stream and post it on your social media, YouTube, and/or website. Most social media platforms offer the ability to record and save your live stream at the beginning. While other broadcasting platforms like Restream have recording features that save your live streams automatically and store them for a limited time, available for download (must have “Standard” Plan or better to access recordings).

   2. Engage the audience that you do have. A smaller audience isn’t a complete loss as it gives you more time to engage with them. Prompt for reactions, comments, and questions; take your time and give personalized and thoughtful responses. Make the experience even more personalized by stating their name or account handle when you engage them. (Pro tip: Have your audience introduce themselves in the chat! Ask them to comment their name, where they are from, and a fun question like: ‘if you could have any superpower, what would it be?’- break the ice and fill up the awkward time at the very beginning of your stream as you wait for people to join!).

P.S. If you’re looking for more info on virtual presentations vis-a-vis audio, video, and lighting - check out our instagram post on Speaker Prep for virtual events which covers all of the basics there!