Periscope

Digital Marketing - Study Notes:

What is Periscope?

Periscope is a live streaming social app acquired by Twitter which lets users broadcast and explore the world through live video and social interactions.

Pros and cons

As with anything, Periscope does have its pros and cons.

Pros

It’s very simple to set up, making it ideal for impromptu streams on the go.

It’s also very easy for followers to interact and like a video, comment, invite others, or exchange links, and you even have the ability to broadcast to specific people.

Possibly the best feature, you can broadcast for as long as you like with no limit on stream duration.

Cons

Sharing direct Periscope links on Twitter exposes the stream to a larger audience and increases the potential for spam comments and trolls.

The default viewing setting for Periscope is public. So this makes it very hard to control access to the stream.

There’s also been many reports of technical glitches during the broadcast.

Streams are only available for replay for 24 hours after the initial broadcast ends, after which it’s deleted from your channel.

Super Hearts (more on that later) provide a limited opportunity for monetization. And you’re not even able to use your viewers from Periscope as a target audience for future paid media campaigns.

Platform features

So now, Periscope comes with its own set of unique features.

Sketch

Sketch is the ability for a broadcaster to draw on a broadcast in real time by using his or her finger on the screen of their smartphone.

Interactive viewing

Interactive viewing is the ability for viewers to heart the streams that they like and interact with the person streaming the video through comments and chat function.

Periscope Producer

Periscope Producer is a feature that allows Twitter partners to broadcast higher quality content through external cameras and software, also supporting the engagement elements found on Periscope and Twitter with minimal setup involved.

GoPro and drone integration

This is the ability to broadcast on Periscope from a GoPro or drone camera by connecting the two apps and devices through Wi-Fi.

Save

Saving is the possibility to copy broadcasts to your device automatically or manually.

Replays

Replays are videos broadcasted on Periscope that are saved automatically. You can choose to have them available indefinitely or up to 24 hours after the initial broadcast.

Map view

The map view is a feature for exploring videos being broadcast in different parts of the world through an interactive map, allowing users to search for videos by location and find streams of particular events taking place.

Broadcast search

Broadcast search is a tab used to discover broadcasts that are suggested or search specific broadcasts by tags, location, or username.

Super Hearts

Super Hearts are an interaction that viewers can purchase to monetarily support their broadcasters. When you give a broadcaster a super heart, they can accrue a star balance through Periscope super broadcaster program, and select broadcasters can redeem their star balance for cash.

How to set up and broadcast

To start broadcasting on Periscope:

1. Download the mobile app to your device.
2. Once opened, the app will ask you if you’d like to create a new account or login. If you select login, you will be asked to select which existing account you’d like to link to Periscope, the obvious choice being to link to your Twitter account.
3. Once you select which account, if you’re already logged into that account in the corresponding app on your device, it should prompt you to connect and show terms language.
4. After you click Connect, click the center button in the bottom navigation toolbar and you will be prompted to enable your device’s camera, microphone, and location before you can start a broadcast.
5. Once they are enabled, you can select your audience, type of description, select which social platforms you’d like to syndicate to. Twitter will be selected by default.
6. Then go live.

How to create a compelling live stream

So now, let’s talk about the elements for creating a compelling live stream.

• Have a storyline.
• Make sure you’re providing value.
• Show behind-the-scenes aspects.
• Have clear video and sound.

The best-case scenarios for broadcasting on Periscope include capturing live commentary around political debates, capturing live action demonstrations, doing live conversation around global events, community focus discussions, customer feedback and customer service, a product unveiling, fashion shows, car races, tutorials, and more.

How to build an organic presence

Live broadcasting requires special attention to the audience as they are the ones for whom you’re broadcasting in the first place.

To keep them interested and entertained, follow some simple rules.

• Create high quality on-brand content: Make content that people want to see and that they will associate with your brand. At the end of your broadcast, they should be able to know exactly which company was broadcasting.
• Go behind the scenes: Excite your audience with behind the scenes content and interviews with key company stakeholders and influencers. Giving the audience a value proposition or unique reason why they should watch will create excitement even before the broadcast is started.
• Run contests: During your broadcast, you can interact with your audience. Running contests is a great way to engage them, especially with promo codes to redeem on your website. This can be made during the broadcast via comments section or by asking them to retweet your Periscope to increase engagement and organic impressions.
• Use influencers and Periscope takeovers: Invite celebrities or influencers from your industry to participate in your Periscope channel and broadcast special content for your brand. This will increase your brand awareness and drive traffic to your broadcast.
• Cross-promote: Announce your Periscope account on other social media platforms and websites with links to your account. In order to get a large audience, it’s necessary to promote your Periscope on Twitter, but also leverage your other social media before it starts. For instance, you can plan a small one-week campaign to promote your upcoming Periscope broadcast telling people when and why they should attend and how to watch.
• Integrate with offline marketing channels: Using television, street marketing, mentioning the account name in the press, having signs with the account name and retail locations will be great ways to integrate into your offline channels. Just as for organically promoting your Twitter account, promoting your Periscope account will increase your audience and followers ensuring people know that you’re on Periscope and how they can find you.