Using social media for your business has an abundance of benefits. But due to Facebook’s recent algorithm change, ensuring that your content appears organically on your audience’s timeline can be quite a problem. The solution? Going live.

On today’s episode of Stay Paid, Josh and Luke discuss the marketing benefits of going live on Facebook and provide a few tips to help you make the most out of this popular feature.

Key Points

• Facebook favors live content
• Video content helps you showcase your personality
• A live video should always conclude with a call to action

Why Facebook Live?

As previously mentioned above, Facebook has recently changed its algorithm, and unfortunately it’s for the worse. Meaning that only 2 percent of your audience is going to be exposed to your organic (non-paid) content. However, this is where going live comes into play.

For starters, it seems as if everyone is on social media. favors live content. This means that when you go live, your video will be shown to more of your audience without you having to put any money behind it—greatly maximizing both your reach and engagement.

In addition, going live provides you with the opportunity to connect on a personal level with your audience. You’re able to showcase your personality, which will appeal to your audience and help you to develop a deep-seated emotional connection. And in sales, an emotional connection can make a world of difference. In fact, people who are emotionally engaged are 3.2 times more likely to recommend your product or service. Showcasing your personality and connecting with your audience can lead to valuable relationships.

Lastly, going live is free! It’s a relatively simple and cost-effective way to build your personal brand and garner leads that can turn into longstanding customers.

Going Live Tips and Tricks

Set a goal

Before you go live, determine how often you plan on to do it. From experience, we recommend going live at least once a week. It’s important to remember that you won’t see an immediate return on investment. Like any other social media strategy, going live takes consistency, and over time you’ll be able to build relationships and close deals.

Have a direction

Creating an outline is a must. It helps you to keep your video on track, and think about it as a story. For a live video to resonate with your audience, it has to have a beginning, middle, and an end. Think about your production beforehand, and jot down a few bullet points of what you plan on discussing. You’re the industry expert, and your audience will be excited to learn from your experience.

TOOL TIP: If your live video didn’t go as planned, Facebook gives you the opportunity to choose not to publish it at the end.

Create an event

Who doesn’t love an invitation? Create an event centered around your upcoming live video, and invite your friends. Events give people more time to plan their day around your video. However, it’s important to try not to get discouraged if not many people tune in when you are live. Not everyone receives notifications, and it’s easy for viewers to turn on their notifications while watching your video.

Repurpose your videos

Live videos have the potential to be repurposed for Facebook ads. Simply save the video, re-upload it, and create a campaign centered around the content. This allows you to start qualifying who is watching your videos, and then retarget your ad to these specific people.

Showcase your passion

Your audience doesn’t want to engage with only technical content. Instead, opt to go live on what you’re passionate about—your hobbies and expertise. It comes across as more authentic, and you will have more content to film. For example, if you consider yourself to be a local community expert, go live during an open house, community event, or even provide a market update. If you start intermixing engaging lifestyle content with technical topics, your audience will then start to associate you with your industry.

Another idea is to connect with a local vendor. Whether it’s an insurance agent, landscaper, or restaurant owner, reach out to them to see if they’ll partner with you for a live video. Interview them, and go behind-the-scenes at their office. Leverage the opportunity to share the live video on their own Facebook page, which is a great way to grow your database.

Include a call to action

Every time you are live you live must include a call to action at the end of the video. Your ultimate goal is to grow your network of leads, a call to action helps drive viewers to the next step. A few popular calls to action include offering a download, requesting feedback via a direct message or comment, and placing your website link in the comments.

Action Items

Following this podcast, our goal is to provide you with as many actionable tips as possible. This episode includes…

• Write down a list of vendors that you use in your business, and reach out to one to inquire about a live video.