Content marketing is important regardless of what niche your business is in. It is producing content to attract your target market to your business and includes:
- Blogging
- Guest blogging
- Posting press releases
- Social media posts
- Quote images
- Infographics
- Recorded videos
- Live videos
One of the best ways to practice content marketing is to create live videos, in part because it allows you to repurpose your text content for a richer experience.
Even better, Facebook loves it when their users record live videos. They love it so much that if you start a live stream and broadcast for longer than a few minutes, Facebook starts building an audience for you. All you have to do is show up!
There are four different ways you can go live using Facebook and it’s important to understand your options before you start your first broadcast…
Streaming Live from Your Personal Facebook Profile
You can live stream right from your personal profile inside Facebook. After you’ve been live for a few minutes, Facebook will begin notifying your friends that you’re live. If your video is set to public then anyone can watch it, including people you aren’t friends with.
Going live on your Facebook profile is good when you have something personal to share that your friends and family may want to know. These situations could include pregnancy announcements, wedding details, family reunions, and other more personal information.
Broadcasting from Your Business Page
If you want to share content about your products or services, or more generally educate your audience, then you should broadcast from your business page on Facebook. When you broadcast to a Facebook page, there are no privacy settings so anyone can pop in and watch your video.
As with live streaming from your profile, Facebook will begin notifying your community that you’re live on video. If you have followers that have signed up for notifications, they’ll be alerted the moment you begin streaming.
One advantage of streaming from your page is that you can boost the video with an ad, helping you to reach more of your market. So if you’re live streaming as a strategy to grow your audience, a business page is the way to go.
Going Live Inside a Facebook Group
Another option for live streaming is broadcasting inside a group. If a group is closed, only you and your group members will be able to see your live streams. This can be useful if you use Facebook groups to coach clients or share product launch details with affiliates in advance.
But make sure to check before you broadcast in a group! If the group is set to “Open” that means that anyone who finds the group can watch your live stream. So if you’ll be creating content that you aren’t ready for the world to see quite yet, you’ll want to adjust the privacy settings of your group.
Broadcasting from an Event
You can also use live streaming on an event page. This is a great way to engage your online followers if you’re hosting an offline event like a seminar or conference.
But you can also live stream if your event is a digital one. For example, you could broadcast the launch of your latest product or kick off a virtual conference with a Facebook Live video.
Keep in mind that events can be set to public or private and cannot be changed within Facebook. That means if you want to live stream during a private event, no one else but your attendees will be able to see your videos. So if you want the world to see your broadcasts, make sure that your event is set to public before you go live.
Some Final Thoughts
Facebook Live is a great way to build your audience. For maximum benefit, remember to aim for at least 15 minutes and be ready to interact with your viewers as they leave comments. I know this can be distracting, but it makes the video more engaging. If you have a large audience, it might be a good idea to have someone moderate comments for you. They can answer comments on their own and pass on the more juicy or complex question on to you to answer during the live broadcast.
It is also a good idea to monitor the comments for a day or two after, since those who watch the broadcast after it is no longer live, might also post questions in the comment area.
