Throughout 2020, many businesses have gotten onboard live streaming to sustain operations during the coronavirus pandemic.
The growth of live stream is not new, but it has accelerated in recent months out of necessity and discovery by millions as a creative alternative.
No matter the business size or industry, the impact that live streaming brings cannot be denied.
If you’re not already, you should be incorporating this medium into your marketing strategy.
Based on the industry you’re in, here’s how to leverage live streaming to give your business an edge over the competition.
Education
Live Education On Conference Platforms
On conference platforms like Zoom and Skype, you can have the most basic yet necessary features to conduct live teaching without having to pay for subscription or platform fees.
The teachers can share their screens, and also still see their students if the students enabled their camera functions.
With a live chat feature, students can raise their questions and have it be seen by classmates and their teachers.
However, the free versions of conferencing platforms would come with restrictions.
For example, you may be restricted on the number of live sessions you can have.
Or, you may only be able to have a limited number of participants in one live lesson.
The good news is that if you upgrade your subscription on these platforms, it can still be relatively affordable.
Live Education Using Customised Live Streaming Solutions
Another feature for live education that would be useful is video on demand (VOD) capabilities.
This allows teachers to upload recorded lessons onto the platform for easy access by students whenever they need it.
Live education platforms offered by live streaming solutions for businesses are harnessed with tools and features that are made for teaching and learning.
For example, attendance authentication is readily available, making it easier for teachers to track student attendance.
Teachers can also use the dashboard system to track student progress or create engaging live quiz sessions to summarise and make live lessons fun.
Most importantly, safety features such as verification procedures can be easily triggered by teachers to reinforce privacy and exclusivity of live lessons, creating a safe digital environment for teachers and students.
Real Estate
Real estate agents typically rely on in-person visits to help their clients buy homes.
However, as people practice social distancing to help stop the spread of COVID-19, most open houses are on hold and in-person home showings are limited.
To make up for that, realtors can bring the houses to their clients’ screens through live stream.
Virtual tours can be conducted in a variety of different ways, depending on time, technology, an
d budget.
A primitive option would be for sellers or real estate agents to use their smartphone camera to record a video as they walk through the home, showing off each room
Live Stream House Tours
A more interactive option is to live stream a one-on-one showing with the buyers.
This will give them more control over where you are pointing the camera (“Could you take a peek inside the toilet/outside that window?”).
Live streaming a home viewing might seem like a contingency plan in lieu of the coronavirus situation, but it does bring added benefits.
According to research, real estate listings that include a video receive 403% more inquiries than those without.
Buyers often enjoy seeing the “raw footage” that a virtual open house or showing can offer, as opposed to a professionally produced video, according to the Hornburg Real Estate Group in Dallas.
Buyers can also ask questions, which may help them feel more secure that they can be fully informed about the property—or perhaps even allow them to make an offer on the spot.
Events
During the peak of the coronavirus crisis, artists like John Legend and Yungblud have streamed live shows worldwide.
Today, new live streams are being announced daily.
Korean pop group BTS hosted a two-day free online event owing to global shutdowns.
As authorities worldwide banned public events to “flatten the curve”, the group had to cancel all its tours and concerts.
Live Stream Concerts
The home concert garnered over 2 million viewers within an hour of streaming.
While the live event might be free, but it could certainly pay off for the pop group in the future.
Research has shown that 67% of viewers are more likely to buy a ticket to the concert or event after seeing a live stream of it.
Most celebrities took their live performances to mainstream platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
These performances are mainly used to reconnect with their fans or to make up for cancelled shows and events.
Live Stream Monetization
Mainstream platforms are great at reaching mass audiences.
However, they monetization tools for the content that is produced.
Creating your own platform with live streaming solutions for businesses allow more opportunities for monetization.
Modals like subscription fees, pay-per-view and advertisements can be implemented when you have your own live streaming platform.
Places of Worship
Today, traditional gatherings are going online.
For instance, Old South Church in Boston is conducting virtual services on live stream amidst the coronavirus, as are synagogues, mosques and other places of worship across the country.
Being online also cuts down on operating costs like heating and electricity.
Pastors can use data to track which topics resonate with their parishioners based on engagement, views and shares.
Mainstream vs In-house Platforms
Similar to live streaming for events, mainstream platforms are handy when you want to reach out to a wider audience.
Instagram and YouTube also allow saving of the live stream and publishing it for anyone to view it anytime.
On the other hand, having an in-house platform allows the church to have better control over their content.
They can even have an in-stream button allowing live donations or tithe contributions without leaving the live stream.
Health and Fitness
Conducting classes on live stream allow gyms to reach consumers not only during the coronavirus crisis but even after normal operations resume.
Benefits of Live Fitness Classes
In fact, live streaming fitness classes will provide several benefits to consumers such as:
- Maintain close guidance. Doing your workout from home does not mean you have to compromise the guidance you normally get from face-to-face classes. You can turn on your webcam for your instructors to give pointers and have a more effective workout session.
- More affordable workouts. Online fitness programs have less overhead than their in-person, brick and mortar programs and can offer lower prices to customers. Some online fitness classes are even free for users.
- Limitless training experiences. Live stream fitness classes have the flexibility of allowing participants to try out trainers from opposite ends of the world with ease.
Wrapping Up
While the coronavirus pandemic has resulted a peak in live streaming, marketers have admitted that they are looking to continue live streaming even after the pandemic.
Generally, the current mainstream platforms (Facebook, YouTube, Zoom, Skype) are sufficient for any business to try out live streaming.
In the cases that these platforms not sufficient, customised live streaming solutions for businesses are also on the market.
Is your business looking for a flexible live streaming solution with a quick turnaround? BeLive Technology covers a wide variety of solutions for any industry. Contact BeLive Technology now.
