How to live stream a School Event

Unless you've been living underneath a rock for the past five years, then you've probably heard of live streaming. Live streaming allows you to connect your event, message, or story with your audience at the exact moment that it happens. Live streaming's become a lot easier to do over the past five years with Facebook, Youtube, Instagram and many other platforms releasing live streaming capabilities. Now it is easier than ever to live stream your events.

Where should we host the live stream?

So, where should you stream to? Picking a platform to live stream your school event can be a difficult process. There are so many options out there. My suggestion is that you use a platform where your audience already is. So, if your school has a Facebook community page where parents, students and teachers are engaging with your content and already following, well, then use that. This means that you will be able to connect with the most people with the least amount of work. Facebook also has many great features like commenting, liking, and sharing that will help drive engagement to the live stream. The only downside to using Facebook is that you must have an account to watch the video, but these days, most parents of students attending schools have Facebook accounts and will be able to watch the event there.

You can also use YouTube. If you do decide to do this, then I would suggest using YouTube as well as Facebook. This will allow you to connect with those families and friends who do not have Facebook while still connecting with those who do.

How can I stream to two platforms at once?

So how can I stream to two platforms at the same time? I hear you ask. Well, you can use a product like Restream.io. (https://try.restream.io) Restream allows you to stream your event to multiple platforms simultaneously and is relatively easy to use.

How can I connect the live stream with our community?

So how can I connect the live stream with the school’s audience to get the most engagement possible? The best thing to do is schedule your live stream event, especially if you're using it on Facebook. This will let people know that there is an upcoming event live stream, and they can set reminders so that they don’t miss it.

I suggest you also use your existing contact points to notify the community of your upcoming event, just like an in-person event. You can do this by sending out emails, newsletters and/or letter’s home with the information on how to view the live stream and let people know when it will be and where (links). Facebook's really good as well. You can produce some lead-up content advertising and notifying the community that the event is coming up. This can include putting up some posts, reminders, and photos.

What Equipment Should I use?

Equipment-wise, you could use a phone for live streaming events. However, this does not always produce the best audio. If you have an IT department on-site, then you can ask them to handle the live stream. It is relatively easy to set up if you have basic IT skills. Or you can subcontract another company to come in and provide this service for you. They can also easily connect to your Facebook or your YouTube page and send out a stream that way as well.

I hope that this blog post has been informative. If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to either leave them in the comment box below or send me an email. If you are based in South Australia, and you would like help with the live streaming of a school event, then also do not hesitate to reach out to me on my website, and I can get back to you with a quote. Good luck and happy streaming!

Note: This article has been written based on my own personal experiences and knowledge. It was written on the 22nd of June 2021 and as far as I am aware, all the information I have provided is valid at this point in time. I am in no way sponsored by any of the companies that provide the products or services that I have recommended.