Retailers and marketers now communicate with online audiences differently thanks to live streaming.
To attract potential customers in the past, e-commerce stores depended on static graphics and uninteresting written descriptions.
Pre-recorded video material followed, and it continues to be a potent tool on many social sites.
Nonetheless, technology is always evolving.
Despite the fact that video content has increasingly become a crucial component of many firms’ digital marketing strategy, an increasing number of enterprises are now utilizing the most recent advancement in video technology: live stream marketing solutions.
Live stream videos give businesses the opportunity to produce interesting material that is targeted at a large audience in real time.
Additionally, it is said that this live video material will have a very positive impact on sales, engagement, and product launches.
But do the benefits of live streaming live up to the hype when everything is put into perspective?
Should you include it in your strategy for digital marketing?
We’ll be looking more closely at both perspectives in this essay. We’ll discuss:
- The ideal explanation of live stream advertising.
- Effects of live streaming on your digital marketing plan.
- The benefits and drawbacks of using live streaming.
- The resources you ought to research before developing a live streaming strategy.
Live stream marketing: What is it?
The practice of live broadcasting to an audience via social media platforms is referred to as live media stream marketing.
It is currently a typical technology used to give internet shoppers a virtual buying experience.
Despite this, influencers and creators of video content continue to use this type of streaming the most frequently to communicate with their fans.
For instance, large audiences have long been engaged by online gamers thanks to video game broadcasting platforms like Twitch.
Yet over the past few years, this form of conversational commerce technology has greatly evolved, giving retail organizations an increasing number of possibilities.
That means that brands may now use live streaming to advertise their products in a “one-to-many” way using the same strategies as influencers.
The pros of a live streaming strategy
Let’s examine some of the key advantages for your digital marketing plan now that we are clearer on what live stream video comprises.
1. Streaming live footage creates a connection with many customers at once
Like with any digital marketing tool, the purpose of live streaming is to reach more potential clients.
Because video enables a more intimate relationship between the host and their audience, live stream video content outperforms many other mediums in this regard.
There are two ways to do this:
- Video adds a human touch by visualizing facial expressions, eye contact, and body language.
- Beside the primary video material in live video streaming, conversation windows are common. It implies that real-time interaction between hosts and viewers is possible.
Really, no company could anticipate this level of interaction from any other medium.
Use this blog as an example.
If it were made into a video, there’s a good chance that audiences would engage with it considerably more, especially if it were a live broadcast that had been planned and promoted in advance.
2. Live streaming may be less expensive than traditional video advertisements.
Each type of video advertising formerly had the potential to be expensive. Even basic product movies used to be quite expensive.
You would need to invest the time and effort to engage a qualified digital marketing agency if you wanted to make such a video for your company. Even if you choose the DIY route, you would still need to factor in the additional cost of production equipment, such as camera lenses and lighting sets.
Live streaming has changed things considerably. Now, company owners can use free platforms like Facebook Live, Instagram, or Periscope to stream live video content on their social media accounts.
Also, viewers are now much more accustomed to the idea of being addressed directly through their screens, regardless of the venue of the broadcast, thanks to the rise of influencer marketing.
It also implies that sponsors are not required to rent a set because they may stream from wherever they are.
3. Live streams are a versatile content format
As was already said, fans of live streams are not anticipating a polished, television-like production.
They desire direct communication from actual individuals, not through intermediaries.
As a result, live streaming offers greater variety than other types of video material.
For instance, explainer videos must be concise and easy to understand. They are a tutorial that must be comprehensive and interesting.
The goal of conventional video advertisements, on the other hand, is to sell the goods as rapidly as possible.
They must engage the spectator with appealing graphics, a compelling story, and slick editing. But with live broadcasting, the goals and requirements are hardly set in stone.
It implies that a wide range of material, including interviews, Q&As, product demos, and tutorials, is waiting to be produced.
Simply said, your imagination is your only constraint when it comes to promoting or presenting a product via live streaming.
The cons of a live streaming strategy
After learning about some of the advantages of including video in your entire marketing plan, let’s examine the drawbacks of live streaming.
Before hopping on the live video streaming bandwagon, keep the following points in mind.
1. Live streaming neglects individual customers
Speaking to as many consumers as you can at once is well and dandy, but what if one in particular needs your assistance with a problem or question?
What if a customer has particular criticism for your company? What if this specific client is the only one among many who genuinely wants to convert?
Live streaming broadcasts frequently include a chat window adjacent to the video stream, as was already indicated, however not all users will be able to see the host or presenter.
It’s actually very difficult to run a live stream and keep track of all the comments that come in, and causing your clients to feel neglected? It’s a serious oversight in digital customer service.
Naturally, viewers of traditional live streaming on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitch primarily want to participate in the fun.
Yet, when an online merchant offers a live feed, there is a real possibility that you may overlook specific customers who have insightful comments or queries.
Hence, even though you may have embraced live streaming to test out the “one-to-many” strategy, constantly think about what will happen to the clients that want to interact with the company in a “one-to-one” setting.
How would you provide these consumers with the finest service?
2. Live streaming can provide mixed results
Like any other type of digital marketing tool, live streaming has generated a lot of hype, especially among users who have had success with it.
Live stream videos won’t necessarily yield the same outcomes for every business, though. However, very few businesses will have access to the same audience as the most well-known influencers.
Audiences are aware that live streaming stores have other goals besides increasing sales, even though these online statistics are all about providing free entertainment in exchange for views and participation.
Hence, even if your live streams start out well with video, they could not draw in the audience you were hoping for.
Not only might it be difficult to get viewers, but what about the ones you do? They might end up not converting after all.
3. Live streaming is time-consuming
Even while live streaming is becoming more and more popular, it shouldn’t be thought of as the most efficient format for businesses looking to maximize their marketing efforts.
This is due to the fact that the top live streamers consistently and persistently work to continue creating content over an extended period of time.
So keep in mind to think about if you have the time and resources to continue regularly generating live videos.
Think about whether you have the tools and the time to generate fresh concepts for articles and themes.
Although live video streaming is such a flexible medium, it doesn’t follow that you can get away with being slothful.
Live streaming video and its place in your digital marketing stack
As we’ve seen above, employing live streaming video as part of your digital marketing plan has many advantages.
Yet it’s also crucial to be aware of certain really significant traps.
Although live streaming might increase your interaction with a larger audience, it might consume a lot of your time and money without fully paying off.
Thus, if you’re thinking about including live streaming in your main marketing strategies, give it some thought first.
Your objectives for the digital consumer experience are everything. Video streaming might be a wonderful option if you want to casually engage as many people as you can to increase your marketing.
Nevertheless, there’s another approach to video you should think about if you’re searching for a means to increase the number of genuine client interactions from your website or app: Customer assistance via live video chat.
