How to Incorporate Facebook Live in Your Social Media Marketing

Over the past year, video has taken the content marketing world by storm.

The visual nature of videos allows users to process information with greater speed and clarity than they can via written content. Thus the growing prevalence of video is showing no signs of slowing down, especially when you consider these video marketing statistics.

As a marketer, it's becoming increasingly important that you learn how to take advantage of video to help your business increase sales by turning fair-weather visitors into loyal customers. Thankfully, you can create engaging live-streaming videos on the most used social networking platform on the planet with Facebook Live.

In this post, you'll learn:

What exactly Facebook Live is and why you should use it to promote your businessHow to effectively establish yourself as an influencer via live video marketingHow to recycle content in conjunction with the use of Facebook Live to maximize ROIHow you can use video to unveil new products or record ongoing classes conducted by your businessHow you can make stronger connections with your audience by humanizing your brand through live streaming videos

In a nutshell, Facebook Live lets users stream (you guessed it) live video content straight from their profiles, similar to other live-streaming apps Periscope and Meerkat.

The advantage Facebook Live has over the competition however, lies in its inherent ability to share your videos with your own personal connections.

Unlike other apps where you have to invite viewers to sign up to the live-streaming platform, Facebook Live videos go straight into the feeds of your family and friends, making it far easier to deliver your visual content.

However, the biggest draw of Facebook Live as it pertains to business, is the chance to humanize your brand on a large scale. By regularly updating your fans and followers through video, you can create a more intimate relationship with them, and that helps increase engagement and fuel discussion.

If you want to enjoy the benefits that Facebook Live affords for your business but don't know where to start, consider this post as your crash course on what kinds of videos you need produce for your social media marketing.

People gravitate towards influencers whose fingers are on the pulse of their respective industry. They produce content that resonates with the needs and wants of their target market, which helps establish their influence. If you're a subject matter expert and you want to share information for the benefit of your audience, Facebook Live can be a great way to disseminate said information.

An example of promoting thought leadership through Facebook Live is tech evangelist Robert Scoble. Considered one of the leading voices in the industry, Scoble regularly uses Facebook's live-streaming feature to share exciting news and developments.

In the above video, Scoble takes his audience into a futuristic retail store by interviewing the founder and touring the place at the same time. The topic fits within the theme he covers on his Facebook Page, so the video content helps in building his reputation as a thought leader in his field.

Another good example of this is Doreen Virtue, a self-proclaimed 'fairyologist'. While Virtue's target market is very niche, she uses live-stream videos to share prayers and meditations with her highly targeted audience. And the results are stunning – her videos average at least 100,000 views, 1,000 comments, and 1,000 likes.

Don't be afraid to to be yourself. You'll need to be genuine to help your audience associate you as a thought leader.Refine your niche to get the audience you want. Specialize in a topic that has more demand than supply and is within your expertise. Also, don't forget to consider the size of the audience you can attract with your live streams.Newsjack and stay on top of trends. Publish your thoughts about trending topics and breaking news related to your niche and ask viewers to comment on your live stream to increase engagement.

Content repurposing is a technique that will enables you to recycle old content by sprucing it up and making it salient by changing the presentation format. In this case, you can repurpose your old blog posts into Facebook Live videos.

If you have existing content that didn't receive the traction you were expecting, you may want to record a video discussing it in depth to your followers live. You can break down the content into subtopics that can hopefully spur on some discussions on Facebook Live. You can then create the videos for the other subtopics on the succeeding days, with the intention of bringing attention to your blog post. Just be sure to mention the link to your actual post at the end of the stream so viewers can visit it for more information.

Or, if you're feeling contrary, you could flip this scenario…

Create a new video on Facebook Live and promote it by writing a blog post.

You can even transcribe the video to give your audience more incentive to visit your blog post, in case they missed certain parts of the video at the time of publication.

Another neat repurposing tactic is to stream your webinars and podcasts on Facebook Live. You can stream yourself while conducting a webinar on a different platform. From Facebook Live, you can encourage viewers to join your ongoing webinar or get a closer look at your podcast session.

Once the Facebook Live stream is finished, you can then direct viewers to download a copy of your podcast or webinar.

Best-selling author Carol Tuttle leverages Facebook Live alongside her podcast on Blog Talk Radio. She broadcasts on both platforms and uploads the podcast for download on iTunes. In order to make both pieces of content unique, Carol shows the link to her iTunes subscription and the number that viewers can call during the show in her Facebook Live video.

Be creative with your content to make it more shareable.Find ways to use different content types within Facebook Live to maximize results.Don't forget to link between different content mediums so your audience can easily access additional information.

If your business is about selling lessons or sessions, you can set up the Facebook Live stream to give viewers an inside glimpse at what your classes are really like.

Fitness expert Christine Dwyer put her Turbo Kick live workout session on Facebook Live. She made sure to set the camera in such a way that it would capture the reflection of all of the participants performing the moves. For a fitness coach like Christine, this is an exceptionally effective way to show viewers the kind of programs she organizes.

For brands selling products, you can use Facebook Live to show audiences exactly how your products work. Make an unboxing video, detail the product and show it off.

This is a great way to give your audience how your services work, which, in turn, could convince them to become your students or customers in the future.

Show everything about your product or service. Don't hide or withdraw information, instead give a full account of what your product can or cannot do.Don't be afraid to take criticism on the fly. There are always going to be haters and you may get some critical remarks during live streams. Remember to keep your head on your shoulders, and respond respectfully to avoid escalating the issue.

The best way to get into your customer's head on social media may not be what you think.

"Don't focus on the brand, instead, shed light on the people that run the business."

It's much more efficient to give viewers a behind the scenes look at how your company operates by showing who's involved in the process.

You can walk through a normal day at work on Facebook Live, introducing viewers to the different members of your team. You could even go further by live-streaming events like product launches, parties, and team building exercises.

An example of an effective Facebook Live video that allows viewers to peek behind the curtain is the first episode of the "Chasing Daylight" video by Refinery29. Host Lucie Fink not only describes the global initiative of the concept, but is also candid enough to give viewers a glimpse of the people working on the project.

The video also observed some of the best practices used in the live video regarding engaging and acquainting its viewers.

The purpose of showing viewers the kind of brand you are through the people working with you is to bridge the gap between you and your audience. When consumers are able see the people who put the work into building and developing the products and services you provide, they're able to better connect with the human element, the people behind the business, which can help build stronger ties to your community.

Ask people to perform actions for you. Tell them to like something that was mentioned in the video ("Thumbs up if you like Hamilton!") and ask them to share their comments.Make your engagement personable. Mention the names of users who commented on the video to make them feel a part of the live streamBe spontaneous. Sometimes, having a script to follow makes the video feel forced. To truly make a connection, you need to embrace the spontaneous nature of live streaming and just be your genuine self.

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Original source: How to Incorporate Facebook Live in Your Social Media Marketing.
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