With Facebook’s algorithm becoming more focused on user generated content and business pages are getting limited organic reach, marketers are on their toes finding new ways to reach their audiences to amp up those views and page engagements. Here’s Facebook Live Best Practices: Boost Views and Engagement.

We’ve seen a lot of businesses starting to invest in paid social ads to boost their visibility. A quick sponsored post can definitely help your page reach more people. But there’s also one other Facebook feature that many businesses are not utilizing: Facebook live.

Facebook Live is a powerful feature that many are hesitant to use. Going Live on Facebook is no different from doing a talk. And many can easily get stage fright or camera shy especially once you start seeing the how many viewers you have and the comments they’re posting on your video in real-time.

But once you’ve overcome your fears, you will find Facebook Live is a powerful tool to boost engagement on your page and generate leads. We’ve listed the Facebook Live best practices that will help you maximize your views and engagement.

Plan and Research!

Impromptu Facebook Lives are great but you can achieve better results if you plan your topic in advance. You need to plan your Facebook content strategy. Not only does it help you pin down topics that your target audience are actually following, it also helps you prepare for questions thrown in your way. It gives the right impression and makes you an authoritative figure in the industry.

Research helps you establish your purpose. What do you want to achieve after going live? Do you want more inquiries? Do you want to gain more likes and followers on your page? By preparing and learning about how your audience interacts with a certain topic, you can easily tweak your content towards your goal.

Build Hype – Market your Live Event!

Like any physical event, you want attendees when you go live on Facebook. You don’t want to waste your efforts doing research and not have viewers. You want to give your followers time to get excited about your live event and add it to their schedule.

Start marketing at least a week before the event and go all in a few days before you go live. You can post on both your personal profile and business page. If you’re part of a relevant Facebook group, make an announcement there too.

Make sure you indicate the time and date of your live event, the topics you’ll be covering, and how they can access your live stream. Quick tip: add a powerful image with your announcement to make it more eye-catching on the News Feed.

Keep Your Content Organized

Nobody likes watching a webinar or a Facebook Live that has no clear direction and rambles on and on. Avoid boring your audience and losing them after a few seconds by keeping your content organized. 

Stick to at most 3 to 5 main talking points and stay on topic. It’s easy to get distracted with comments popping up on your screen in real time. Make sure to prepare notes just in case you lose your train of thought. Keep your discussions short. Go live for a maximum of 45 minutes. 

Plan when you’re going to drop your “pitch” if you’re planning to sell something or if you are doing a giveaway (lead magnet). You also want to give viewers teasers so they keep watching until you make the offer.

Encourage Your Audience to Drop Questions

Always interact with your audience whether it’s 10 viewers or a thousand. Keep them engaged by involving them in your discussion. Encourage your audience to drop in comments or questions related to the topic. At this point, it’s more like you’re having a conversation with your audience than a lecture.

When using Facebook Live best practices, it is a useful marketing tool that helps get your content out to your target audience and keep them engaged with your brand. Social media marketing can be very challenging. But once you crack the code, and have a better understanding of your audience, it can be your best lead generator.