When new technology comes out or becomes hot, I like to test it personally and then figure out how it can be used for the brand. I think of what I would do with it to promote the brand, how it will benefit the brand and do we have time to incorporate it and do it well instead of just doing it because everyone else is doing it. If this is another social network, I think about how it will be incorporated in our strategy and how we will get people to follow us on this new network and be relevant.
Recently, for the first time, I decided to add Periscope to our wheelhouse and do some live videos when we are out filming creating our YouTube videos for Visit Lake County. The first video I did was 2 weeks ago, and it was on Six Flags Great America making their announcement of a new coaster coming in 2016. I figured this was a pretty easy and I could potentially have a decent attendance, especially with some coaster enthusiasts. As it turned out, I was quite surprised with how it went and the amount of people who were watching us live and interacting us.
Before doing our first one for our brand, I decided to talk with other Tourism Destinations who I had been following on how they were using the app and hear what tips and suggestions they had. I am no Periscope expert by any means, so here are some tips and things that I learned that worked for me my first time doing a live Periscope.
Periscope Tips
- Let your followers on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram know that you will be live on Periscope and provide them with specific time. I found that this worked well as it gave people advance notice to catch your video live if they were interested and allowed them to plan for it.
- Make sure you start a few minutes ahead of time. You do not want to start filming immediately at the time you go live. Set up your shot, allow people a few more minutes to tune it. This also allows you a few minutes to do some talking and interacting with the people who have already tuned in.
- Hold your phone horizontal. When filming, you want to hold your phone horizontal to provide your viewers with a wider perspective of what you are showing. Plus, they will be viewing it the way you are seeing it, instead of it appearing vertical and sideways on your viewers end.
- Engage with your viewers. Be sure to address the questions that pop up during the chat while you’re broadcasting. If you have an assistant with, they can respond while you continue filming. If not, you can respond to the questions verbally as they came in. That is what I did and it worked wonderfully for me.
- When you are ending the broadcast, be sure to thank the viewers for attending and watching the broadcast. As this time you can and should ask for people to share the broadcast with their networks. Also, remember to share your website with the viewers so they may get more information on what they were just viewing.
I am still learning the world of Periscope and have a way to go, these are just a few things that were told to me and worked well for me. I found the app useful and easy to easy and can see many ways that brands can use the platform to engage with their influencers and other followers. You can provide them with insider information, a tour of the office complex, a preview of something new that is arriving, a presentation speech from the president of your company, or a product launch. The possibilities are endless. Remember to be creative, have fun and join in. What things work well for you on Periscope?
