Introduction
Is your continuing education program looking for strategies to enhance your event livestream process? Today, event live streaming has become a powerful tool for reaching global audiences in real time. Whether you’re hosting a conference, launching a new continuing education course, or managing a webinar, a well-executed livestream can connect you with attendees far beyond your in-person venue.
Continue reading to explore how to make your continuing education event livestream successful, from understanding the basics to engaging your audience effectively.
What is an event livestream?
An event livestream is a live broadcast shared online, allowing learners to tune in from anywhere in the world. Unlike pre-recorded content, event livestreams offer real-time interaction, making them ideal for fostering engagement and immediacy.
There are many benefits of event livestreams, including the following:
- Expanding the reach of your continuing education program and engaging audiences globally.
- Making courses more cost effective for learners, by saving on travel and venue expenses.
- Offering real-time interactions to build a direct connection and increase engagement with your learners.
To increase engagement with your continuing education program, try to offer many types of event livestreams like webinars, panel discussions, conference sessions, and more.
Required equipment for event livestreams
To get started with event livestreams at your continuing education program, your staff will need this basic equipment:
- A reliable camera
- A microphone for clear audio
- A stable internet connection
However, to increase learner engagement and boost the reach of your continuing education program it’s advisable to consider advanced streaming gear for your operations. Look for a multi-camera setup, external audio mixers, and lighting equipment to enhance your event livestreams.
You’ll also want to consider the cost of livestreaming your events. There are some large costs that accompany event livestreams, especially for recording conference sessions. For example, if you decide to hire a production team or an audio/video vendor, you’ll need to consider how much to budget for these specific services as well.
If you choose the right learning management system (LMS), you will likely find it has event capture services to help your staff with event livestreams. For example, Freestone LMS offers live event capture services to drive professional onsite production and post-production services. With Freestone, you can offer both livestreaming and on-demand content to your learners, boosting engagement and accessibility.
How to live stream an event
Now that you know the importance of event livestreams and you understand which equipment is required, it’s time to get started! Follow these steps to begin streaming your next event:
1. Plan your event livestream
Begin by defining your goals and audience. Do you want to use a professional team to increase accessibility and expand the reach of your program? Next, you’ll want to work with your learning staff and speakers to prepare your event content. Finally, you’ll want to schedule the event to maximize learner attendance.
2. Leverage your LMS
To stream your event, leverage your LMS to support your learners and engage your audience with interactivity features like Q&A, real-time polls, group chat, and more. Your LMS will also help support your staff’s technical needs and lessen their workload.
3. Work with a high-quality production crew
Use a dedicated on-site production crew to ensure a smooth event livestream. In advance of your live event, meet with your event capture and audio/video teams to ensure everyone understands all responsibilities and requirements.
4. Prepare your event speakers
Make sure your speakers know if they are going to be livestreamed, so everyone is on the same page during the event. You might consider asking them to sign a speaker agreement to ensure they understand they will be recorded during their presentation.
5. Broadcast your event
With your teams prepped, your speakers prepared, and your event planned, you’ll be ready to begin broadcasting! Begin your live event with a strong introduction and stick to your planned agenda regardless of what happens throughout the event.
Be sure to appoint a staff member to monitor the technical aspects happening throughout your event livestream. Having this data will help you know what worked and what didn’t, ensuring you improve your next event live stream.
5 tips to engage more learners during an event livestream
Looking for ways to engage more learners during your live events? Your LMS can help with that!
Here’s how:
1. Leverage Q&A sessions
Incorporate live Q&A sessions, giving your learners a chance to ask your speakers questions, creating a two-way interaction between learners and speakers.
2. Use polls and group chat features
Encourage learner participation by leveraging polls and chat boxes. These interactivity tools will make your learners feel involved in your event livestream.
3. Promote interactivity
Use shoutouts, giveaways, and on-screen prompts to maintain learner interest throughout your next event livestream.
4. Utilize AI-generated closed captionizing
When you choose the right LMS for your continuing education program, you leverage AI-generated closed captioning to display critical information for your learners who are hard of hearing. AI-generated closed captioning ensures accessibility and inclusivity to your educational content.
5. Provide multi-language subtitles
With the right LMS, you can offer in-player subtitles to automatically translate your event audio to the language(s) of your learner’s choice. Multi-language subtitles make event livestreams accessible to a global audience by helping your organization overcome language barriers and allowing non-native speakers to understand and engage with your learning content.
How to analyze and improve your event livestreams
To improve your event livestreams, you’ll want to gather data, analyze, and leverage your LMS to gain crucial insights into the success of your livestreams. Use your LMS to analyze key metrics such as learner viewership, engagement, and watch time to gauge the success of your event.
Another important step in improving your event livestreams is to gather feedback from your viewers. Do so by conducting post-event surveys to discover what worked and what didn’t for your learners.
To obtain crucial tips and improve your events, you’ll want to apply both the insights you gained from data and your learner feedback. Doing so will ensure continuous growth and success for your live events.