Going live: 7 tips for any social media platform
Going live on any social media platform can feel intimidating, but if you let fear keep you away from live videos, you're missing out on an ample opportunity.
Viewers spend up to eight times longer watching live content than on-demand video, and live streams with active interactive elements, like polls and live Q&A, generate up to 10 times more comments than passive broadcasts. The global live streaming market reached $87.5 billion in 2025 and is projected to hit $345 billion by 2030, so audiences clearly aren't losing their appetite for it.
Platform reach has shifted quite a bit since live video first took off. YouTube Live now holds the largest share of the live streaming market globally, LinkedIn Live videos earn seven times more reactions than standard native video (making it a strong pick for B2B brands), and 43 percent of U.S. young adults say they prefer Instagram Live to other video formats on the platform.
Social media live video happens in real-time, with no editing, so the footage is completely authentic. This makes live video content appealing to social media audiences.
Regardless of what social media platform you're going live on, the following are seven tips to help you be more purposeful, engaging and successful.
| Tip | The core idea |
|---|---|
| Announce ahead of time | Give your audience notice so they can show up |
| Plan with an outline | Structure prevents dead air and rambling |
| Invest in decent gear | You just need to be seen and heard clearly |
| Practice before going live | A quick run-through catches problems early |
| Focus on connection | Prioritize authenticity over selling |
| Invite guests | A second voice keeps the conversation dynamic |
| Consider timing (loosely) | Aim for peak audience hours, but lean on replays too |
Announce your live video ahead of time
It's always a best practice to make sure that your audience is aware that you're going live soon. This can be as simple as sharing posts announcing the live video in advance and sharing what viewers can expect to see.
But you don't have to keep your promotion restricted to that particular social media platform. You can cross-promote on different platforms. You also can promote on other mediums, such as blog posts and/or email newsletters and so on.
Some platforms, like Facebook, allow you to create an event where you can include all relevant information about the upcoming live video. When users RSVP to the event, they'll get notifications and reminders beforehand, which can help increase your overall live-viewing audience size.
Plan ahead with an outline
There is no reason to jump onto a live video cold with no plan. Spontaneity is inevitable, of course. You're live, after all. But the more you can plan and prepare in advance, the better you'll be.
An outline can help prevent many silly mistakes and ensure that you cover exactly what you're aiming for in your live video. Include any calls to action as well, such as visiting your website, subscribing to your email newsletter or something else.
Because it's ideal for your live video to run for at least 20 minutes, the better your plan, the easier this video length will be to achieve naturally. Keep your key points in bullet form rather than a full script, since reading verbatim tends to strip out the authenticity that makes live video worth watching in the first place.
Invest in decent gear
Before you panic about how much "decent gear" might cost you for going live, remember that your gear only has two goals in which your audience should be able to:
- See you well.
- Hear you well.
That's it. So, keep it simple. A basic tripod can prevent your live video from being shaky. A ring light can make it easy to see you, no matter what time of day it is. And wireless earbuds can stand in as your microphone so that not only can you be heard, but most will help cancel out any background noise as well.
While you're at it, double-check your WiFi connection and internet speed. Over half of viewers will abandon a live stream that buffers for more than a few seconds, so this matters more than any camera or lighting purchase. Aim for a minimum upload speed of 5 to 10 Mbps for HD, and use a wired Ethernet connection over WiFi if you can, since it eliminates the interference that causes dropped frames.
Practice before going live
Live video on social media is definitely more casual than traditional, recorded videos, but you still want to represent your brand well.
It's always a good idea to practice before going live. This can involve practicing what you want to say, testing your lighting and evaluating whether there are any potential distractions (such as background noises) that you can eliminate before going live for real.
Focus on connecting with your audience
Going live on social media should be about connecting with your viewers more than anything else. (It should be the priority over selling and promoting.)
Live videos enable you to show your audience a behind-the-scenes peek into your brand. This helps them to connect with you and/or others behind your brand, creating that human connection.
Make the most of the interactivity that sets live video apart: greet viewers by name as they join, explicitly ask them to drop answers in the comments, and acknowledge questions by name when you respond. Audiences engage far more when directly invited to participate than when left to jump in on their own.
Invite guests to your social media live videos
The engagement factor for live videos exponentially increases when you can bring guests on to liven up and enrich the conversation. The more dynamic the conversation, the more viewers you'll get and the more comments that can be generated.
When planning out your live video topics, consider who might have expertise that can elevate the conversation. Some guests might be nervous about appearing on live video, so make sure to reassure them. It helps to talk them through your plan for the live video so that they know what to expect as much as possible.
Consider your timing (but don't be ruled by it)
Ideally, you're going live at a time of day when your audience can be most engaged. But it's also possible that your audience is across multiple time zones, so while you generally want to target the best time for your audience, remember that most live videos are recorded and can be played back by users afterward.
This is particularly true if your brand is global. Target your timing for where the bulk of your target audience is, and then share and promote the recording afterward for everyone else.
Don't let the recording just sit there when it's done, either. A single stream can be trimmed into short clips for Reels or TikTok, transcribed into a blog post, or pulled apart for social graphics, turning one live video into a week's worth of additional content.
In conclusion
Truly, the most important thing to remember when going live on social media is to simply be yourself and have fun. Live videos are an authentic way to connect with your audience, and they will be able to tell immediately if you're not being yourself.
Success comes down to finding that sweet spot between being yourself and representing your brand.
Check out the eight most common social media mistakes and how to avoid them. Newer to social media marketing, explore these 17 free online courses to help you level up your social media skills. And if you're a multi-location business, see our 12 live-streaming tips for franchises specifically for guidance on keeping it consistent across locations.
While you're planning out your next live videos for social media, think about how you can improve your digital marketing process. Is it everything you want it to be? DailyStory features automation, audience segmentation and more. Schedule your free demo with us today.