As of June, 2016 Facebook reported over 1.71 billion monthly active users. As you can imagine, when the company launched Facebook Live, it peaked the interest of marketers everywhere. Whether you are a B2B or B2C company, these real-time video posts can create real opportunities for your brand to engage with your audience. If your company hasn’t tried using Facebook Live yet, it might be a good time to start.

What is Facebook Live?

Facebook Live videos are real-time video posts that show up in your followers’ Facebook news feeds. Your page can broadcast in real time for up to 90 minutes. While broadcasting, your company can keep track of how many people are viewing the video, read and monitor comments and respond to them directly. Your fans can even subscribe and get notified the next time you start a live broadcast.

Facebook Live can help your brand:

Reach a wide audience.

Video is King, and there are plenty of statistics to prove it. And, Facebook has recently tweaked its news feed algorithm to prioritize live video because of research that shows users spend three times longer watching a live video compared to a pre-recorded video. This means that your brand’s video will show up on more news feeds than a typical Facebook post, and your organic reach will be much higher.

Target the right audience.

Facebook allows you to target who your live stream will reach. You can target by age, gender, language or location, so your video will reach those who are relevant.

Be more human.

Facebook Live is just another tool for you to showcase your brand’s personality. Your audience will get to know your brand better and feel better connected with live video, which will make them more likely to come back to your pages for more.

Understand your audience.

By listening to their real-time reactions and comments, your brand can test new ideas and get immediate feedback. You are also able to see the total number of people who watched at least a portion of the video, along with how many viewers you had at different points in time during the video. This information is helpful to determine when your audience is on Facebook and what they want to see.

Should my company use Facebook Live?

Facebook live can offer plenty of benefits for both B2B and B2C companies. But, with all social networks, it is important to think about where your audience lives. If you have customers, potential customers or industry peers who are active on Facebook, then Facebook Live is a great tool to use to answer questions, hear what’s on their mind and share new information with them.

For example, if your company offers business classes or workshops, you can broadcast interviews with attendees about the best tips they received during the session. As a construction company, you might broadcast a drywall installation or a walk-through of a completed project or building. If you are a restaurant, you can broadcast a “how-to” video of your chef cooking a quick and easy dish.

Live streaming is all about connecting and engaging with your audience in real time. Facebook Live breaks down barriers and creates a connection that traditional marketing cannot. So, go ahead and give it a try!

If you’ve been paying attention to the impressive Snapchat stats lately, then you know that it continues to be the hottest social platform and an invaluable resource to a brand’s overall marketing plan. Snapchat averages over 150 million users a day, recently passing Twitter, and brands are quickly beginning to jump on board and create Snapchat strategies. While Snapchat isn’t a great fit for all brands, those with young audiences and compelling visual opportunities should be considering the platform as a way to continually engage their audience. If your brand is thinking about utilizing Snapchat, keep in mind the following tips:

Plan Content. Snapchat is just like any other form of content – it has to be planned. While a lot of posting will be real-time, time sensitive and reactive due to the 24-hour limit on Snapchat’s stories, there should always be enough content planned in advance to ensure that your brand is posting useful content throughout the day on a regular basis.

Offer Exclusivity. Unlike Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and blogs, Snapchat does not use hashtags and is less searchable. Give people a reason to follow you and to continue following you. How? By offering exclusivity to something they can’t get anywhere else – not even on your other social platforms. Previewing new products, hosting contests and giveaways and sharing behind-the-scenes content are a few ways to keep your audience coming back for more.

Abandon the Hard Sell. There’s a time and a place for hard selling, and Snapchat is neither. Rather than pushing your product or service, be authentic and engaging. Social media marketing has blurred the lines between social interaction and advertising, but Snapchat’s main user group, Millennials and Gen Y-ers, can see right through hard selling and often are turned off by it. Find a way to connect to your audience on a deeper and more genuine level.

Tell a Story. It’s called a Snapchat Story for a reason. Be sure to utilize the 24-hour limit with memorable and useful stories that truly capture your brand’s personality. With Snapchat stories, you have the opportunity to create “mini-episodes” where each post builds on the last. Use geofilters, stickers and other Snapchat features to tell your story in an entertaining way. Plan these out ahead of time and get creative!

The biggest takeaway? Humanize your business. There is plenty of opportunity on Snapchat, and brands are just beginning to scratch the surface.

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Category: Social Media

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