Why Live Streaming Works

Live streaming has captured the imagination of social media marketers and brands everywhere.

So, why has the format been so successful?

There’s no denying that live owes much of its wide-spread adoption to a simple, yet impactful advertising campaign – thanks, Facebook.

But clever marketing aside, there’s so much more to the story than billboards and adverts.

It all starts with reach

The secret is out. Facebook live streams perform better and tend to have a much larger reach than other forms of content.

Why? Live streaming is just one of the many ways Facebook is plotting supremacy over its competitors.

Moreover, enticing both brands and content creators to go live with their content means more ad space for Facebook; pre-rolled ads already in the pipeline.

But there is another more psychological reason why engaging live streams continue to hold attention over more passive and generic content.

Anticipation and the fear of missing out

Successful live streams often generate an element of anticipation and FOMO to capture and retain attention among Gen Z and millennials.

Whereas someone may skip or watch part of a generic video, live streams can hold attention for in excess of ten minutes through suspense.

Audience interaction brings videos to life

Anticipation aside, live streaming has made real-time audience interaction possible, thus bringing branded content to life.

There is also something self-gratifying about being able to affect a situation in the immediate present; such scenarios tap into our inherent selfishness and want for control.

To truly champion live streaming, brands must find a way of combining compelling content that goes deeper than engagement.

One effective way of achieving these KPIs is to incentivise a live stream. According to research, 65% of social media users engage with brands through competitions.

The future of live streaming

Social media continues to overtake television as a preferred media source for both millennials and Gen Z.

At present, statistics show that 0 in 10 Gen Z consumers would keep their TV if left with only one media device.

What’s more, 60% of media consumption already takes place online among this age group, a figure which will increase as 360-degree video and virtual reality become more mainstream.

Image credit: GETTY SAMUELE SEGUSO / EYEEM