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Live-streaming

Take a look behind the scenes

Kara Melchers

Managing Editor, BITE Creativebrief

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Urbanears Pigeon Bingo by Oakwwod

Wednesday 20th July 2016 was hot, and when the sun comes out there’s only one thing to do…eat ice-cream. The savvy people at LADBible recognised the nations’ love for the ice-lolly and set out to discover which variety is top when it comes to withstanding the heat. Using Facebook Live they live-streamed the ‘Last Lolly Standing’ challenge, attracting a whopping 4 million viewers; a figure worthy of a well-produced TV show.

At the beginning of the year the weather in Dallas Texas was much less pleasurable, causing Southwest Airlines to delay flights. To reassure passengers they were doing everything they could, a friendly looking employee in a red jumper started to live-stream updates from their network operation control centre. The video content attracted more than 100,000 viewers and help to humanise what was a frustrating problem for both passengers and the airline.

We all value honesty and transparency, we love to know what’s happening behind the scenes. Live streaming gives brands the opportunity to have an open, real-time conversation with their customers. Whether responding to a crisis, going back-stage or presenting a scheduled show, live-streaming invites viewer participation, encouraging stories to go in new unseen directions.

It’s not just a platform for brands. For a generation of self-publishers it’s a new digital territory to explore. Major cultural events are now captured by amateurs, offering new, alternative and uncensored points of view. To work, these publishing platforms must remain unbiased in an increasingly complex world, offering up a soapbox to whomever wants to tell their story.

Read on for brand examples

Jamie Oliver’s live global cooking marathon

The Food Revolution is a global campaign set up and fronted by Jamie Oliver, which sees Jamie and his army of revolutionaries raise awareness of ongoing food issues. 2016 marked the fifth year of the Revolution and to celebrate the occasion Jamie wanted to bring the campaign to audiences across the globe via the power of Facebook Live.

An eight-hour global cooking marathon was planned, spanning 11 different countries, with 11 headline celebrity chefs. From Tanzania to Denmark, LA to India, local ambassadors including Cheryl, Kris Jenner and Bollywood star, Jacqueline Fernandez joined famous chefs like Wolfgang Puck and Jamie to cook simple and healthy recipes Live on Facebook.

The concept of healthy food and the ingredients on offer differs depending on the region. For each show in-depth research was undertaken into the local cuisine and eating habits to determine the best way of demonstrating how to eat well.

Media interviews were scheduled around the globe for Jamie and the chefs to spread the word of the revolution. This resulted in widespread global and national coverage, highlighting not only the talent involved, but raising awareness of the issues.

Agency: freuds, London

115.2 m
people reached on Facebook
708k
sign ups to the revolution

WildAid broadcast the destruction of 105 tonnes of ivory

On April 30th 2016 WildAid, the wildlife conservation charity, used Periscope to live-stream the biggest cremation of ivory in history. Aimed at the Chinese market, but broadcast globally, this was an effort to put the material beyond economic use and help move a step closer to ending the trade for good. The event took place in Kenya where 105 tonnes of ivory was destroyed, representing thousands of dead elephants killed over 25 years. Part of the #JoinTheHerd campaign, the event was also streamed live to WeChat, China’s biggest social media platform. This coincided with an ad announcing the destruction of ivory, which ran every 15 mins on a digital billboard in Shanghai’s equivalent of Times Square. Elsewhere around the globe the event could be viewed on Twitter and through a Facebook event.

Agency: Grey London, London

Urbanears live streams Pigeon Bingo

To create a buzz around the launch of their new Plattanan ADV headphones, Urbanears enlisted the help of some local feathered friends. Appealing to an actively engaged Twitter audience, the youth brand designed the first game of Pigeon Bingo – a custom built cage where 25 pigeons sat above 25 plastic heads sporting the new headwear. By picking five numbers viewers could participate in six one hour games over two days, those who got ‘bingo’ would win a pair of the headphones. Each game was turned into an interactive show with live commentators, including YouTube star Sp4zie.

Agency: Oakwood Creative Digital Agency, Stockholm

Benefit live streams Tipsy Tricks

Every Thursday Benefit stream a make-up tips show live on Facebook. The host and a guest demonstrate new products and techniques, while sipping wine and responding vewer questions in real-time. The first two streams had 42,000 and 59,000 live viewers respectively, with an average of 2,000 people watching them at any given time.

Agency: In-house

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