Facebook Live can be a great way to connect with your audience. I should know: I’ve personally conducted and trained clients on numerous Facebook Live videos since its launch. People want an inside look at what you’ve got to offer as a business and brand. More and more, consumers want to relate to the brands they follow on social, and what better way than to show them face to face (digitally speaking) without edits or post-production?
If you’re planning your foray into live video or looking to up your game, here’s what you can do before, during and after your stream.
Before Going Live
There are three pillars to a killer Facebook Live video — something we like to call the three Ps: planning, promotion and practice.
• Planning out your livestream is one of the more important parts of going live. Ask yourself what value you’re providing your audience. What is it that will get them to tune in and — dun, dun, dun — stick around? Create an outline of what you plan to cover on Facebook Live and estimate the time you plan to linger on each point or section of your outline.
• Promotion is another important part of going live. Devise a series of posts in the days leading up to going live, giving a glimpse at what viewers can expect. With each new post, reveal more and more about the value viewers will get from tuning in. For example, share a tip you plan to include in the stream, then tease that there’s more to come.
• Practice makes perfect — or, at least, pretty close. We recommend recording yourself as if you were going live. If you make a mistake, just keep going. Then, roll it back to see where you may have hesitated, tripped on your words or forgot what was next in your outline. Repeat until you iron out the wrinkles in your performance.
While Going Live
Be sure to play it cool. Have some fun. Let your audience know with your actions that you’re enjoying the opportunity to connect with them by gesturing to the camera and making eye contact. Be conscious of your body language — it often says more than words can.
During a live stream, you’ll likely have commenters greeting you, engaging with you and asking questions. Take time during your stream to interact with commenters. Give them a shout out, answer their questions, and do so without skipping a beat or allowing dead air to take over. I’d suggest turning the table to ask your own questions to encourage viewers to engage in the comments section.
Remember that at any time during your stream, people will come and go. Get into the habit of greeting any newcomers and give a quick recap of what they’ve missed so far. “For those of you just joining us, welcome! We’re just showing X, Y and Z.”
Don’t get discouraged if you only have a handful of viewers watching you live; often times, a live video will get more engagement after you’ve already signed off.
After Going Live
After wrapping up, post a comment thanking your viewers for tuning in. You can even encourage more discussion by continuing the conversation with a question.
Now, you’ll want to optimize your video. Since Facebook Live videos are archived, you’ll want to give yours the best chance at getting discovered off-air. Click the ellipsis and select “Edit Video.” From here, you can add tags and a title, fill in a description, change your thumbnail, set a location and more.
Analyzing metrics is an important final step. Allow a day or two to pass, and check in on the performance of your video by navigating to “Insights” and selecting the “Videos” tab on the left-side column. Then select your live video to view metrics like viewership, reach and more. This can help inform your next live video. The more you go live and the more you analyze results, the better idea you’ll have of the date and time your streams peak.
With a little forethought, planning and practice, you can take your live stream to the next level and leave your viewers wanting more. Facebook Live is all about connecting, so make a plan, engage your audience and have a little fun while you do it.
