Photographers are used to operating from anonymity. Yet, you should occasionally put on a face-to-face appearance if you value developing a genuine, open relationship with your social media followers. Hosting an Instagram Live is a great approach to interact with a target audience.
The Live feature, introduced by the social media giant in 2016, enables users to capture live broadcasts and share them afterwards. Since then, the function has skyrocketed in popularity, allowing users to engage with their favourite accounts in real time by posting comments or asking questions.
If you want to increase the number of people who view your photographs on Instagram, you should try Instagram Live. Here, you’ll learn all you need to know to start broadcasting live on Instagram and what makes for a successful session.
Step-by-step instructions for initiating your first Instagram Live broadcast
It’s less of a hassle than you would think to go live on Instagram. To help you get going, we’ve included helpful links and information below.
If you want to get the most out of your Instagram Live broadcast, you should do the following:
There are a handful of things you need to complete before hitting the “go live” button on Instagram.
The goal must be established
Ask yourself why you want to go live on Instagram. The purpose of your live broadcast must be determined in advance, whether you’re doing an interview, showing viewers behind the scenes of a picture shoot, or taking questions from the crowd. Having an outline to refer to throughout the live broadcast can help you stay on topic and on schedule.
Verify your preferences
To ensure that your iPhone’s video quality is up to par, record a short test clip and play it back to evaluate the audio and lighting. If the video is too dim, try increasing the brightness of your screen or moving to a more well-lit area. For shooting, a window’s natural light is hard to beat.
You may need to get closer to the camera or relocate to a quieter area if the recording environment is too noisy or you can’t be heard well. A microphone that is compatible with the iPhone might be useful for some people.
Furthermore, make sure your iPhone is completely charged. If your phone dies in the middle of an Instagram Live broadcast, it will be a major bummer.
Publicize it
While just a subset of your followers will receive notifications about your live video, you may increase your exposure by announcing it to your audience in advance through an Instagram post or Story. Also, you may use Facebook and Twitter to spread the word about your livestream.
Tutorial on streaming live on Instagram
You’re ready to go live on air now that everything has been set up and checked. In order to successfully host a live broadcast on Instagram, please refer to the following guidelines:
Launch Instagram.
To start recording a story, tap the camera symbol that appears at the upper left of the screen.
To go live, simply move the Story label from the bottom of the screen to the left.
A record button should appear in the middle of the screen.
Taking Control of Your Instagram Live Comments
Live videos on Instagram can be commented on by anybody who watches them. Nevertheless, if your profile is set to private, no one except your approved followers will be able to see your live broadcast or leave comments on it.
Live video hosting has unique challenges, not the least of which is keeping tabs on the comments thread. That’s why so many webmasters disable the feature entirely. Find out how to disable comments on your Instagram Live broadcast below.
- Launch the Instagram app on your device.
- To begin recording a story, choose the camera icon located in the upper left of the screen.
- The Story button at the screen’s bottom may be slid left to reveal the Live option.
- A record button should appear in the middle of the screen.
- To access further options, click the three vertical dots that appear to the left of the comments area.
- Click the Comments Off button.
By repeating the steps above, you may enable comments again. If you want to interact with your viewers, leave the comment section enabled for your video so they may provide feedback. The steps are simple; just read on!
- Launch the Instagram app on your device.
- To begin recording a story, choose the camera icon located in the upper left of the screen.
- The Story button at the screen’s bottom may be slid left to reveal the Live option.
- A record button should appear in the middle of the screen.
- Use the comment box below to respond.
- To respond, enter your response and press Enter.
Instagram Live Question-and-Answer Strategy
There are a few options for responding to questions asked during Instagram Live broadcasts. The first, and maybe most obvious, choice is to monitor the comments and discuss viewers’ queries throughout your live broadcast. When answering a question, always credit the person who posed it by name.
Q&A stickers, Instagram’s newest feature, allow users to submit questions during a live broadcast. How to utilise them is as follows:
- Launch the Instagram app on your device.
- To begin recording a story, select the Story Camera option from the menu bar.
- On the screen’s central left area, click the Create button.
- Choose the item with the question mark on it by scrolling right down the list at the screen’s bottom.
- You may customise the question-asking option to your liking by editing the text in the box provided.
- To begin writing your story, select the option labelled “Your story” from the menu.
Wait for questions to accumulate, and then go live. How to respond to questions asked on Instagram Stories during a Live broadcast:
- To begin recording a story, tap the Story Camera icon in the upper left corner.
- The Story button at the screen’s bottom may be slid left to reveal the Live option.
- You may start recording by clicking the button in the middle of the screen.
- After going live, use the question mark icon adjacent to the comments section to ask a question.