If you follow our head human, Alexis Bushnell, across the internets you may have noticed she made something of a name for herself as that social media expert who doesn’t go live!
Do we think that going live isn’t a great way to boost reach and engagement on your social media? Nope, not at all. Live video consistently does well across all platforms for a variety of reasons, it’s also a great way to connect with your community, add even more value and get discovered. The thing is, it’s not for everyone and that’s ok!
Here’s what Alexis has to say about live video on social media.
You don’t need to go live for social success
As I’ve said a thousand times over, great content is what matters. Whether that great content is live video, plain text or something else, great content does well.
If you love going live and you come across best on video then absolutely focus on video content. Your personality will shine through, making the content engaging.
On the flip side, if feel uncomfortable on video or going live, that will also come across in the content and, while there’s something to be said for seeing our shy-selves represented, people are generally less excited and drawn in by a quietly spoken video.
There are so many ways to connect with your audience now. Live video might be the current big trend but that doesn’t mean other methods aren’t awesome.
Great, not live, content
I’m a writer. I love writing and I also love the necessary delay that comes from communicating through writing. Hence these blog posts and my longer form social media posts, I express myself best through text and, no matter how many people tell me I come across well on video, it is never going to be my favourite method of communication. And let me say this again; that’s ok!
You can build a community and a successful business on social media using only text posts, or only image posts, or only video. You can use a mix, you can use a selection. You can build a fabulous social presence in a way that suits you. The important thing is knowing your audience and adding value through your content.
Live workarounds
There are a few options that you may not have considered to get some of the benefits of live without the abject terror of going live though so, if you’re baby stepping towards this particular precipice, here’s some ideas.
Stories
The temporary nature of Stories means you can test the waters without the fear that your nervous waffling will live forever on the internet. They also benefit from being shorter so are a great way to practice video when you get a 5 minute burst of bravery!
Premiere
Pre-record your video but release it as a YouTube premiere. This option essentially schedules the video but then releases it initially as if it’s live, along with a live chat which you can join in with.
The going live tl;dr*
If you love live, go live. If you don’t, all other types of content are awesome too. Find the way you express yourself best and get creating great content in any format.
Stay safe, be kind and, as always, be a human!
*tl;dr = too long; didn’t read. The key information from the post.
