If you’re looking for a way to increase engagement for your small business, video marketing is the way to go. Live streaming, video marketing’s latest trend, has recently gained traction as a valuable marketing tool. Although live streaming is in its early stages, it has proved to be a useful for increasing customer engagement and business exposure.
While there are many platforms for live streaming, Facebook and Snapchat are the two most popular platforms for marketing. Facebook introduced its live streaming feature, Facebook Live, earlier this year, while Snapchat launched its version of live streaming, called Snapchat Stories, a few years ago. These features are helping viewers get an inside look at small businesses.
Facebook Live and Snapchat Stories are both platforms you can use to market your business. While the purpose is roughly the same, the platforms vary slightly and have their own advantages based on your business’s needs. So, what’s better for your business? Read on to find out!
How Does Facebook Live Work?
Facebook Live is a feature on Facebook where you can stream live video on your business’s page for up to 90 minutes. Facebook users can comment, share, and interact with your live stream in real time. When your live stream is over, the video is posted on your Facebook page like a regular video post. For more information, check out how your small business can use Facebook Live.
How Do Snapchat Stories Work?
Snapchat Stories are collections of 1-10 seconds pictures and short videos users post on their accounts. Your followers can view the pictures and videos on your story as many times as they want until your content disappears after 24 hours. Snapchat Stories are live snapshots taken from your phone that can be seen by anyone who follows you. Getting your small business on Snapchat can help you connect with your customers and build strong relationships with them.
Comparing Facebook and Snapchat
Although Facebook and Snapchat are entirely different platforms, they do have some similarities. Both Facebook and Snapchat are mobile apps that require only a smartphone to live stream, making them easy to use on a daily basis. Starting your live stream is fast and simple as well, which means that you’ll be saving time and money for your business.
User Engagement: Facebook vs. Snapchat
Facebook and Snapchat also have large audiences, with approximately 1.6 billion monthly active users and 100 million daily active users, respectively. When it comes to engagement however, the platforms can vary greatly.
Facebook Live: Facebook announced earlier this year that its algorithms favor live streamed videos over regular videos as they continue spreading Facebook Live. Videos already have a higher engagement rate than pictures and links, which makes live streaming a potentially successful endeavor. According to Business Insider, Facebook boasts an engagement rate of approximately 40 minutes per day for users in the United States.
Snapchat Stories: Snapchat dedicated an entire section on the app to Stories, which increases your Story’s visibility to users. Snapchat users spend about 25-30 minutes on Snapchat each day, which is also extremely high for a social network.
Differences Between Facebook Live and Snapchat Stories
Facebook Live and Snapchat Stories offer quick and easy ways to live stream to a large audience, but you should understand their differences if you’re thinking of using live streams for your business. Let’s contrast Facebook Live and Snapchat Stories so you can choose the right channel(s) to engage with your fans:
Social Sharing: Facebook vs. Snapchat
Facebook Live: Facebook Live videos live stream and publish to your business’s Facebook page after your live stream is over. Like other Facebook content, Facebook Live videos can be liked, shared, and commented on. The ability to share Facebook Live videos makes this content highly engaging and good for small businesses. Only Facebook Live gives followers the option to engage with and share your video after it’s been published.
Snapchat Stories: Snapchat Stories disappear forever 24 hours after they’ve been posted. This adds a sense of urgency for users to check Snapchat daily so they don’t miss anything.
Video Length: Facebook Live vs. Snapchat Stories
The lengths of Facebook Live videos and Snapchat Stories are also drastically different.
Facebook Live: Up to 90 minutes per video.
Snapchat Stories: Up to 10 seconds per video.
Due to this time difference, many businesses who use Facebook Live post videos once a week, while businesses on Snapchat often post a few times a day.
Audiences: Facebook vs. Snapchat
Facebook Live: Facebook has an enormous audience of every behavior and demographic, and they can check Facebook on both computers and mobile devices. Facebook’s diverse audience gives businesses a great channel for small business owners to reach their target audience.
Snapchat Stories: Many small business owners have a Facebook business page and aren’t on Snapchat, which means that they would have to create a Snapchat and grow their following on another social media network to get any use from Snapchat. Snapchat is only available on mobile devices, which limits your audience to more tech savvy smartphone users. Millennials and teenagers represent a large portion of Snapchat’s audience. For more information, check out how you can use Snapchat to grow your audience.
Promoting Your Business: Facebook Live vs. Snapchat
Snapchat and Facebook also offer unique ways you can pay to promote your business.
Facebook Live: Like other types of Facebook post promotions, you can share Facebook Live posts and cross-promote the posts on your other social media channels. On Facebook, you can use Facebook’s advertising platform to promote your video to your target audience. Promoting your live stream will increase the visibility of your video to a custom audience you create.
Snapchat Stories: Snapchat provides location tags (called geofilters), selfie lenses, and filters you can buy and brand for your business. The purpose of these features is to get other Snapchat users to interact with and become interested in your business.
How Businesses Can Use Facebook Live
Facebook Live provides a wider range of tools than Snapchat Stories for business owners to use to build customer engagement. Facebook Live has such a large audience that most businesses can take advantage of live video streaming on Facebook.
Businesses can hold Q&As on Facebook Live and answer questions and concerns followers have. Consultants and financial planners can hold webinars on Facebook Live and continue responding to comments after the live stream is over. Restaurants can live stream cooks making customers’ most popular dish in their kitchen. Day cares and fitness centers can walk through their businesses and show their facilities to potential customers. There are countless examples of how small businesses can take advantage of Facebook Live to help bring exposure to their businesses.
How Businesses Can Use Snapchat Stories
There are many businesses that can benefit from Snapchat Stories. Small businesses in the fashion and retail industries can post pictures and videos of popular products in their stories, encouraging followers to come in and buy them. If you run a stadium or perform events, you can put highlights and sound bites of your events on your Snapchat Story. Music festivals and sports teams often use Snapchat to help their followers feel like they are actually part of the action.
Many events last longer than Facebook Live is able to record, which makes Snapchat the best option for businesses to use when live streaming events. Restaurants can post pictures of their original entrees or give a behind the scenes look at their chefs in action! For Snapchat, less is more. Snapchat Stories are best for businesses who want to show short clips of various quirks that their business has to offer.
Small businesses can take advantage of both Facebook Live and Snapchat Stories for video marketing, but one platform might be a better fit than another for your business. For more information on video marketing, check out how your small business can stand out with video marketing.
