There are massive benefits of hosting a live streamed event. For businesses, they can be a brilliant way to get in front of potential customers, engaging them and allowing them to ask questions, live, about your products. For casual broadcasters, it also allows you to talk about your favorite games and topics with fans who enjoy them as much as you. For some, it could lead to fame and fortune, building huge followings of viewers.
However, you can only reap the benefits of live streams if your broadcast is high quality. Poor quality broadcasts will turn off viewers and cause them to look elsewhere. With some time and effort, you can ensure that your streamed event runs smoothly and is enjoyable for your viewers and potential customers to watch.
Get a High-Quality Camera
Live stream viewers aren’t a superficial bunch, but they do have their limits. They want to tune into a broadcast where they can see everything that’s going on: graphics, facial expressions and more. With such a shareable form of media like this, where broadcasts are turned into reaction GIFs, memes, and short video clips, people need to be able to see all. This means that if your stream looks like it is being broadcast from three miles away with a lens that was dropped in a bucket of grease, it’s just not going to cut it.
According to Techradar’s list of the best webcams for PCs, leading consumer technology brands all have high-quality webcams that are affordable and ideal for streaming. Logitech’s C922 Pro Stream offers background removal, low-light correction, autofocus and more. The Microsoft LifeCam HD-3000 streams in 720p, has noise cancellation, color correction, and costs very little. It won’t win many awards for visuals but it does offer decent stream quality for cheap.
It’s worth noting that all three of these brands offer other equipment ideal for streaming. Microsoft’s Surface Book is a powerful laptop that would be able to handle streaming when you’re away from your main desktop. The Razer Lianli PC-011 is a beast of a desktop that lets you multi-task (very important for streaming). Meanwhile, it is easy to move around and stream on the go when you’re using Logitech‘s wireless gaming mouse. Their capability in these areas inspires confidence that their cameras will be up to the task, too.
Make Sure Your Hosts Are Prepared
The good thing about live streamed events is that they are incredibly accessible. Unlike a formal television hosting job, where you have to go through months of training or earn yourself a standard qualification, streams can be hosted by anyone with the right technology.
However, just because you don’t need qualifications doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try and brush up on your hosting skills. Before you begin your event, take the time to improve your charisma and work on skills like engaging the audience. If you aren’t sure where to start, then you could turn to popular, existing live streamed broadcasts, like Betway’s live casino games with real dealers for some advice. The dealers presenting live casino games like live roulette, live blackjack, and live baccarat are charming and skilled at offering a welcoming and friendly atmosphere for players. They’re also dressed for the part, wearing sharp suits and dresses, which communicate that, while they are approachable, they are professional and take their jobs as hosts very seriously.
Test Your Tech
There’s a lot of technology involved in live streaming. Anyone with some technical know-how can get involved, which adds to the accessibility of live streaming, and of course, you still want to ensure that your store-bought tech is up to the task. But as good as the webcam, microphone and laptop or computer through which you broadcast may be, your Internet connection itself is vital.
If anything is likely to cause a problem, it’s your Internet. Streaming uses a lot of bandwidth and so if others in your household or company are often using the Internet the same time as your stream, you’ll want to make sure there’s enough left for you (perhaps if they’re feeling kind, they’ll refrain from surfing the web for the duration of your event). You may also want to ask your service provider about planned outages, to make sure that they don’t coincide with your stream. If there is a problem, then USA Today has a great guide to network troubleshooting. The publication recommends internet test, rebooting your router and checking if your DNS needs debugging.
Learn How to Format Your Event
Learning how to be an engaging host isn’t the only reason you should watch other streamers. By watching other streamers in your industry, you can also learn how to format your event. Streams aren’t like traditional broadcasts and so the structure may be different.
Mediakix lists the top streamers on Twitch as Ninja, Shroud, and Summit1G. These streamers all successfully mix playing video games with Q&A sessions with viewers and offering updates about their careers or future broadcast plans. The more you watch, the more you’ll be able to get a feel for how streams should be formatted. You may also opt-in for promotional services such as the one provided by SMM Panel Youtube.
Watching live streams is becoming more popular every day. Get involved in streaming now to take advantage.
