Instagram live streams are the best way to really talk to your followers and boost brand engagement. But there lies the question, what should your live stream be about? In this article, we discuss the different types of broadcasts you could do with the different features that Instagram has.
Many viewers love the rawness and spontaneity of live stream videos. They really help boost brand engagement and show authenticity too! I’ve probably said this plenty of times, but these live streams can feel very much like a video call with a friend which makes viewers want to stay and watch.
As Instagram continues to grow as a platform, it has also targeted several businesses. When creating an account, you may choose to create a business profile as an influencer, or even a shop or brand! As a business shop account on Instagram, there are several useful features that you can use to boost customer engagement and ultimately, your purchases.
Instagram has over 1 billion active users a month and is one of the top social media platforms. With Instagram, it’s easy to put out a wide variety of content such as videos (of up to an hour long) and images. As people’s attention spans seem to have grown short, it’s important to capture their attention quickly too. That’s where live streams may be the key for you.
Instagram boosts and promotes your live stream to your followers! When you’ve gone live, your account has gained a spot right at the front of your followers’ row of Instagram stories. There’s even a special ring around your icon to indicate that you’re currently broadcasting live! Not only that, but your followers also get a notification that your account has gone live!
Table of contents:
Types of livestreams
Auctions
Several businesses on Instagram even hold auction events or time-sensitive sales for their customers!
Each item is usually assigned a unique keyword or product code. When demonstrating and showing your product, prompt your viewers to comment the code of the product if they wish to purchase it.
Ask me anything
Instagram is pretty well known for it’s interactive story features such as polls, quizzes and even rating sliders! They definitely didn’t disappoint with their interactive feature for live streams as well.
When you’re live on Instagram, your viewers can send in questions separately from the comment section! This turns your live stream into a “Q&A” session and your followers will get a new notification about it.
When the question is clicked on, the question sticker is shown (together with the account of the user who asked the question) on the bottom of the screen at the comment section. This can help your viewers feel recognised and, in a sense, honoured to have been a part of the live broadcast.
With this feature, the comments and questions are submitted separately which makes it easier for the host to navigate through the live stream. These Q&A sessions can really help your audience know more about you as an influencer or brand. This in turn may lead to them forming a connection and loyalty as well.
Educational
Live streams can be a platform to educate your followers on a certain topic and discuss it. For example, for our recent live stream on Instagram, we taught a little bit about the symbolism in tarot cards.
Furthermore, if you wish to invite a guest who is also well-versed in the topic, Instagram has also made it easier for you! When you’ve gone live, you can also invite a viewer to be live with you on the same stream! Alternatively, they can also request to be in the live as well. This allows you to have guests without having to physically be in the same space.
Additionally, this brings followers from both profiles to watch the live stream! In the top left corner, Instagram will indicate the two profiles that are currently broadcasting and viewers can click to view their profiles.
As mentioned previously, you can also use the Q&A stickers to your advantage here as well.
Other Instagram live features
Previously, we have mentioned how instagram allows you to have a Q&A session and also invite other viewers to join the live stream.
During a live stream, you can also use face filters that you have saved. If you’re live streaming a particular event or campaign, you might consider creating a face filter to upload on to Instagram. From there, you can promote it during your broadcast as well.
In the comment section, you can also have a pinned comment so that it doesn’t get swept away and lost. This pinned comment can be used as a header for the topic being discussed at the time for viewers who have just joined in.
You can also opt to turn off the comments section or filter certain keywords.
During the broadcast, you can also share images/videos from your gallery to your viewers.
Saving the live stream
When the broadcast has ended, you have a few options on how you want the footage to be stored.
- Posted on to IGTV for your viewers to easily find and replay the stream
- However, live comments will no longer be available
- Save the video to your camera roll
- You can then bring the footage over to an editing software if you wish to do so
- Delete the footage
Most of the time, Instagram live streams are uploaded to IGTV for the convenience of the viewers. Those who have missed out on the live stream can also rewatch it in their own time.
I think that it’s also important to note that not everyone will join in your stream from start to end. Because of this, do try to reiterate what you’re doing or talking about during the stream to keep your viewers in the loop as well! You can also check your profile insights to determine a good time for your live stream to be broadcasted. Keep in mind that Instagram limits your live streams to a duration of 1 hour and you’ll get a 2 minute countdown timer before you stream is cut off. But don’t worry, you can always start another stream as a part two and continue where you left off!
Instagram truly is one of the best platforms to engage with your audience and they have made it really easy for you to do so too. There are multiple features within the live stream for you to utilise to ensure maximum interaction between you and your viewers.
One of the key features of live streams has to be the personalisation and interactiveness of it. Be sure to involve your viewers and prompt them to participate as well. Be it by leaving a comment, sending a question, liking the stream or even requesting to join the broadcast.
While Instagram broadcasts are usually done from a phone, you can also make it look slightly more professional with a DSLR camera. If you’re looking to host a professional Instagram live stream, you can also reach out to professionals to help you achieve that.
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