Should Small Businesses Go Live?

Live video and instant storytelling have emerged on the top social media platforms in the past year: Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook alike. Facebook, which already allowed for live streaming, recently rolled out its own stories feature too. You can broadcast a video or story to your audience in a matter of seconds!

The idea of live video can be daunting, as you risk giving up absolute perfection. Besides taking a few minutes to rehearse your messaging, live video/stories are where you can expect the unexpected. In something so unplanned, you may ask, where does my small business fit in all of this? What can I use it for?

Going live is an opportunity to give your clientele a peek into the people behind your business. Not only does your audience get an idea of the identity behind the brand, but you can document the behind-the-scenes of your process. For the most part, the process is just as important as the final result. As an example: if you’re an owner of a restaurant, you can livestream or create a story showing chefs creating the featured soup of the day (turn the camera away when it comes to those secret recipes!) These live videos are a great way to involve other employees and highlight how much work they do.

If you have events like an opening, a guest speaker or celebration going on, give your audience the experience firsthand by livestreaming the event. You can also create short stories where you introduce the guest speaker or notable attendees to your social media audience. You can even tag their accounts in your stories! Some businesses have started implementing a Snapchat or Instagram story takeover by an influencer. The broadcast can be a great reminder to get to the event while they can, or if they aren’t able to make it this time, to definitely put time aside to go to the next one! (FOMO [aka Fear of Missing Out] goes a long way!)

When you have a live broadcast, you can address any questions or concerns that need your immediate attention. You can use a live broadcast or story to make sudden announcements, and let your clients be the first to know!

What’s the next event that you can livestream? Let us know down below!

At Schmooz Media, we understand that customers (and livestreaming!) are your best brand ambassadors. That’s why we’re excited to create custom social media marketing strategies for small businesses, and take advantage of what their customers are already saying on social media. Schmooz Media is a Full Service Social Media Marketing Business, helping small-mid size businesses get the most social ROI possible. We’re passionate about giving your business actionable, measurable and meaningful results. Learn more about what Schmooz can do for you, or contact us with your inquiries today.