[PODCAST] Lights, Camera, Let’s Talk Facebook Live!

What do you think you can do with the more than 2 billion active monthly users on Facebook right now? Certainly, there is so much you can do and no business owner in his right mind can ignore the enormous potential of Facebook in the overall marketing of products and services. After you have created your Facebook business page or personal account, you can then work on generating more likes or expanding your network of friends as you try to reach out to your audience.

Posting photos or links seems like an effective way of building engagement at this point but guess what? With Facebook Live, you can put the spotlight on you and your business and enjoy the direct attention you will get from your target audience right there and then using live video streaming. On this episode of The Digital Slice Podcast, Stephanie Liu highlights the best features of Facebook Live for businesses.

The 2 billion Facebook users spend more of their time consuming live video. Imagine the exposure you’re going to get when you choose to do a live broadcast instead of the usual posts. The quick 5 to 15 minutes you spend livestreaming in front of your audience can prove to be more valuable compared to the hours you spend working on the other types of content you can post on Facebook. It is high time for you to get out of the shadows and into the spotlight for Facebook Live.

Getting Into The Live Video Groove

Like many entrepreneurs, Stephanie Liu also spent years working in a company before she decided to start her own. She spent 10 and a half years working at San Diego’s top ad agency managing social media for leading brand names like Nike and Clinique. Then, she and her husband were expecting a baby, and she knew her regular 8 to 5 job at the time just wouldn’t cut it when she also had to take care of her baby. So, she decided it was time to break out on her own. “If I could pitch in front of these big brands, I’m sure as heck, I know I can do it for myself.” Most of the time, we get confronted by a fork in the road which could look like a tough one to face, but later on, you realize how the challenge is an opportunity for you to change and do better.

Even though it had become her comfort zone, Stephanie left the agency world and went on to launch her very own boutique agency. Then, she discovered most people in the industry would claim to be social media strategists even when what they mostly did was copy and paste content and then schedule their posts on social media. You can do this too, but it would not be easy for people to trust you when everybody else is claiming to be an expert or authority in the same thing.

During this time, no one dared step into the spotlight and show themselves live, almost like a face to face interaction with their audience. This kind of situation is not a strange one for solopreneurs who are always busy and are often all over the place. But Stephanie suggests that based on her experience, you have to take the time and make every effort to stand out if you want to get noticed by your audience and dared to go live on Facebook when everybody else is just copying and pasting.

So what she did was show everyone who she was and what she was great at doing. She showed her audience the “hows” of her expertise and this was how she got into the live video space and became a well-recognized guru. It didn’t even have to be always her showing up on the live video because she could also impart education by showing her screen and its contents like her broadcasting plan or editorial calendars. And guess what? This tactic won her clients! Indeed, you too can leverage Facebook Live for your business in the same way.

Facebook Live Success

If there is anything using Facebook Live can do for your business, it's set it apart from the rest. In Stephanie’s experience, it was when a potential client saw her live videos that she became top of mind and was established as an authority in the space. In particular, it was her work with a Master Chef which made it all happen for her. As she recalled, “What really kind of set it off was the fact my first client for live video was Master Chef Claudia Sandoval.”

She worked hard to get to her success. “When I’m really interested in something, I get really geeky about it.” She focused on learning everything there was to learn about live video and dove into the deepest facets of what it is really about so she could develop the skills. She worked hard to get there but didn’t really expect to be in live video herself – her hard work unexpectedly paid off.

Today, Stephanie Liu is the founder of a boutique social media agency which helps various brands become experts at online marketing, live streaming, community management, and the like. In 2016, she launched her “Lights, Camera, Live” Facebook Live show and puts the spotlight on the best marketers of their time. Lights, Camera, Live is also an online interactive course she offers to teach business owners in making it to their first ever live stream and beyond. As a live video trainer and marketing strategist online, Stephanie is a ball of energy who can flexibly do small business and huge corporations at the same time depending on their needs.

Making The Necessary Mistakes

Nobody has become an expert the minute they tried live video nor has anybody achieved instant success. And so, should you decide to go for it with livestreaming for your business, you have to prepare yourself for the challenges ahead and open your mind to making mistakes and learning from them. The popular adage “practice makes perfect” is most applicable when you are learning to live stream and when you intend to become an expert at it. Stephanie admits “Once you practice with live video and you figure out all the different hacks, you eventually become the expert.” And this is mostly because you will fail so many times that with each attempt, you build your skills as well as your resilience in dealing with the unexpected.

Don’t forget you are dealing with technology here and things can get out of your control at the most unexpected moments. But when you have experienced this many times before, you learn how to manage it smoothly without panicking in front of your live audience. As you keep going, you will also begin to develop confidence in what you are doing and become less afraid to make mistakes and more open to showing your human side. If you do make a mistake during the show, know the human side is what's most relatable to your audience and makes them want to engage with you through your videos more. Stephanie suggests you simply have to decide what you want to do.

You can delete a video where you weren't perfect, leave it up and admit you made a mistake, or re-do it. In short, you have options available and the best way to deal with it is just to be yourself. Even Stephanie herself had her share of live video bloopers. That didn’t stop her from becoming the expert she is today though nor did it prevent her from becoming a successful entrepreneur.

Why Facebook Live

So, why should you be getting into Facebook Live for your business? As mentioned earlier, Facebook now has more than 2 billion active users, and there is no denying your target audience forms part of this humongous number. Mike Stelzner pointed out on Social Media Examiner how an algorithm apocalypse seems to be happening on Facebook and people are not seeing their posts on the newsfeed anymore. Well, if you ask Stephanie, she doesn't find it to be a problem because for her, “If you wanted to post a photo or a link, it’s like winking in the dark and expecting someone to see you.” Simply posting is not going to build the engagement you are looking for.

In comparison, however, Facebook Live is the thing that’s happening all over the place. As Stephanie would put it, “Facebook is really pushing for live video. They know live video is gonna drive more engagement and more interactions.”

The magic of live video is it allows you to hold your audience’s attention and get them hooked on you the whole time. Just simply asking where they are watching from while your show is going on can already encourage engagement from them. It allows you to stand out from your competitors and build a more personalized relationship with your audience as they get to see and be with the real you.

Getting The Engagement

It cannot be denied that getting organic reach is a challenge but using live video is really a tactic. As such, you have to have a pre-promotional strategy before you go live to encourage people to tune in to your show. During your livestream, you also have to interact with them through the video itself as well as in the comment section. A distribution plan should also be in place after you are done with your live video. Stephanie believes “If you have like a well-thought-out strategy and promotional plan for before, during, and after, you can get the engagement you really want.”

Be sure to listen to this episode of The Digital Slice Podcast to get the scoop on Facebook Live! And, if you like it, leave a rating and a review!

Please note: The Friedman Group is an inbound marketing agency based in Denver, Colorado, and we work with professionals and business owners across the U.S. Our digital marketing services include: inbound marketing, social media marketing, email marketing, and digital marketing strategy and implementation.