10 Tips for Broadcasting on Facebook Live

If you've got a story that you want to broadcast to the world, Facebook Live is one of your best options for doing so.

But how do you make people tune in? How do you engage with your viewers? And how do you keep people coming back for more?

Here are our essential tips for broadcasting on Facebook Live.

1. Introduce Yourself Regularly

If you're broadcasting to the public, you need to introduce yourself when you initially go live. But the introductions shouldn't stop there.

If your video is more than a couple of minutes long, people will come and go. Therefore, you also need to make sure you keep re-introducing yourself at regular intervals during the video itself. It's a courtesy to the viewer and will help you build followers.

2. Make Your Video Visually Engaging

The way you present the video is only one part of creating a successful Facebook Live broadcast. You also need to think about what else is going on in your video.

There are a few things you can try to make your video more visually appealing to viewers:

Change the lighting.
Experiment with different backdrops and backgrounds.
Think about ambient noise.
Try using Facebook Live's various themes.
Consider using a tripod for a more stable shot.

3. Know Your Target Audience

Who is the video for? You don't want to grossly mismatch your video style with the preferences of the type of viewer you hope to attract.

After you have broadcast a few videos, you can use some special Facebook Live analytics tools to learn more about how your videos are performing. The information includes demographic information, the number of people reached, the peak live streams, the average watch time, and a whole lot more.

To learn more about Facebook Live analytic tools, check out our article on how to use Facebook Live.

4. Reinforce Your Authority

If you have more than a handful of people watching your Facebook Live video, you can use the number of people tuning in to build credibility. If people think you are credible, they are more likely to share your video with friends and family.

Just keep giving a shout out "to the [XX] people watching right now" to make everyone sit up and take notice.

5. Only Broadcast When You Have a Strong Signal

No one wants to watch a video that pixelates, buffers, or has audio issues. It's a sure-fire way to make viewers hit the Back button on their browser.

It might not always be possible, but you should aim to have a stable web connection every time you start a broadcast.

6. Have a Structure

When appropriate, you need to make sure you create an outline for your video. It will make your videos appear slicker and more professional.

You don't need to pre-write every sentence. Make a few notes of the key things you want to mention, along with any other supporting material like quotes, facts, figures, and so on.

If you do decide to write an entire script, you should consider purchasing a teleprompter on Amazon. A popular choice is the Parrot Teleprompter 2.

7. Check the Comments

One of the best features of Facebook Live is its live comments section.

Although it's optional, there probably aren't many situations where you would want it to be disabled. Comments are a great way to interact with your viewers in real time. You can respond to their questions while on air and ask them to offer their thoughts on particular topics that you're discussing.

The comments also offer an easy way to gauge the mood of your viewers. Viewers can use emoji to express their feelings. The emojis "float" up the screen after being pressed, provide a running feed of instant reactions.

Lastly, you can use the comments to drive traffic to your site of other social media profiles; just post the appropriate URLs occasionally and let your viewers know that you have done so.

8. Ask for Follows, Shares, Likes, and Notifications

The inner workings of Facebook's algorithms are a mystery.

However, it's pretty clear that posts, videos, and other content can snowball. The more shares and likes you pick up, the more likely your Facebook Live broadcast is to be seen by other people. Extrapolating that process out over millions of people is how content goes viral.

It makes sense, therefore, to ask for shares and likes. Think about it, asking for likes, subscriptions, and shares is a common request from all the most popular YouTubers. By asking, you will significantly improve your chances of producing a successful video and build a foundation of fans more quickly.

You should also ask your viewers to turn on the notifications for you. Whenever you next go live, they will receive an alert on their devices. Users can choose to get notifications for all your videos or just your highlights.

9. Use Teasers

One of the hardest parts of building up a long-term Facebook Live following is making sure your viewers keep coming back for more.

Depending on the type of video you are shooting, you could try using teasers about what viewers can expect next time. They could be clues about content, interviews, locations, answers to questions, or anything else you can think of. The key is to build intrigue around your next broadcast.

10. Buy a Mic and Camera

If you plan to make Facebook Live broadcasts a regular thing, you need to consider investing in a quality microphone and camera.

Smartphone recordings have their place, but probably aren't suitable for all your needs. And laptops' native webcams are rarely crisp enough to portray professionalism.

Luckily, we have written about some of the best lavalier microphones for recording audio and best cheap webcams for shooting videos if you would like to learn more.