About a year ago, I started to use live video in my business.
Actually, let me clarify that:
I became obsessed with using live video in my business. Specifically, I had a serious addiction to Periscope.
Fast forward to July 2016 and we now have Facebook Live and Snapchat to add to the mix. This begs the question – should you use live video in your freelance business? Can it even help your freelance business?
In short, the answer is yes to both. In this blog I’m going to detail exactly how the use of live video can help boost your freelance business.
The Power of Social Media
There are so many advantages to incorporating different forms of social media that it’s difficult to list them all off. I’m going to try anyway.
- You can use social media as customer service (airlines do this all the time).
- You can use social media to connect with people in different ways. Some people prefer Facebook while others prefer Snapchat.
- You can show your authenticity. This is how people connect to brands these days.
- Freelance client prospects are starting to pay attention to social media numbers. For example, the reason it’s become easier for me to get gigs (and high-quality ones at that) is because I’ve been working on building my own brand and social influence for years.
Live video is just another way to connect with your tribe and build your influence. The advantage is that it seems more intimate and real because there’s really no editing involved. You can also use live video to have coversations with your community, establish yourself as an expert, – and, one of my favorite ways to use live video – crowdsource your community for article ideas.
Snapchat
Snapchat does technically fall under the category of live video. I admit that I really didn’t get it’s appeal for a while. However, I recently attended a conference that explained how to use live video in Snapchat for business and I have since been converted.
People have used Snapchat to:
- Teach (I met a plastic surgeon who is using Snapchat to teach people what he’s doing during surgeries. Look up Dr. Miami on Snapchat. It’s the best use of Snapchat by a small business that I’ve ever seen.)
- Give behind-the-scenes footage of their day.
- Share funny things that happen to them.
You can do all of the above as a freelance by focusing on subjects that pertain to your niche. For example, I can snap financial tips that I can cover in 10 seconds. Furthermore, Snapchat has 150 million users a day so you might as well get a piece of that pie.
Periscope
I’ve mentioned Periscope in the past, and while I’ve taken a hiatus from it, I still think it’s a great tool to use in your freelance business.
The advantage of Periscope is that you can reach an insanely large audience. First, because Persicope itself has many users. Second, because you can automatically tweet your broadcast out to Twitter where the whole world can find you. I’ve had so many new people exposed to my work in this way!
Here are some of the ways you can use Periscope:
- Teach an actual class, kind of like a webinar.
- Crowdsource for content ideas.
- Do Q&As
Facebook Live
You can give your Facebook Fan page a little boost by using live video directly on your page. Facebook tends to give preference to video, so it’s an easy and free way to have more people see your content and get around that algorithm.
The difference between Facebook Live and Periscope is that only your fans see your video. The video also stays on your page forever. With Periscope, you can choose to save the broadcast, but if you don’t it will be gone in 24 hours.
I recently used Facebook Live to stream part of a panel I saw about Millennials and Technology. Since both are within the realm of my niche, I figured it would be a good thing to livestream. It’s been one of the most popular posts on my fan page this week.
Final Thoughts
By incorporating the use of live video into your freelance business you can connect with new people, crowdsource for project ideas, survey your audience and more. Additionally, it helps people connect to your brand as a freelancer. I’ve seen some definite success with it and it’s why I recommend it to other freelancers.
