What Is Livestreaming?
Livestreaming is transmitting live video footage over the internet to an active audience. Livestreaming is available on a number of social media platforms – the most popular being Facebook, Youtube, Twitter and Instagram. Live video marketing is used by some of the biggest brands in the world, including Starbucks, Mashable, Buzzfeed, Dunkin Donuts, Sephora and numerous others. Just like on hold marketing, it’s all about catching customers attention while keeping them entertained.
So, why go live? Livestreaming adds two unique elements to your video content – urgency and interactivity. Here are 7 tips for successful livestream marketing:
Show, Don’t Tell
Don’t use a livestream to tell people about your products or services – show them what you sell being used. This will be much more powerful, visually interesting and engaging for the viewer. Also, show people who you are and what your culture is about. You’re not delivering a polished advertisement, so your livestream shouldn’t be overly scripted or sales-oriented.
Promote Your Livestream & Consider Incentives
If you don’t advertise your livestream your customers won’t know to tune in and watch it. So, finalise the date and time of your livestream and let your customers know when they should tune in by sending out an email and posting on your social media accounts. If you want reach that goes beyond your existing followers, consider advertising your livestream in popular media that your target market consumes.
You also need to consider why your audience should tune in. What do they get out of watching it? Although livestreaming takes place in one specific moment, it should be part of an overarching strategy. You should also consider offering your audience an incentive for watching your live video. This could be a raffle, exclusive content, discounts, free samples, prizes or loyalty points (dependant on your business type).
Keep It Real
Hopefully, your livestream will reach a wide audience – and this means your content needs to be easily digestible. You don’t want to alienate your viewers. Aim for easily digestible content that shows the authentic, spontaneous and human side of your brand. Make sure that you understand your audience – including their needs and interests – and consider how you can connect with them. Building a connection with your audience is much more important than just pushing a product.
Consider having guest appearances from people who are complimentary to your business (like partners, influencers, experts etc.) – this can lend credibility, expertise and freshness to your brand.
Encourage Participation & Include a Call to Action
One of the great things about livestreaming is that your audience can interact with your during the stream via emojis and comments. Make sure to invite people to comment, ask questions and request content during the stream. This direct contact with your audience is great for building brand loyalty and ensuring viewer satisfaction. Pay attention to the way your viewers interact with your video – what do they say and how do they say it? – and use this to determine the content in your future livestreams.
In terms of your call to action (CTA), you should never end a livestream without telling the audience what they should do next. Whether you are releasing a product, inviting them to the next stream, telling them how to claim a discount/offer or asking for user generated content – there needs to be a defined next step.
The information in this post is adapted from Convince and Convert, Marketing Week and Business News Daily. If you have any questions about effective phone marketing for your business, especially in the form of on hold messages, please Contact Smart On Hold today. We are the on hold marketing experts in Australia.