Facebook Live Audio Anyone?
Last week I got excited when I spotted a post about Facebook Live Audio. There was a flurry of news and speculation about it back in December 2016, but it was somewhat tempered by the fact that some big hitters were going to be trying it out. The BBC World Service and Harper Collins and some selected other authors were mentioned.
Click the image for an audiogram I have made of this blog post if you would rather listen than read.
And then I sort of forgot about it.
Until the middle of last week, when I spotted a post about it, reminding us it is going to be rolled out. It was a video from Social Media Examiner with a video update from someone who has been able to try it out.
I shared it on my Podcast Progress Facebook Page. Then I was going to write this post, but I was already in the midst of that lovely task known as ‘doing my accounts’, closely followed by ‘doing my tax return’. I like to stick to my plans. I had been putting off this financial book work anyway, so I was quite pleased at my determination not to be distracted any further at that time with this ‘shiny new object’ dangling before me.Another place I shared my excitement was with members of the
Small Business Big Magic coaching group that I am a member of. This group is run by coach
Judith Morgan and she absolutely loves audio and words. I thought it would be right up her street, especially as she is the co-host of the lovely
‘Own It – The Podcast’ with
Nicola Cairncross. Nicola got excited too and they both gave it a quick mention in
episode 136 which went live today, 23 June 2017.As with any of these new Facebook features they crawl out slowly, in ‘dribs and drabs’. I can’t do Facebook Live Audio yet, and neither could Judith when she checked. Grrrr.
What is Facebook Live Audio?
It is a very similar process to the Facebook Live Video. You can tell if you have it, if you try to do a live video and at the top of the screen, it shows you a choice of a video icon or a microphone icon. If it just goes to video, then you don’t have the audio option yet.You can load up a background image against which the audio wave of your voice is shown.And then off you go. There are a few videos around showing the details of it. I can’t do one for you as yet, ‘cos I don’t have the Facebook Live Audio functionality yet.
Why are we getting excited about ‘only’ audio?
Well let’s face it quite often all we are seeing on a FB live video is a talking head, and the important element of the message is the words, the audio element. So just having an audio version cuts out the need for ‘as much’ internet use, data use, and bandwidth. Audio uses up so much less than video does. And actually there are still plenty of places which have pretty rubbish internet and pretty rubbish phone signals. Another point for audio over video.Not everyone likes doing Facebook live streaming video. I’ve done only one and whilst I did enjoy it, I expect that I would do lots more live audio. It also gets round the hassle of hair, makeup etc. which can also deter folks from ‘going live’. It shouldn’t, but it does.And some people will just feel much more ‘at home’ and comfortable with creating audio rather than video. It’s another form of content creation and to create consistently, and well, we need to feel happy and engaged with a format that fits our personalities and mood.
What could we do with Facebook Live Audio?
Same as with live video – personal updates, thoughts, messages, sharing.But being more specific, this will really suit podcasters. Creating teasers for the show, or even after show discussions. At the moment it only works with one person, but imagine the possibilities when more than one person in different locations can get together. Talk show, chats, discussions, arguments.And it will really suit wannabe podcasters who fancy having a go with some audio but who don’t want to commit to a ‘full blown’ podcast with editing and hosting and all that stuff. How lovely that with this new feature we really can just get started. And we can also get started by either reading out our well thought out words, or just start talking and see what interest you can create, over time. Fancy giving it a go?
A few ideas
Authors and poets could read excerpts from their work. Bloggers ditto. Cooks could read out recipes and chat about them. Artists could discuss their art. Singers could sing. Rappers could rap. Wannabee DJ’s could practice ‘being on the radio’.Creative Introverts – give this some thought – not as scary as video, but a great way to create some nice, live content to share and build your audience with.So those are my initial thoughts about some possibilities for Facebook Live Audio, and I hope I get it soon. It might be a while though since it took ages before I could do those pretty coloured status updates. But in the meantime I am thinking, and planning. I am also making
audiograms so I can create some audio content as part of my content marketing work.What do you think about the possibilities for using Facebook Live Audio. How can you use it to market your business and spread your message in yet another format?
Please share – I would love to know!
