You may have noticed recently as you were scrolling your Facebook Timeline that a recognisable thought leader is live. Pushed by curiosity, you clicked on the notification and, indeed, that person was speaking live to their Facebook audience, interacting with them and answering questions. This is Facebook Live, the latest feature launched by arguably the largest social media platform.
Who Can Host Facebook Live Sessions?
It is a logical move actually, after the success of Periscope, but it is still in its inception stage. Not everyone can go live on Facebook as they please. A Facebook Live session can be initiated through the Mentions app – which is accessible only to those with a recognisable face and a verified account. In short, public personalities and celebrities are the chosen few who can interact with their followers through the Live chat option.
One thing is certain: neither now, nor in the short term, is Facebook Live available for Facebook pages. Interactions have to start from a personal profile. For large businesses this means that their star CEOs, marketing managers and product development engineers can join the client acquisition game by hosting live sessions.
Better Be Prepared Ahead of Time
But this does not mean that Facebook Live won’t roll out to a greater number of users so, when it happens, you should be prepared. Here are the top perks about using Facebook Live to promote your products and build customer loyalty:
1. Host Q&A Sessions
The best form of engagement is dialogue. And the best form of dialogue is when everyone leaves after the conversation with useful, interesting and valuable information. You can achieve all these through a live Q&A session. Why is it so effective?
- Because you can find out more about your customers’ expectations
- Because you can establish your position as an expert in your niche
- Because you can discover a great idea for a new product from your clients’ wish lists
- Because you can get to know your loyal followers in a direct and personal way, building a stronger engagement and loyalty with them
Plus, it is a lot more fun for everyone to do the Q&A in a live video chat than by typing away on the keyboard or mobile phone screen.
2. Go Behind the Scenes
People are curious about everything related to the products they use. This is why TV shows such as “How It’s Made” are so popular. You can create your own version of this show by broadcasting a Facebook Live session in your production facility, in your office, or even in your own workshop where you make crafted items, or by interviewing your staff and introducing them to your audience.
Going behind the scenes builds confidence. Having a visual proof of the care you take in building and assembling your products, your customers will be even more likely to buy them and use them.
3. DIY Sessions
Everyone enjoys learning a new skill, becoming more independent and able to fix certain things by themselves. You know that because you have a lot of blog posts on your company blog on DIY topics. Now you can take these topics one step further and show during the live streaming sessions each step of the process.
And since the human brain is built is such a way to process visual images 100 times faster than text, a simple video demonstration will leave a stronger impact and a more satisfied audience than the most skilfully worded blog post.
Now that you have a few useful and actionable ideas you can rehearse, all you have to do is wait for the moment when you can host your own Facebook Live sessions and wow your followers!