Is Utilizing Live Tech the Big Move that Your Business has been waiting for?
Technology and business go hand-in-hand these days, with just about every shop or service having a website or social media presence, adhering to SEO web design needs, and sharing content regularly. However, there are far more ways to utilize the internet and now-widely accessible technologies to enhance your business further. Even if you don’t think that it’d inherently apply to your business, it’s well worth exploring the potential of live streaming and checking out the AnswersToAll streaming guide.
Going live has become the norm
Even though it was very much a viable and widely used bit of tech prior, 2020 and 2021 really shot live streaming into the mainstream. From people getting used to having meetings over live chat applications to more taking to platforms to show off their skills, live streaming offers an immersive way to connect to others in real-time. One of the most prestigious streaming platforms right now is the MasterClass learning site. Here, you can learn cooking from Roy Choi, mathematical thinking from Terence Tao, and much more.
Building on its range of streamed learning videos, MasterClass went live with its weekly free series featuring Kelly Wearstler, Daniel Negreanu, and Sara Blakely. As demonstrated by the expert and celeb-packed platform, going live to directly impart wisdom and offer in-the-moment tips really appeals to users. While many live streams simply offer people a real-time viewing experience, some have been able to go another step to offer a form of two-way interaction.
This is one of the reasons why Twitch’s creative section has become so popular – as well as its main gaming section. People get to schedule live showcases of their crafting or cooking, discussing points with community members as they go along. With so many social media brands leaning into live media, such as with Instagram live stories or those found on YouTube and Facebook, people have become accustomed to interacting through live streams.
This state of play has also enabled even more tech-savvy applications of live streaming for true two-way interactions and immersion. At the Betway live casino, there are live games for blackjack, roulette, baccarat, and several novel games like Mega Wheel, Dragon Tiger, and even craps. Each of them offers a live, real-time play at a physical table and a human croupier. As it stands, there are few other applications of live-streamed, real-time interactions to the degree of live casino games, but Google certainly wants to get its foot in the door. The Crowd Choice feature of the thus-far doomed Stadia game streaming platform is said to create polls for YouTube viewers, who then decide what happens in the game being viewed during the live stream.
Applying a live stream to your business
If you don’t fancy setting up your own live streaming studio or platform channel for regular streaming, you could always utilize one that someone else has already made popular. Social media influencers are big on live streaming as many of them know how receptive followers (customers) are to the medium.
As detailed in this IMA top-ten, the reach of influencers and their pre-cultivated audiences can be used to improve brand awareness and visibility, build trust in the products, and drive conversations. In fact, long-term relationships with popular influencers can lead to long-lasting, loyal followers crossing over to your brand. It’s why the global influencer marketing platform is set to grow at a CAGR of 32 percent through 2025.
Another way to go about this is with a more personal touch and setting up your own live streams that customers can gain or request access to. Detailed in this ZDNet piece, you can set up customer-facing live chats to learn about any concerns, resolve common problems, and even get ideas for new products or services that you know are what customers want to pay for. To run programs like this, it’d be good to offer customers the chance to partake via email, and then run a Zoom live chat as those joining meetings don’t have to pay.
There are many ways to boost eCommerce sales, but an increasingly popular and effective method is to utilize live streaming. It hasn’t quite caught on in the western markets just yet, at least not on a large scale, but if China’s mighty eCommerce market is anything to go by – which it usually is – live commerce is the future. This year, sales of Chinese live commerce alone are expected to exceed $420 billion, even though it’s essentially just the shopping channel but personalized, on social media, and far less salesman-like. Alibaba’s live arm, Taobao Live, has essentially perfected the live commerce approach, with the first 30 minutes of its Singles’ Day in 2020 generating $7.5 billion. So, if you want to see how it’s done, check out some Taobao Live content.
There are so many ways that you can utilize live streaming to unlock the full potential of your business. Whether you want to make your brand more trusted, gain insights from customers, or offer a more immersive, in-the-moment online shopping experience, a live stream could suit you very well.