Launching of Instagram Live Rooms
What Are Instagram Live Rooms?
Instagram has recently announced Instagram Live Rooms — a new way to go Live on Instagram with up to 3 other guests.
With the introduction of Instagram Live Rooms, brands and content creators can reach new people, drive sales, and create a community feel in real-time. According to Instagram, Live Rooms were a “highly-requested update.” Previously, you could only go live on Instagram with a single guest.
Instagram also notes some safety measures they’ve put in place for this update:
- Users who are blocked by a participant in an Instagram Live Room will not be able to join the Live
- Users who’ve had live accessed revoked because of Community Guideline violations will not be able to join a Live Room
- Live Room hosts will have the ability to block and report comments, and apply comment filters
- Instagram says Live Rooms will “soon be available globally for everyone” so watch this space!
Instagram actually began testing this functionality in India back in December 2020 – with interest in live-streaming on the rise in the Indian market, and Instagram looking to capitalise on the ban on TikTok in the country, it launched a new trial of multi-participant live-streams to boost user interest.
How to Create an Instagram Live Room
To initiate a Live Room simply swipe left and choose the “Live Camera” option. From there, you can add a title and tap the Rooms icon to add your guests. Upon starting a Live Room, you’ll stay at the top of the screen when you add further guests. As a host, you can add up to 3 guests at once or add them one by one as surprise participants!
Going live with multiple guests is a fantastic way to increase your reach and engagement, as guests’ followers will also be notified of the broadcast too. Hello new followers!
Creative Ways to Use Instagram Live Rooms
There are many ways these Live Rooms can be utilised and here we’ll list just a few of them to give you some ideas:
- Product Demos
Livestream product demos are a great way to showcase new products and test them out in real-time in front of your audience. With Instagram’s Live Shopping feature, you can watch a product demo and purchase the item all without leaving the app.
- Panel Chats and Q&As
With many live events cancelled in 2020 and early 2021, video connectivity has soared and so panel chats or Q&A’s with your favourite celebs or personalities have become increasingly popular. It’s worked wonders for people’s engagement levels and we think they will continue to be a viable option once normality resumes.
- Live Performances
Similar to the previous idea, musicians such as Chris Martin of Coldplay have taken to the virtual stage and performed concerts that would have otherwise been cancelled. Being able to experience a concert close up and personal in the comfort of your own home has been a real hit.
- Audience Feedback Sessions
Feedback from your community is integral to future ideas and content – What do they think of the new product? What type of content would they like to see? Engaging with your followers in the form of a Live Room makes this even more of a personal experience and enhances brand loyalty.
- Interactive Classes
With many gyms, classes and events on hold due to the pandemic, people have taken to Instagram Live Rooms to host work out sessions, baking sessions, food tasting and so much more. With Live Rooms, you have the opportunity for up to 4 hosts to lead a section of your “class”, each with their own area of expertise.
- Interactive Giveaways or Quizzes
If you usually host giveaways on your profile, Live Rooms add an extra layer of excitement to it by adding in that live/competitive element.
You could collab with other creators or brands to create a Live Room where a few lucky people get the opportunity to answer some questions for a chance to win some goodies!
Everyone loves game shows and freebies, and so with Instagram Live Rooms you can tap into your customers’ competitive sides whilst having some fun and engaging with your audience.