By now most of us might’ve tried live streaming performances. Even in a post-pandemic world, performing at bars, festivals, events, and more is not necessarily something that every artist can do or is able to do. So, for those of you who are begrudgingly turning to live streams after avoiding it for more than 2 years, things have changed. Live streams are getting better and more monetary. These are the tips we have for you for live-streaming in 2023.
1. Create a Live stream that’s visually pleasing
Part of what makes a live stream entertaining is making it a vibe. Live streams also mean vibe curation. Not only are you sharing your music, you’re sharing your entire process and journey. When live streaming, it’s important to have no distractions. Your backdrop should be visually pleasing, but not distracting. Some examples of distractions include: people walking in the background, open doors or closets, a very vibrant or crowded backdrop image, etc.
You’ll also want to have good lighting. What most first time live streamers fail to compensate for is brightness. Ring-lights are incredibly popular for live streaming, but there are other ways to add light to your stream. Find something that fits your aesthetic and participate in test runs with close friends or family to ensure your stream will have enough brightness.
Lastly, dress your best. We know this concert is taking place from inside your bedroom, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t treat it like an actual performance. Your fans are still here to watch you perform, even if it’s not in person. So make sure you dress as if you were actually performing at a venue.
2. Consistency is Key
This is one we say a lot. Attention spans get shorter and shorter every year. People forget events unless they are constantly reminded. Humans are creatures of consistency. They follow along better when they have a recurring schedule. As an artist and creator, it is your job to keep your viewers coming by staying consistent with your live streams. Make a plan or schedule of what and when you’re going to live stream and stick to it. Tailor your streams to your fans. Go live when it’s most convenient for them, research when they’re on social media, and perform something they would enjoy. Make something intriguing and worth your time and theirs.
3. Choose your preferred live streaming platform
As live streaming became more and more popular throughout the pandemic, more platforms began to conform to live streams. Nowadays, there are a multitude of platforms to choose from. To name a few, here’s a list of the most common platforms to live stream on (besides social media):
Enroll in Volume.com’s Artist Accelerator Program
The Volume.com Artist Accelerator Program is the live streaming platform’s continued effort to be an artist-centric and artist-first platform by helping independent musicians like you to grow, monetize, and engage with your communities. The program includes additional career-accelerating opportunities including: weekly streamer grants, showcases, and opportunities to play at Volume.com’s venue network across the US.
4. Live Streaming Monetization Tactics
With progressing live streams, there also comes progressing monetization tactics. The most common forms of earning money from live streaming come in bundles, tips/donations, and outbound links. With bundles, you can have select merch on sale only during live streams, or merch that is unique to each particular live stream. This creates an incentive to buy because it is one-of-a-kind or exclusive, two things many people search for. You can also ask for tips and donations through a virtual tip jar where fans can contribute only if they’d like. You can also share an outbound link where viewers can contribute to your art such as Patreon.
5. Have good tech
Having good tech is incredibly essential to live streaming. The last thing you want is your mic to cut out, your laptop to die, or for you to lose connection in the middle of your live stream. A good thing to do is to check your camera, computer, and any other tech you have, the night before your stream to make sure they have solid charge and are connected to the internet with fast speed. While you can easily stream from your phone – especially if you have a really good, new phone – it might be nice to invest in some high-tech gear. This can be a good mic, headphones, audio mixer, cables, or camera.
6. Be Yourself
Last but certainly not least, when live streaming, remember to be yourself. The most intriguing form of live streaming is one with personality and energy. What makes you unique? That’s what people want to know. They are more interested in seeing who you are behind the music. The best way to get people to watch your live stream is to be yourself and share that vulnerability and intimacy with your fans.
More Live-Streaming Tactics Coming Soon
As live streaming continues to grow in 2023, there are more features coming soon to keep an eye out. TikTok is currently in the works of a new feature called TikTok Live Studio. While it’s still in testing at the moment, if all goes well this is a feature we may be seeing sometime this year. The Live Studio will include a chat feature and window manager for streaming. It will also attempt to compete with other live stream platforms by allowing to schedule livestreams and ticket sales.
TikTok isn’t the only app looking to expand their live streaming capabilities. Twitch is also adding something new this year. Twitch recently released an Ads Incentive Program as an attempt to give their streamers more monetization opportunities. This feature will offer creators a more predictable monthly income through ads with no ceiling. All streamers have to do is what they do best; stream. If they stream successfully for a number of hours each month with ads rolling, they will get paid. The best part is streamers don’t have to focus on the ads, once they choose the incentive, the ads will do all the work by themselves so streamers can focus only on live streaming. This feature is only available for select partners and affiliates, but will hopefully soon expand to every user.
Interested in live streaming but not quite sure how to market and promote your stream? Download this FREE live streaming checksheet for more information on best practices for live streams.
