Live streaming videos are quite trendy in today’s time. To start a live stream, one needs an internet connection, a smart phone, and live streaming software. This simple setup is enough for starting a low scale streaming. However, if you are planning for a high quality streaming, then you require a camera, a capturing device, a software encoder or hardware encoder, and a video streaming host.

The process of live streaming which involves broadcasting the video over the internet in real-time, has become seamlessly easy. The technology on which live streaming works is quite easily accessible and anyone can leverage it to the fullest. With best in class reliability and superior internet bandwidth, you can stream the video in HD. StreamNow is a live streaming software, which has made streaming quite easier.

How to Live Stream?

Here is a quick run-down on the equipment required to live stream:

  • Camera:

The most important thing for starting a live stream is a camera. You have various options to choose from: smartphone or a tablet camera to a Digital SLR (DSLR) camera. The best option would be using a USB connected webcam which can produce HD quality videos. USB can also simplify the process of live streaming through the computer on the internet. Irrespective of the camera you use, make sure that it can shoot full HD i.e. 1080p video and can give output through a HDMI.

  • Capture Device:

These are used to take the video input from the camera and transmit it to the computer or to send it directly to the live stream. There is a wide range of choices available in the market for encoding devices. Quite a few are available as cards or as plug-ins between computers and cameras. There are few encoders which can help one do away with computers.

  • Software and Hardware Encoders:

Encoders play an important role in video streaming as the cameras can only record the videos in a format that is suitable only for recording. For live streaming the same, one needs an encoder which can import videos from the capture device or USB and subsequently transcode it.

The price varies to a great extent between open-source options and free ones. Examples of open-source encoders are Flash Media Live Encoder, Wirecast Pro, and VidBlasterX. After choosing an encoder, the user has to download and install the software to explore the features. Subsequently, he / she is required to set the settings. One can become proficient after the usage progressively. There are various high-end encoders which can be opted if you don’t mind shelling out a few extra bucks.

  • Internet Connection:

For live streaming, the internet is an essential requirement. It is easier to connect with a cell phone or a webcam and if a video camera is used, one can connect to the internet using a laptop connected to a transcoding device. A Wi-Fi connection is suggested as video files are large and a slow connection may not be useful.

  • Video Streaming Host:

Video streaming host is the last but not the least requirement for a live streaming. For all intents and purposes, a video streaming host is an online platform which has enough bandwidth and is configured to take video inputs from all the viewers across the world. The hardware or the encoding software should be connected to the video streaming host. Download the video streaming host and signup to create a hosting account and provide a password or URL provided by the streaming host to the encoder. This way, the streaming host can broadcast the videos.

How to Start Streaming?

To start live streaming, you need to keep the entire equipment ready. Once you have the equipment, connect to the internet and begin live streaming. The most important step is to get the live stream available for the viewers and for this, copy the URL on your video streaming host website and share it with your viewers. Now, connect all the devices and start live streaming. The video shall be broadcast to all your target audiences.

Live Streaming Guide:

Live streaming is a great option to get the first impression for an organization. Live streaming software is a powerful means to facilitate live streaming. This could be the first point of contact with an organization. First impression is always hard to reserve and hence, a company having live streaming could make a better progress compared to the one without it. Live streaming can also generate revenue, thus making its contribution all the more pivotal for the overall success of your organization. Live streaming software is said to be the best if it provides excellent branding, superior viewing experience and messaging, support and monetization options.

Few important things to consider while live streaming are:

Planning the production

Acquisition of source

Preparing content

Streaming

Interfacing audience experience

A pre-event page has to be created in advance so as to avoid confusion to the viewers and to make everything clear. Therefore, before planning a live video streaming, you need to create a web page showing the date of the event and through that, you can manage the viewership of the live feed. Another way is to create a template. Through this, you can reduce not only time but also effort. You can even think of pre-event promotions and other creative ways to increase the number of viewers.

The live streaming environment need to be responsive to mobile and it should have a high quality. The best way is to make the video compatible to be broadcasted on iOS, Android devices, and the web. This is because many videos are watched on mobile phones.

A huge amount of effort and time will be spent in making, promoting and executing videos; so one has to make sure that videos garners enough eyeballs both during and after broadcasting.

