Increase awareness for your brand and/or business by using it! Putting yourself online, especially in a Live format, can be daunting, to say the least. If you’re nervous about doing your first Instagram Live, here are 10 simple tips to make it a bit easier.
Before you click on the Live setting on Instagram, there’s a bit of prep work we’d recommend you do to set yourself up for success.
This seems like a simple thing to remember to do, but you’d be surprised how many people forget. There’s nothing worse than having to stop mid-conversation from grabbing a phone charger. If you have an older phone model, it may be useful to have your charger close by before you go live on Instagram. The live feature on Instagram can drain your phone battery quickly.
We highly recommend purchasing a phone stand with a ring light. Especially if you do many zoom calls or if Instagram Live will be a part of your social media strategy. We use the Ubeesize 10″ Selfie Ring Light from Amazon. It comes with a remote and multiple lighting settings.
Consistent lighting makes a world of difference when you’re going Live. It’s one of our favourite tricks to make our skin look flawless. There’s a reason why professional photographers use this type of lighting for portraits and glamour shots. A ring light blurs and minimizes blemishes while reducing shadows in the face.
It can be nerve-wracking the first time you go Live on Instagram. Ask for moral support from close friends and followers beforehand. Give them a few questions to ask you directly in the Live to have audience engagement, no matter what. This will not only help you stay on track with the subject you’re talking about but will help you communicate the main points you want to make.
It’s always a good idea to create preview content about your upcoming Instagram Live. Post to your feed with the date and time one week before the Live event. Include information such as the date, time, guests (if you’re having someone join) and the topics you’ll be discussing. In your Instagram stories, use the countdown sticker to remind your followers daily to tune in.
Make sure you check how strong your wifi connection is beforehand. If you have areas in the location you’re going Live from with a weak signal, don’t set yourself up in that spot. You’re going to need a strong signal to stream your session without interruption.
Now that you’ve done the prep-work to make sure you’re set up for success, it’s time to go Live.
Before you jump into the topic of your Live, give your viewers about 5 minutes to join. It can take some time for followers to see the notification that you’re Live in their feeds. Not to mention, the people who are notoriously late for everything. You want to make sure everyone has a chance to hear the full message you’re about to deliver. While you’re waiting for everyone to join, you can kill time by saying “Hi” to your viewers as they join. Let them know that you’ll be starting the discussion in 5-minutes.
It’s essential to give a summary of what you’re talking about in the Instagram Live. And not just at the beginning, but throughout the entire duration of the session. You may have people join halfway through, so it’s a good idea to remind viewers of your topic. A simple way of doing this is by saying, “welcome to the followers who just tuned in, we’re talking about XYZ today.”
This can be a hard one, especially when nerves kick in. Attention spans are not that long on social media. If you’ve captured someone’s interest based on the topic you’re presenting, make sure you keep it by staying on message. While it can be tempting to comment on other distractions or trends, viewers will often disengage when you do this.
There are two types of viewers; active and passive. You want to encourage any follower that’s watching your Instagram Live to be an active viewer. The engagement rate is the most important metric on any social media platform. By regularly asking viewers to comment or respond, you’re increasing your engagement rate and making them feel like they are a part of the conversation. Ask your audience questions such as “we want to hear from you, let us know what you think of XYZ in the comments.”
Instagram Live is one of the best ways to instantly engage your audience and communicate with them in real-time. Follow these 10 simple tips to create the best experience for your followers and friends.
Do you still have questions about Instagram Live? Send us an email. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible with additional info or resources that will help you create the best social media strategy for your brand and/or business.
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