The online live streaming industry has experienced impressive growth over the years. For instance, it had a 99% year-over-year growth from April 2019 to April 2020. Now more than ever before, live video is important for brands and publishers. And we’ve seen many brands starting to add this content type to their marketing strategy in 2021, hosting virtual panels or conferences.
If they want to expand their reach and increase the number of views, the best “recipe” is to stream a live video on social media. More than 3 billion people are active on social media platforms around the world, meaning that there is an opportunity to engage at least a portion of this audience and draw them to your brand.
It’s been proven that live videos perform better on social media than other posts. In fact, 82% of respondents say they would rather watch a live stream than go through a brand’s social media posts. This is probably because broadcasts are able to establish a more personal connection than any other medium. The speaker is right there and customers can ask them any question they want or watch an event in real-time.
So, if you want to engage your audience, going live on social media is the solution. Here are four most popular social media live streaming apps your brand should try out!
Facebook Live
Facebook remains one of the most widely used social media networks around the world, with almost 3 billion active users. That is why brands are rushing to develop their Facebook content strategy. In fact, there are more than 200 million small businesses relying on the app to promote their products or services.
Apart from traditional posts, Facebook offers a live feature to brands looking to give a behind-the-scenes tour of their company or simply broadcast a product launch. According to numerous reports, the feature is quite popular among Facebook users, making this platform one of the best social media live streaming apps.
A few years ago, Facebook’s live video view count increased to 2 billion viewers. Influencers, publishers, or brands — almost everyone has jumped on the Facebook Live bandwagon. Those who haven’t will surely follow suit as well!
Why?
Well, according to Facebook, live videos on the app generate six times as many interactions as traditional videos. People are more likely to leave comments and share your live streams with their friends and family because of the unique experience broadcasts create.
So, if you’re looking for social media live streaming apps, Facebook is a platform that can expose your brand to a broader audience.
Instagram Live
As 2020 came to a close, Instagram had more than one billion users around the world. This was a massive milestone for the app that proves its staying power. Instagram isn’t going anywhere, and it is high time your business joins the platform and leverage its features to raise brand awareness and expand reach!
As an app, Instagram is a perfect choice for businesses. You can create a fun Boomerang, post Instagram Stories that will disappear in 24 hours, host video series on IGTV, or simply go live to engage your audience. This is already being done by 71% of US businesses using Instagram every day. This makes it one of the most popular social media live streaming apps out there!
Once you go live, Instagram will send a notification to all of your followers to tune it. This creates the fear of missing out, which is a powerful tool in marketing. People are afraid to miss out on an experience which is readily available to others. This prompts them to watch your live streams and see what you’ve prepared to reveal to them.
What’s more, Instagram Live is a solid streaming solution. It enables you to test your content ideas and get immediate feedback from your audience. Your viewers can comment or react with emojis in real-time. And if you address them during the live stream, they might feel as close to your brand as never before!
In case you’re already leveraging Instagram Live, here are two other social media live streaming apps perfect for your business.
LinkedIn Live
LinkedIn is a business-oriented social network that is quite popular among B2B companies. In fact, 74% of B2B marketers say that LinkedIn is the most effective social channel for their brand, according to one report.
Furthermore, LinkedIn is also a platform where B2B companies encounter the largest and most engaged audience. Therefore, live even streaming on LinkedIn is a sure-fire way of connecting with a broad network of professionals and increasing your brand’s visibility.
Unlike other social networks, LinkedIn enables only approved broadcasts to go live. You basically need to submit a request to do a live stream, and you’ll receive an approval email or in-app notification from the platform. This might sound like a hassle, but it is actually quite worth it.
Namely, LinkedIn Live videos get seven times more reactions and 24 times more comments than native video published by the same broadcasters. That’s why it should be one of the go-to social media live streaming apps for you! The high comment rate shows how engaged people are during live streams, which prompts them to interact with the participants.
This live streaming feature launched in February 2019, but it took off in 2020 as companies looked for alternative ways to connect. Last year, the number of LinkedIn Live videos increased 89% from March to June alone! So, if your company wants to share that hard-earned wisdom, try out LinkedIn Live!
TikTok Live
TikTok has experienced a huge growth in the past few years, especially in 2020. The app now has almost 700 million monthly active users, trailing behind Instagram. Just to give you an idea of how “big” TikTok is compared to other apps, it took Instagram about five years from its launch to attract the same amount of monthly active users as TikTok did in under three years. Therefore, we had to include the platform with other social media live streaming apps!
Going live on TikTok is the perfect way to grow your audience. This feature enables you to share more of your brand through a long-form video. Additionally, it lets you connect with your customers in real-time. You can ask and answer questions, share valuable advice, reveal more information about your upcoming products, and engage with your followers on a whole other level.
TikTok users spend an average of 52 minutes per day on the app. Chances are they might come across your live stream and decide to explore your brand further. It is a known fact that live videos perform better than traditional videos on the internet. This is true on TikTok as well. So, continue publishing creative content on the app, but make sure to go live here and there to build an even stronger connection with your audience.
Going Live Is the Future!
No matter which social media live streaming platform or app you choose, remember that the work doesn’t stop after you end your live broadcast. Save your content so you can repurpose it later and showcase it to viewers who were not able to tune in during the broadcast. Many social media apps enable you to save your live video on your profile for this reason. Use this to your advantage!
As you continue making traditional videos, don’t forget to explore live streams as well. After all, going live is the future!
