Professional Live Streaming : When, Where, and Why Do It
Live streaming has made a serious splash in the video and event production industry in the last few years. The streaming industry is estimated to reach $70.05 Billion by 2021. If you’re a professional marketer worth your salt, its likely live streaming your next event is on your radar. The following helps break down what all professional live streaming entails, when it’s appropriate, and how it can be your next most brilliant marketing feat.
Marketers, Event Planners, and Coordinators Alike…
Close your eyes and imagine: The biggest corporate event of the year is around the corner. You’re working furiously at locking down killer keynote speakers, working on signage, badges, lunches, venues, and countless other “must have’s” to make this event a success. You’re busy, and that’s an understatement. To add video or professional live streaming is just one more COG which seems unfathomable, but hey, hear us out on this one. To make your event a success there is one last thing that cannot be forgotten: what comes OUT of your event is just as important as what goes into it!
Step 1: Get Ready, Get Set…. Go LIVE!
For professional live streaming to be a success, pre-planning is a must. Facebook Live is really cool, but sometimes the iPhone footage just doesn’t cut it. The takeaway here is to have that conversation with your marketing and events team well in advance. Live streaming events can have extremely positive ROI, but if the budget conversation hasn’t happened, the stream probably isn’t happening either. A great first step for marketers and event planners looking to learn a bit more about live streaming would be to check out our Buyer’s Guide to Live Streaming. Going through this key information to your team will help set your preparations and live stream up for success.
Step 2: Select an Appropriate Solution
Live streaming can be complicated and expensive. It can also be painless and free. It can also fall anywhere in between! Live streaming is a flexible beast. The key is to determine what your goals are, what your budget is, and select the best solution.
67% of viewers say quality is the most important factor when watching a livestream broadcast. That said, not every situation calls for professional live streaming from an agency. Many times streaming from an iPhone to Facebook Live can be a great solution! There are lots of free options online and its certainly possible to have smaller scale live stream success without engaging a professional live streaming agency. For larger productions and events that require higher quality though, there might be better options.
There are a few main questions to consider. First, the cost is substantially higher than free, so a budget talk with your team is probably a good place to start. Second, determine whether you want a public or private CDN. Third, evaluate what kind of bandwidth options are available at your desired location for your professional live stream. Fourth, call around! Ask the pro’s all your questions – We promise we don’t mind.
Step 3: The Big Win Win
As we’ve discussed in a lot of previous blogs, a lot of video we capture isn’t just about capturing your event for the sake of it, it’s investing in the collateral that your marketing team/internal teams can employ for future success. If you’ve read this far, I’m sure you’re looking for some stats on this topic, and for that I’d highly suggest taking a look at Hubspot’s Video Marketing Stats here, but just to summarize some good points, “Marketers who use video grow revenue 49% faster than non-video users” (Aberdeen, 2015), and “51.9% of marketing professionals worldwide name video as the type of content with the best ROI” (Adobe, 2015).
Professional live streaming can do more than allow folks who couldn’t attend in person to virtually attend or watch it later. It also provides so much collateral to promote your next event, assist with marketing campaigns, or provide internal/external tools to your team. It helps widen your audience now, and in the future is available to customers, followers, attendees, and even your employees.
Perhaps your attendees are dispersed around the country, or world… Well, why not open a private live stream in which you can promote to add to your bottom line of attendee viewership and attendance? Or maybe your speakers are touching on subjects that not only inform the attendee audience, but could also benefit your team or future hires? Are we starting to turn the wheels a bit on what you can do to really get the most out of your event?
So, while you’re planning those lunch options… munch on this information and keep us in mind for your next event☺.
Have you had any experiences with professional live streaming lately that could inform this conversation? Please share in the comments section below!
