6 Best Practices For Using Facebook Live

Facebook Live looks to be a boon to artists and bands everywhere who want to reach their Facebook fans. That said, there are some best practices in using the platform, according to Facebook's Media Blog. Here's what they suggest:

   1. Alert friends and followers in advance about plans to broadcast live, in order to build up anticipation.

   2. Ensure that you have a fast enough connection to broadcast live video, preferably WiFi or 4G. Be aware that the “Go Live” button will be grayed out if the signal is not strong enough to support Facebook Live.

   3. Post a description of what you are about to share before going live.

   4. Ask friends and followers to sign up for notifications so that they are aware of your Facebook Live offerings.

   5. Respond to comments by saying hello and mentioning the names of users who comment.

   6. Stay live for longer time periods: Facebook recommends at least 10 minutes, and the feature supports broadcasts up to 90 minutes.

There are plenty of live video platforms out there, and you may be successfully using some of them already. That's fine if you're sure you're reaching your fans, but keep in the mind that Facebook has more users outside the United States than in. If you want to reach those fans, consider using Facebook Live.

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Everything You Wanted To Know About Facebook Live

Facebook Live is about to the "next big thing" on the platform, and it seems like it will be a boon for artists and bands wanting to engage with their fans on the service.

Since it's so new, you may not be sure of exactly what Live is and what it will do. Here are some facts about the service from the FB Live page.

• What is Facebook Live? Live lets people, public figures and Pages share live video with their followers and friends on Facebook.

• Live is available to all Pages and profiles on Facebook for iOS, Android, and Facebook Mentions. There will be a red icon at the top left-hand corner of the video indicating that it is a live video. The word “Live” is written next to the icon, along with the number of current viewers.

• The video will be published to the Page or profile so that fans and friends who missed it can watch at a later time. The broadcaster can remove the video post at any time, just like any other post.

• Videos will appear in News Feed and on the broadcaster's Page or profile while they are live. Once a broadcast has ended, live videos are eligible to show up everywhere that other videos appear.

• Live videos are more likely to appear higher in News Feed when those videos are actually live, compared to after they are no longer live.

• You can apply control and customization settings to the video on the broadcast after it has ended if you're a Page.

• Live broadcasts can last up to 90 minutes.

• People can discover live videos right in News Feed. To get notified when certain a broadcaster goes live, tap the "Live Subscribe" button on the top of a live video to get notified when that person or Page goes live again. People who frequently engage with or have recently interacted with a person or Page going Live may receive a notification.

• You need a strong signal before going live. WiFi tends to work best, but if you can't find a nearby network, you'll want a 4G connection. To check your internet speed ahead of time, download the Speedtest app from the App Store or Google Play.

Just like natively uploaded videos, Live videos will rank higher in news feeds and more of your followers will see it, so it's a very useful tool for engagement.

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YouTube To Introduce A Live Streaming App

Where once we lived in a world of pre-recorded video, that's changing rapidly as millennials increasingly show how much they love live streaming.

For instance, Periscope has posted more than 100 million broadcasts since its debut in March of 2015, and Snapchat Live Stories has as many as 100 million users per day, which has lead Facebook into the same space with Facebook Live.

And Facebook Live has been successful in just a short time, with some creators pulling in over 100,000 viewers per broadcast.

All this has lead Google to decide that perhaps it's a good idea to enter this side of the online video business, and as a result, you'll be seeing its new stand-alone app called YouTube Connect in the coming months.

The service is said to have chat and tagging features built in, as well as a newsfeed that displays videos from friends and brands that the user has subscribed to.

YouTube is beginning to feel the pressure from Facebook when it comes to short form video, and Connect is its way for trying to get back in the game.

Too little too late? Users are fickle, but they usually go where their friends are, so don't be surprised if many don't even sample a new offering, even from market leader (for now) YouTube, at least until the next update of their favorite platform upsets them.

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