Raise your hand if doing a live video scares the crap out of you! Now, if only all of you could look around the room and see how many hands are in the air right now, because it would be about 99.9% of you. Going Live is something that so many people fear, have anxiety about, or just don’t interact with at all. That is exactly why you need to start doing it. To stand out on social media you need to do three things; produce amazing content, engage with your community, and take advantage of all the new and exciting tools released on social platforms. That means using the poll-function on Instagram stories, creating a Facebook Group, and going Live!

Why Facebook and Instagram Lives are beneficial for you:

• Going Live is a great way for your followers to get a peek behind the curtain. This is where you can be completely unfiltered, both in how you look and what you are saying.
• By utilizing this function on Facebook and Instagram, it helps boost you in the algorithm. Just think of it as Facebook incentivizing you to use more of their features.
• It’s another way for you to deliver content and value to your followers. Lives are great for Q&As, home tours, sneak peeks of upcoming projects, and just for fun too.

How to beat the fear and anxiety:

• Remember that these Live videos are only available for the time you are live, unless you choose to save and share the content. This doesn’t have to be your perfect masterpiece.
• Ask for help. Either ask a friend or hire someone to manage comments, make sure everything is working on the technical side, and to smile and cheer you on.
• Practice, practice, practice! By going live consistently, you will feel more comfortable and get better with your delivery. I recommend doing one Live on either platform once a week for five weeks. Challenge yourself to really commit and I promise it will get easier!

5 Topics to Cover In a Live

1. Do a Q&A: you can ask followers ahead of time to send questions in, so you already have some stuff to talk about, and then accept questions as they come through the comments. You could also have a list of F.A.Q.s to use if you don’t have questions right away.
2. Unboxing: if you get sent great mail, use Live videos to show what you are receiving. This topic is utilized mainly on Instagram, but you are welcome to try it on both platforms. I know a lot of bloggers will save up their mail for the week and do one big unboxing.
3. An upcoming offering: if you sell courses, books, or have a new challenge you want people to sign up for take advantage of Live videos to promote the upcoming content. By sharing a snippet of an upcoming course and talking about why everyone should sign up, they get to know who you are and what to expect from your content.
4. Office hours chat: this is one topic that is rarely used, but can be extremely successful. Get a fellow blogger, author, influencer, etc. to jump on a Facebook or Instagram Live with you and interview them! Chat about what’s happening in your industry, an upcoming book that they are releasing, whatever is relevant. By having another person in the frame, you will stand out because most Live videos are just a single person. You also will attract the other person’s followers as well.
5. Demo: show people how to use a new gadget you have (or made) or show them a recipe you love. Use this time to teach them something. The key to having a successful demo is to show exactly how to do something, not just you doing it. Make it informative, easy to follow along and fun.

What you need to do to be successful

• You must tell people where and when they can find you! Once you have decided to do a Live video, let your people know what time, what platform, and what you are going to be talking about so that they can show up.
• Stay in for the long game. The first 5-8 minutes can feel like actual torture. You may just be talking to yourself and your supportive aunt that tuned in, but stay with it for at least 30 minutes. It is important to give people a chance to jump on the Live call with you especially when you are first starting out.
• Share your Live on your personal page. You have the ability on Facebook to share the Live stream at the time of filming. This way more people are going to be able to see your video.
• Write a strong compelling description for your Facebook Live. You want to tell people what you are talking about, get them to tune in, and ask them to engage with a question.
• Say hi! You have amazing followers tuning in so be sure to say hi to them and use their names.
• Have a good wifi connection. There is nothing worse than having the broadcast cut in and out.

Tools you might want for Live videos

• A tripod: if you are filming on your phone and don’t want to hold it the whole time I recommend investing in an inexpensive tripod. It looks a lot more professional when the video isn’t shaking from your hand. This tripod is great because you can also use it for a normal camera as well (two birds, one stone).
• Earbuds: if you are in a noisy place or just want better audio quality plug in your earbuds.
• Good lighting: lighting can make all the difference. An inexpensive way to achieve high quality light is with a ring light. This option is one that fits right on your phone.

I hope these tips help you get going with Facebook and Instagram Lives. I challenge you to go Live 5 times in the next 5 weeks and tell me how it goes. If you decide to take on this challenge, pop your Facebook page in the comments, so we can tune in to your videos!