Building your brand and creating trust

- Going live is a powerful way to connect with your target audience. It creates personal connection and builds trust and loyalty. This is all great for building your brand. Let's talk about why. First, live streaming creates a sense of intimacy between you and your viewers because of it's real-time nature. Your audience knows that you are there at that moment speaking to them. That in itself creates that personal connection that just can't be replicated. Any other type of online content requires audiences to engage with something that was created in the past. Live video provides valuable real-time engagement. Second, if you do it right, viewers will perceive the livecast as casual and conversational, even when you've actually put a lot of prep into your messaging and approach. It's all about injecting that rawness and freshness that people resonate with and feel connected to. All of this helps to build a foundation of honesty and trust, which is often the first step to brand loyalty and retention. So why is all of this so important, especially now? Because authenticity is king. Today's consumers value authenticity over polish and it's more important than ever to be transparent and unfiltered. It's about showing the people and the spirit behind the brand. It's about being relatable, and yes, that can even come with imperfections and mistakes. Viewers don't expect live video to be perfect, so you can fall back on the basics, concentrate on your message, and focus on engagement. Showing your humanity in the moment is what it's all about. In addition to authenticity, accessibility is vital. Today's consumers like to engage directly with brands as they learn more about them, and the two-way nature of live video is perfect for that. People have a chance to be seen and heard during a livecast through interactive chat, Q and A, live polling, and more. Holding these types of two-way interactions lets you build stronger connections as you teach topics, answer questions, and solve problems all in the moment. Such a great way to humanize your brand, engage your customers, and earn their loyalty. Another brand building advantage of livecasting is thought leadership. If you regularly go live to talk about trending topics, offer innovative solutions to people's problems, and open yourself as a trusted voice in the industry, you'll bring authority and credibility. Now, one last benefit of live video is something of a psychological consideration in terms of audience commitment. Think about it. Viewers who take the time to watch live are consuming your content on your time. This means that you're connecting with a highly engaged audience. They often already care about your brand so you're targeting people who are more likely to respond to your call to action. People who aren't interested in your brand or your message, likely won't join your livecast. So in a sense, you're automatically setting up a filter of engagement. All of this can come with big returns. Research shows that viewers interact with live streams 10 to 20 times longer than prepackaged video content. In terms of livestream marketing, you can boost your sales intent among your target audience by 97% and solidify your brand association by 139%. (chuckles) Harnessing that type of engagement, all while showing your authenticity and accessibility, can be a great strategy to share your message and bolster your brand.