Live streaming allows you to watch, create, and share videos in real-time, almost like live TV. All you need for live TV streaming is an active internet connection, handheld device, PC, MAC, and a platform to live stream from.
Popular live streaming applications that also offer live TV streaming services include Facebook Live, Instagram Live stories, Twitch TV (often used by the gaming community), House Party and Tik Tok. Unline pre-recorded videos can easily be cut, edited, and altered; live TV is just live and uncensored.
Some live streams can be completely private such as video conferences conducted through Skype or Zoom. However, some live streams are public and can be viewed by hundreds or even thousands of people simultaneously.
Viewers can also comment and interact live by posting messages that appear beside the live stream. They can also express their sentiments through emojis such as hearts, smileys, and even gift coins which can appear on the screen.
While live TV streaming hasn’t been around for too long, it has quickly become popular among those who look for new and innovative ways to deliver content.
This article will discuss the seven advantages of live TV streaming and its effectiveness.
Live streaming vs. Video-on-demand streaming
Live streaming is the same as streaming or video-on-demand streaming, except in live streaming, the viewers consume the content in real-time without any significant delay or time gap.
In regular video-on-demand streaming, the content is processed and displayed as a steady, continuous stream of data through streaming media platforms such as Netflix, YouTube, Vimeo, Roku, Hulu, etc. The media is pre-recorded and downloaded onto the system that the media server has access to.
Live streaming consists of media intended for single-purpose transmission and playback over the internet in real-time. It does present a whole different set of challenges compared to traditional video-on-demand streaming.
Advantages of live streaming
Here are some of the most popular advantages of live streaming.
1. Users consume content on your time
The biggest and most popular advantage of live TV streaming is that viewers will view the content on your time and not on their time.
This means you only engage with people who care about you, your brand, and people who find your content extremely useful.
You will automatically target content at the people who are more likely to convert and follow you further. No other content marketing channel can effectively achieve what live streaming does.
2. Less crowded
It’s only a matter of time before live TV streaming becomes over-populated, just like any other digital marketing channel.
Although it hasn’t quite reached that point yet, it is quickly gaining attraction, and more and more people are using it daily.
For example, Facebook’s organic post reach dropped. This has happened because Facebook timelines are becoming more and more competitive. It had to tweak its algorithm, leaving only a tiny portion of people who get to see your organic posts.
The same can happen to live streaming, so you should act now if you wish to reach the target audience via live TV.
3. Reaching highly targeted niches
Accessing live streams requires more commitment from your followers because they need to tune in on your time, regardless of whether it is the best time.
An automatic filter keeps the people who are not interested in your topic from joining the conversation. It means you’d be sharing your content only to the users interested in you, your niche, and your content.
4. Economical
Live TV streaming is completely free. You do not need any special equipment, software, or even hardware. It only takes a smartphone or a laptop with a camera and an active account with a chosen platform.
While traditional blogging and content production would usually require a set of properly configured software programs (e.g. hosting & platform), live TV streaming is accessible to anyone with a click.
5. Less time to produce content
Compared to writing a blog, producing Live TV content is less time-consuming. Writing a 500-word blog can take approximately 2 hours, and creating a 1,500-2,000 word article can take 4-8 hours.
While a 500-word post would not be regarded as a comprehensive piece of content and would not generate a lot of exposure, it can be read in 3-to 4 minutes.
The data varies when it comes to traditional video production like vlogs. According to Make Use Of, creating and editing a simple vlog could take 2-3 hours. A 4-minute live video would take only 4 minutes.
6. Real-time engagement
Whenever you are reading an article or blog, you are reading the work of the past. Supporting real-time user engagement has continuously enabled live TV streaming to make a dent in content marketing.
Live streaming provides real-time engagement benefits to users. It also allows businesses to offer live support, Q&A sessions, and office tours.
This real-time engagement will help businesses grow, expand, earn, and obtain crucial user feedback.
7. Repurpose content
This point can be applied to any content. Live TV streams or videos can easily be transformed into another form of content such as video transcript, blog article, infographic, or reproduced on YouTube.
Nevertheless, it’s always advisable to repurpose content to broaden your message’s reach.
8. Ease & Convenience
A common myth about live streaming is that it’s too difficult and technical for the average person to pull off. On the contrary, live streaming can be very simple.
All you need are relevant video and audio equipment, an internet connection, an encoder, and a trusty streaming platform.
Many professional streaming services provide in-depth documentation and tutorials to help broadcasters use their platforms.
Final Thoughts
As you can see now, live TV streaming is an extremely useful channel for delivering content to a wide range of audiences instantly and with the ability to keep them engaged.
However, like any other streaming medium, it has its share of disadvantages. But, its advantages easily outweigh the disadvantages.
Still, before you jump headfirst into live TV video streaming, carefully weigh out all the pros and cons and decide whether it’s suitable for your needs.
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