Want to know why you should be investing more effort into video production in the not-too-distant future? Here are a few stats to convince you.
Livestream reports 81% of both general Internet and mobile-native audiences are watching more and more video every year. While that in itself is impressive, the effect of videos on audience behavior is actually more relevant.
According to the same study, 80% survey respondents said that they would rather watch a live video from a brand than read a blog – even if those two things contained the same basic information. Another 82% said that they preferred live video content from a brand to standard social media posts.
Also, 45% live video audiences say that they would gladly pay money for live, exclusive, on-demand video content delivered via an OTT (over-the-top) service like Uscreen.
Acknowledging that video content is important is one thing, doing something about that something else entirely. If you really want to create videos that are relevant, targeted and have a great recall, here are a few key things you’ll want to keep in mind.
The Art Of Live Video Production
The first thing you need to know about live streaming video production is that if you actually want people to watch, you’re going to have to promote it in advance. Yes, part of the reason why people love live video is because of the spontaneity of it all, but it really isn’t quite as off the cuff as you might think it is.
1. Use your social channels and get the word out about when you’ll be broadcasting, what you’ll be talking about and who will be involved. Tease your audience and deliver a hook about what will unfold in a way that gets people interested enough to remember to check in when the broadcast begins in the first place.
Never forget that even if you have an objectively perfect live broadcast ready to go, if people don’t actually know about it, you’re not going to have an audience.
2. Likewise, you need to understand that broadcast live streaming videos are more than just a series of talking heads droning on about a particular topic. You need to make an effort to really mix things up and use all the tools you have available, which often includes creating something of a mixed media experience to provide maximum value to everyone who has chosen to watch.
You could use a tool like Visme (which I founded) to create a presentation that can be downloaded prior to the start of the broadcast that people can follow along with. Not only will this help increase engagement, but it’ll also help provide a sense of structure to the broadcast. Or, you can pre-design sharables like Venn diagrams, charts and quotes that pop up on screen during the session.
Another awesome way to create some downloadable content is to repurpose existing presentations or blogs into vlogs. Tools like Rocketium can help you use content you have already created and make videos in just minutes.
Sure, people have tuned in to see you (or your presenters) speak, but that alone is only going to carry you so far. You need to engage as many senses within your audience as possible and falling back on the tried-but-true rules of visual communication is a perfect way to do that.
3. Finally, you need to think about your live videos the same way you would any other piece of content. Which means you need to be strategic about what your call-to-action is and where, specifically, it’s located,
For the best results, include actionable CTAs at a few different points within the video. This is necessary because your audience will probably not watch the entire session.
Regardless of what type of action you want someone to take, a call-to-action at the beginning, mid-way, and at the end of a video will usually get the job done.
The Future Of Marketing Is Live
Live video is a trend that certainly isn’t going away anytime soon. Not that you would want it to. It’s already proven to increase engagement in general and help empower other marketing activities on sites like Facebook and Twitter. Those effects are only going to get more powerful with time.
Keep best practices we discussed in mind and you’ll quickly find that all of your live video sessions are every bit as popular – and effective – as you hoped they would be.
Payman Taei is the founder of Visme, an easy-to-use online tool to create engaging presentations, infographs, and other forms of visual content. He is also the founder of HindSite Interactive, an award-winning Maryland digital agency, specializing in website design, user experience, and web app development.
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