Live streaming to continue social media dominance

If you’re like me and a fan of the television show Big Brother Canada, you were undoubtedly excited when it returned earlier this month for its fifth season. One thing they changed up however, was the live show following the eviction. In the past, the evicted house guest was interviewed on stage by the show’s host Arisa Cox and former house guests Peter Brown and Gary Levy. This year however, the format has changed and viewers are now asked to watch ‘After the Eviction’ live on Facebook.

Every day when I scroll through my Facebook feed I notice at least one Facebook Live video posted by someone I follow. Whether it’s an acquaintance who as has begun using the social media platform to try and make a name for them self in the fitness community, or someone who has attended a concert and wanted everyone to get a glimpse into the show by posting their favourite song as it’s being played – live streaming appears to be here to stay.

As I was doing my research for this blog, I stumbled upon an article about funeral homes in Brazil that have begun live streaming funerals for families who live in other parts of the world and cannot make it home for the service. According to the article “with three professional cameras, the home records every detail of the funeral. They stream footage of the flowers, the coffin, the messages of their loved ones, and even the body. The extra video streaming service costs about $320 in addition to the wake itself.” The article continues “these funerals also offer family members the opportunity to send in audio and video messages of condolences. The message are then screened onto a television during the ceremony.”

But that’s just one example of something most people never would have dreamed to see live on the internet even five years ago. Earlier this week, the CBC posted an article entitled Why this man had his colonoscopy broadcast live on the internet to their website. Dr. Barry Lumb, a gastroenterologist at Hamilton Health Sciences in Hamilton, Ont told the media outlet he went viral as a way to bring awareness to the importance of getting a screening. “Everyone is on social media. I can take the message directly to people and interact with them.”

Then of course you have April the giraffe who is having her birth streamed from the New York Zoo live on YouTube.

As I’ve stated in previous blogs, one big pull social media has on users in the ability to connect people. In the article Get Camera Ready: Live Streaming is The Future of Social Media, Eleonora Israele writes “By enabling social media users to create real-time live streams of their daily lives and more, these platforms remove the stigma that video has to be well produced and edited to be seen, shared and generate revenue.”

Live streaming is becoming more and more popular and provides a cost effective way to get information out. A few times a month I will get emails at work asking me to attend a live broadcast of a seminar online. In the past, I would have had to book time out of the office to travel to the seminar, but now I can just log into Facebook or Periscope and watch the content live and for free and I just see this phenomenon continuing to grow.

Lessons for Others

As an event planner, the live stream — should we or shouldn’t we — conversation seems to come up more and more. While there are many positives to live streaming, we have yet to test it out due to lack of resources and the fact that it is ultimately live and cannot be controlled, but I know the conversation isn’t going away.

In the article The Future of Live Video: 26 Influencers Share their Thoughts, Brian Tong, Host/Editor, CNET: says “Live video is the ultimate form of engagement.” Will McInnes, CEO, Brandwatch continues “Take everything that’s addictive about real-time social and add moving sound and color – bada bing! Is it any wonder consumers love it?”

I agree. This is why I think Live streaming on social is going to continue to grow. Just look how much video on Facebook in general has grown in the past year or six months!

In the video clip above, USA Today profiles how 360 virtual reality is now making it’s way into live streaming which continues to grow the possibilities. Video, especially live video adds another layer of connectivity to the conversation and lets even the loneliest of people feel connected for a short period of time. It allows introverts who prefer the comfort of their homes to still be able to participate in what’s happening around them and this is why I’m putting my money on live streaming as the future of social media.

If you have concerns as to the accuracy of anything posted on this site, please send your concerns to Peter Carr, Program Director, Social Media for Business Performance.

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