Your Video Content Strategy: To Go “Live” Or Not To Go “Live”?
Going “live” onto Facebook, Youtube and Instagram has been all the rage in 2017/2018.
When you tap into your socials, immediately you’ll get a notification saying Annie Jane is live, meaning more views and potentially more engagement for Annie.
We’ve heard countless social media strategists saying, “Don’t record video, just go live, you’ll get more views.”
But it’s not always the best option for your brand and business.
And here’s why.
- Not everyone is a natural in front of the camera
Yes, believe it or not, we aren’t all naturals – no offense. Carrying out a live video can be a nerve-racking experience for even the most experienced television journalist. If you aren’t confident in talking off the cuff on camera, don’t do it. While you can delete a live video, you still run the risk of people viewing something that may not be beneficial to your brand.
- You have more options with a “pre-recorded” video
Live video doesn’t have longevity. Its purpose is to send an immediate message to an audience. The benefit of having a pre-recorded video is that it can be posted on a variety of platforms; it’s more detailed and carefully produced, enabling you to use it across all socials and potentially even your website to draw in more active users.
- It’s harder to excite, inform, or entertain
Gary Vee has done research on how difficult it is to maintain a live audience. By going live, you’re essentially creating a long form TV show that must be incredibly engaging to hold viewers. If you have a detailed plan of what you’re going to do throughout the entire broadcast, go for it, but most brands/businesses don’t.
Before you go live, you should ask yourself, “Why?”
We don’t want you to be completely deterred by doing live videos – it certainly serves a purpose.
Mainstream news outlets tend to overuse live capabilities because it gives the illusion of urgency and drama.
Our advice – if you want to send an immediate message to an audience about “breaking news” surrounding your business AND you feel confident, go live. Grab a colleague or a friend to bounce off to make it more interesting.
Or if you want to do an outstanding job of a live video, spend ample time creating a thorough plan of how the entire segment will play out.
Unfortunately, our daily lives aren’t “breaking news” (we know ours aren’t, ha ha).
For interviews, a clean presentation, or showcasing a product, your best option is to call in the professionals to create high-quality video content that has longevity.