How to use the live stream to generate engagement
Over the last few years, technology has adapted at an exponential rate, causing a ripple effect across industries. In the current climate, consumers are now more impatient than ever and want everything ‘now’. According to Hubspot, 80% of consumers would rather watch a live video than read a blog post from a brand, and 82% would prefer to watch a live video than read social posts. With live video becoming an increasing force in the music industry, just how much is it affecting brands?
Festival live streaming
Naturally, festival live streams have been a major aspect of the electronic music industry for some time now. The more traditional choice for live streaming, live sets at major festivals can draw millions of views, and once uploaded to YouTube draw millions more, with most instantly going viral. Streaming live performances is the single greatest way for festivals and events to build a reputation worldwide, and is a key motivator for consumers to buy into the brand as a whole. Live streams are the perfect recipe for attracting attendees, offering viewers an insight into the festival, providing just enough information to persuade viewers to purchase a ticket next time around. Streaming is an almost compulsory aspect of the festival industry now, with most festivals allowing viewers from around the globe. As an artist, whether you’re starting out or well-established, streaming one of your live performances onto your own social media pages can prove a highly valuable marketing strategy. Don’t overload your fans by streaming every single performance, but if a particular show is set to be especially visually appealing, make sure that your worldwide audience can tune in.
With so many festivals streaming their live performances, competition is at an all-time high, and brands must strive to offer something unique to their audience. A brand that is doing just that, is Cercle. Cercle is Youtube channel that pushes performance streaming boundaries by creating breathtaking moments. They invite artists to perform in unique settings in order to create memorable performances for online viewers. For example, they invited Kölsch to perform atop the Eiffel Tower in Paris, which resulted in the stunning video below.
Live announcements
Live streaming is now being explored in many more diverse ways. One of the biggest current trends is to make announcements through a stream on your social channels. There are plenty of options out there allowing you to set up a pre-recorded video and stream it at a specific time on Facebook, ideal for content like an album announcement or a festival lineup reveal. Through streaming, you can really build up the tension for viewers, and the excitement and mystery surrounding the content will encourage even more people to tune in. As an artist, live streaming is an ideal option for building up tension before making an announcement. Through streaming, your content will be able to make an even bigger impact. Tomorrowland recently built an intense level of excitement by putting together their own Facebook live stream. Celebrating 100 days to go until the festival itself, Tomorrowland saw an opportunity to simultaneously market Paul Kalkbrenner’s album, which had not yet been released. The stream saw Kalkbrenner perform a 45-minute set from the festival grounds behind an ornate set of decks. Completely unexpected, the surprise stream drew a huge amount of interest. The set is now on YouTube and is just about to hit 1 million views.
Debuting new music
Social media live streams are also a great way to share new music, particularly a new album. Prior to the release of his ‘FUTURE’ album, Don Diablo streamed a mini DJ set live from inside an official space station. This was the first opportunity for his audience to find out which tracks would be appearing on his album, and to hear many of them for the very first time. The immense level of publicity generated from the unique venture drastically increased the suspense around the release of his album. At the time, the comments section was inundated with posts from fans worldwide, and more engagement is always positive in generating more views. Sharing your new music in a unique and innovative fashion using live video is one of the single most effective ways to generate further interest and build suspense around the release.
Spontaneous live video
One option for streaming that is becoming increasingly popular in the music industry is spontaneous live video with a more chatty format. Although artists like deadmau5 have been streaming from inside the studio for years, this kind of streaming is still yet to really take hold of the industry. Streaming while on the road and answering questions from your fans is a great way to connect and build a more personal relationship with your audience. An artist’s social media is usually filled with promotion, taking a step back to have an informal chat with your audience will give you a more human appeal and allow your fans to feel more connected with you. When your fans feel more connected, they’re most likely to buy into your content and give you even more support, making this connection invaluable.
With live streaming becoming an increasingly valuable aspect of marketing, it is important to embrace the trend and take advantage of the opportunity to better market your content. Take some time out to plan an effective live stream that will draw attention to a new announcement or some brand new music. As with all kinds of marketing, being different is key, offer your audience something that they simply cannot find elsewhere in order to peak their interest. With a unique offering and a well-thought-out stream, you will soon see an increase in engagement and further interest in your content as a whole.
