Facebook Live VS Instagram Live: How to Utilize Livestreaming Platforms to Their Fullest Potential for Schools

Live video is being used by more and more brands as a way to reach and connect with their audience. From scripted content to spontaneous engagement, new communities are forming around the brands that bring them together.
Schools are starting to embrace this trend. Being transparent — and vulnerable — allows you to establish trust with your potential families. Livestreaming platforms are a great way to engage with your current and potential families.
Digital influence has never been so popular. The future of marketing is fostering better ways of engagement between brands and audiences, which includes livestreaming.
The rise in video viewing can somewhat be attributed to several factors:
- an increase in the overall time spent on mobile,
- the convenience of on-demand viewing,
- a preference for digital video viewing, and
- the increased availability of mobile video content.
Facebook Live and Instagram Live have quickly positioned themselves as leaders in the livestreaming space. Afterall, people trust Facebook and Instagram; they lie dead-center in the middle of the social media “circle of trust.”
Maximizing the Potential of Facebook and Instagram Live
Here are some ways to utilize these livestreaming platforms to their full potential:
Instagram:
- Prior to going live, give your viewers a sneak peek about what you’ll be doing. This will engage more followers and interest when you are live.
- Give recaps of what you’re talking about for those who may have missed any portion of your live segments.
- Like Snapchat, Instagram’s live feed disappears almost instantly. Use this opportunity to direct your followers to a link in your bio so that they can get more information on what the live video was about.
Facebook:
- Download the video you created and cross post it on other platforms. This will surely increase your following and spread the word.
- Tag people who were viewing your live segment to acknowledge that you noticed their presence. Take it a step further by personalizing it with a comment.
- Always headline your live video with a topic. This will engage people who are especially interested in what you have to say if it pertains to them.
Engaging with your followers is a necessity in both platforms. By going real time, you’re letting your viewers know that you are speaking to them. This is especially great when you are seeking increased enrollments because you can use it for educational purposes as well as answer questions live. If you utilize both livestreaming platforms to their full potential, you can definitely expect to produce substantial boosts in engagement and increase your social followings.
Once you decide that you would like to livestream on one of the two channels, how do you choose which platform is best suited for your needs?
The place to start, of course, is where you have the largest, most engaged audience.
Perhaps you have a large audience on both livestreaming platforms (and they may very well be overlapping audiences.) Here is an infographic that illustrates some of the variances between the two applications.
Infographic

Do you use Facebook and Instagram Live? What do you like about each one? Are there any tips you would like to share about increasing your social following and engagement? Please share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!
Originally published at Inbound Marketing for Schools | SchneiderB Media.
