Live streaming has taken off in a big way and of course, as we all know, Facebook always aim to be on trend, so they launched their very own live streaming service ‘Facebook Live’ which is proving to be very popular! Mark Zuckerberg predicts that by 2020 ninety percent of the content we view on Facebook will be in video format which is a prediction that is hard to ignore! 2017 is just around the corner so if Zuckerberg’s prediction is right the video age is upon us! If you want to stay ahead of your competition now is the time to put together a video marketing strategy and to start working with Facebook live!
1. Facebook Live streaming will help you to reach an audience you might otherwise not have been able to connect with, and will allow you to build great relationships with that audience.
2. Facebook Live streaming will allow you to connect with your audience in real time and answer any questions or concerns they may have regarding your products and services there and then!
3. Facebook Live streaming gives your brand a personality and helps you to build loyalty as your business will no longer be faceless. If people like and trust you they will want to spend their money on your products or services over that of your competitors, they are also much more likely to stay loyal to your brand.
4. Facebook Live streaming can help you to grow your business and your brand by enabling you to increase the number of potential customers/clients you can reach and connect with online. It also provides you with a brand-new advertising platform for your latest products offers and services.
5. Facebook Live is a great lead generation tool for your business as it helps you to attract the attention of a new targeted audience, the audience that you attract via Facebook Live streaming, if managed correctly, will hopefully turn into a new list of potential clients/customers for you to add to your lead generation funnel. To learn more about lead generation funnels and how they can benefit your business read the following article – ‘What Is A Lead Generation Funnel And Why Should You Understand It’
Now that you understand the benefits of Facebook Live streaming lets discuss how to make it work for your business.
Facebook Live streaming gives you an opportunity to showcase your expertise, you can do this by providing your followers with daily tips or tricks related to your products and services.
Let people know what’s happening in your business by making announcements via Facebook Live streaming, people are curious by nature so your announcements don’t need to be anything life changing. Introducing a new member of your team or announcing a new product will be enough. If you are short on ideas use the content that has been used recently on your blog or look up the latest news in your industry and turn this into an announcement
Ask your clients/customers to do live testimonials for you, nobody can sell your products or services better than a happy customer!
Demonstrate how great your products or services are by demonstrating them in a Facebook Live stream.
You could use Facebook Live streaming to do training sessions for your clients/customers. If you have a customer/client that needs you to do staff training with their team or they need training themselves but don’t have the time to meet with you, you could offer to do a Facebook Live streaming training session for them.
Give your clients/customers or potential clients/customers the chance to ask you questions about the products or services you provide. You can give them real time answers and resolutions to any concerns they may have, doing a Q&A session also gives you another chance to demonstrate your expertise and show that you are someone that is always willing to answer customer’s questions and take care of any concerns. If you are worried that you wouldn’t get enough participation for a decent Q&A session, do a frequently asked questions session and run through your industries most frequently asked questions.
You could do a Facebook Live streaming session that talks about how and why you started your business and discuss what makes you passionate about what you do! Opening yourself up a little is a great way of building trust and will encourage your audience members to, in turn, open up more to you about what it is they want from your business.
As I said at the beginning of this article, Mark Zuckerberg’s prediction regarding video is something that business owners and marketers can’t afford to ignore! I strongly advise that you take notice of this prediction from one of the most successful business men of our time and start thinking about how you can make video marketing and Facebook Live work for your business! For more useful information regarding Facebook Live and to learn how to get started, check out these instructions from Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/facebookmedia/get-started/live
If you are worried about not having the equipment or facilities to make videos there is no need to! You don’t need any fancy filming equipment a smart phone can easily do the job! This article written by my colleague shows you how to create great videos using your phone ‘Why Use A Video Production Company? How To Make A Business Video On An iPhone’
I hope this article will help you to make a start on Facebook Live streaming and video marketing for your business. For more tips and predictions for the future of marketing check out our videos (some of which were filmed live) - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAqOnTPPkmD0rkUUBAQ5nfA