There are various ways of increasing the number of viewers for live video streaming, such as the following:

  • Blogs: Create blogs and mention the details about the videos. Transcribe the video content and create summaries.
  • Emails: Draft emails having the information and details about the videos or about the speakers in the video. Send the emails to groups and cover as many people as you can.
  • Website: Build a webpage as an event resource and a hub so that the next upcoming videos can also be published monthly, quarterly or annually. People who have an intention to attend can learn through the website.
  • Social Media: Social media is one of the best ways to advertise about the video stream and when correctly targeted, the video can generate a great brand experience. The live video feeds can be clipped on online video platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. Multiple sets can be created for multiple usages. 

Video Streaming For Dummies:

For people who have got no experience, video streaming is a big challenge. Here are few ways of video streaming for dummies which can help a beginner to stream a video.

  • Computer: Get a firewire cable which is faster than a normal USB cable. Firewire cables are compatible with MacBook Pros. For a beginner, they are the best options.
  • Camera: A DSLR camera or a webcam fixed laptop can be convenient to use. The firewire can be plugged in to the camera and MacBook for swift streaming.
  • Microphone: A camera microphone can do the job but, using a handy recorder can improve the sound quality to a great extent.
  • Internet: Having Wi-Fi connection helps to upload huge video files faster rather than a mobile data connection.
  • Finding a Platform: StreamNow is a live streaming software which can transmit the live video and audio coverage for an event over the internet. One can download it and it is available to the audience for free of cost or through payment on a monthly or per view basis. It is also available as an app for Android and iOS for streaming the videos. You may sign-up or login through various social media networks such as Google accounts, Facebook or Twitter whichever is convenient to use.
  • Marketing: You can create your own blog or website to create an idea about the video streaming. Using social media can also help in marketing. Social media networks include Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.
  • Evangelize: Make simple events to create awareness about the videos and in this way, they can catch up the live streaming when it gets broadcasted.

Use the Best Live Streaming Software – StreamNow:

StreamNow Live Streaming

StreamNow is the best solution to start live streaming of the videos as compared to any other platform. StreamNow is a highly scalable live streaming software. It has many revenue channels, many features and is extremely easy to use. All its features make StreamNow a perfect platform to design either a Ustream clone or a Twitch clone. StreamNow transmits the live video and audio coverage for an event over the internet. It has an inbuilt chat system which helps the users to discuss about the videos and can express their views or opinions. Superior video quality and continuous live streaming without any sort of technical issues make SteamNow the popular global software for live streaming.

StreamNow has got various subscription plans for its users.

 

StreamNow’s admin panel is robust and dynamic which provides a wide range of options to its users. Some options include deleting videos, flagging or changing the social login configurations, etc.

 

Viewers and users can follow one another and get alerts whenever any update is made by the person. For viewing a premium live streaming sessions, the users are required to subscribe

 

Search engine optimization (SEO) has an important role in digital marketing. StreamNow has implemented different strategies of SEO to get more quality visitors or traffic through organic search.

 

A few users may not be okay with subscription based plans. StreamNow has a feature called pay per view, where they can pay depending on the live streaming videos they watch.

 

Payments can be done through PayPal. More often than not, payments are facilitated without any chaos and one can also explore other payments options.

 

StreamNow is a live streaming platform which provides outstanding live streaming services for any firm to help them in generating billions of dollars profit every year. This can happen through live streaming ads alone.

 

StreamNow is a ready-made turnkey solution where you can launch live streaming events. Thanks to its built-in growth hacking features, you can get users subscribed for your video based events. It has various social features which made it the best live streaming solution.

 

StreamNow is available as an app for Android and iOS for the users of streaming business. It helps users to sign up or login through various social media networks such as Google accounts, Facebook or Twitter.

StreamNow is an easy live streaming platform and it doesn’t require much technical knowledge. This makes it readily available for all the users to engage in live streaming.

If you have any doubts or concerns, feel free to drop a line or two in the comments section. I shall reply in a day or two. Keep watching this space to learn more about live streaming and live streaming software. Subscribe to our newsletter to keep yourself abreast of live streaming best practices. Our best wishes are with you and your live streaming venture. Cheers!