NewsWhip looks at the industry landscape to analyze how publishers and brands are incorporating Facebook Live into strategies, and the impact of the new format on media organizations.

1. Mastering Facebook Live

2. Video on Facebook

3. 47% of NewsWhip customers get traffic rates in the
region of 20%- 100% from Facebook.
Twitter is the biggest driver outside of Facebook.
newswhip customer survey on traffic sources

4. engagement growth in native video
Organic video content seeing huge
increases in engagement on FB
• More immersive native content in
Facebook increasing the viral loop
• Same can be seen with instant articles,
likely for the same reasons.

5. driving publishers to create more video

6. top video trends from news publishers
Many of the top videos from
publishers are “feel good” pieces,
human interest, or quirky science
stories.
People are drawn to:
• positive, happy stories
• videos that show something they
wouldn’t see everyday
• stories that make them react
emotionally
Facebook Video Champions to Watch:
NowThis, Daily Mail, Huffington Post,
ABC, BuzzFeed, AJ+

7. Facebook Live

8. What we learned from 30 days of Facebook live
We analyzed 30 days of content from BBC News
and the New York Times.
The New York Times posted 40 Live videos out of
141 videos total. (73 Live videos when we looked at
their other Facebook pages)
BBC News posted around 60 Live videos to their
main page, or an average of two Live video a day.
The most popular video from both pages were
heavily news-focused.

9. What we learned from 30 days of Facebook live
Both the New York Times and BBC News use Live
video to add to a story they’re already covering.
The format varies: some have reporters add their
own insights and answer questions, others talk to
eye-witnesses or experts.
The most successful Live reports are around issues
that have major relevance.
1. Facebook Live gives publishers a new way of adding to news stories

10. What we learned from 30 days of Facebook live
Live video lends itself to lots of creativity. In 30 days,
the New York Times also experimented with:
• live drone footage
• streamed panels
• public interviews
• a live music performance
These included footage from a drone above China’s Li
River, an ‘are you smarter than a NY Times journalist’ quiz,
and a live drawing of the day’s news by an artist.
The BBC had their ‘Fact Check’ team answer questions
about the UK’s EU referendum, the day before the vote.
2. From drones to quizzes, new Live formats are being tested heavily

11. What we learned from 30 days of Facebook live
Here’s how long the NYT’s most engaged Live videos were
over the 30 days we analyzed:
1. Interview with Orlando shooting survivor: 31 minutes, 19 seconds.
2. A Times editor explains what happened in the shooting: 11.02
3. Drone footage of Chinese national park: 17.21
4. A Times journalist reports on flooding in Paris: 18.14
5. A Times journalist reports from New York’s Pride Parade: 12.00
Facebook recommends a five minute minimum for Live video.
3. The length of the video depend on the subject matter
The appeal of Live videos is that they’re actually live, and so
there’s a reason they may do better the longer they go on.
But ultimately, it’s down to what they’re about.

12. What we learned from 30 days of Facebook live
The comment section of Live video posts takes on a new importance.
Comments here can add context and clarity, and direct viewers to additional
relevant content.
4. Social Media Editors are really getting involved in the comments
Context for those joining late Apologies for foul language Links to other content
Additional information

13. Publishers with the top Facebook live video
This BuzzFeed
video drove
over 411,000
Facebook
engagements,
making it the
top Live video
we analyzed for
the month.

14. Facebook Live:
Engagement breakdown

15. Facebook live gets most engagement while live
Unsurprisingly, the main
attraction of Live videos in the
news feed is that they’re
actually live.
This means it’s important to
promote your videos while
they’re live.
If we look at a video that was
not live vs. a Live video, we can
see marked differences in their
engagement trajectory.
Looking in NewsWhip Spike,
we can see this 2+ hour
video from the Weather
Channel drove over 131,000
interactions.
82,000 of those came
during the broadcast itself,
or 62% of the total
engagements a week later.

16. Engagement for Facebook Video
Not Live from BuzzFeed Tasty Live Video from UFC
Note the huge upsurge in engagement during the 17 minutes that the UFC video was live (highlighted
above). In those 17 minutes, the video attracted 29,300 interactions. 19 hours later, that grew to 85,500.
Over 34% came while the video itself was live.

17. Facebook live gets most engagement while live
This appears to hold true for longer live
broadcasts, too. The New York Times
recently published a 44 minute interview
with Julian Assange.
This time, 50% of the total engagements
after one week came while the video was
still live, and in the minutes directly
afterwards.
The longer the video, the more likely that
the bulk of engagements will happen while
the video is live.

18. Promote your videos while live
The lesson here for video producers is to make
sure that they’re engaging their videos to the
maximum once they’re live.
How can you make sure your audience is ready to
engage when it matter?
• Cross-post from alternative pages
• Promote from other social accounts while you’re live
• Promote in advance (particularly by looking for
audience input)
As we mentioned, Facebook recommends a five
minute minimum for Live video, but most are now
much longer.
Striking the balance between being informative
and long enough is the challenge.

19. Facebook Live Across Beats

20. Facebook Live Across Beats
Viewers of focused interest publishers tend to
already be passionate people. Facebook Live can
bring them interactive experiences in real time.
Live video trends from top beat publishers:
• behind-the-scenes of events
• exclusive access to celebs, athletes, industry experts
• tie-in to current events
• tips and advice
• trying out new products/services/technologies
• things viewers don’t see everyday
• satire and entertainment
• community building
The key is knowing what your viewers care about, the
stories that will drive the most engagement, and delivering
videos that bring them into the conversation.
A political quiz with
NowThis
A Premier League
‘snail race’ from the
SPORT Bible

21. Teen Vogue goes
Live with Gabby
Douglas
Facebook Live Across Beats: ideas
National Geographic
takes us to lion cubs
joining their pride
Business
Insider lets
curious fans
tell them what
to draw with a
3D printing
pen

22. Live Video at the rio summer olympics
Live video brought an entirely new experience to the
Olympic games for viewers on social media.
Fans could connect with their favorite athletes in
real time, like this Live stream with Michael Phelps.
There were plenty of behind-the-scenes moments
of the Olympics on Facebook Live, commentary
pieces, and satire.
Live videos also brought viewers to new angles of
the Olympics, such as BBC’s video of watching the
sailing race from the shorelines and interacting with
athletes’ parents and fans.

23. Facebook Live in the
Brand Newsroom

24. Brands creating Facebook Live
Tactics brands are using for
Facebook Live:
• Hone in on viewers’ passion points
• Show them something new
• Show them something extreme
• Tie into current events
• Make it a game
Brands are using Facebook Live in innovative ways, with opportunities for nearly every industry.

25. Which Brands?
Just to name a few:
• Auto: Mercedes-Benz, Dodge, Audi, Kia
• Entertainment: Nickelodeon, Netflix,
Rooster Teeth
• Fashion: ASOS, ModCloth, H&M, GUESS,
Levi’s, Foot Locker
• Beauty: ipsy, Too Faced, SEPHORA
• Tech: SpaceX, NASA, GE
• Food/Beverage: Red Bull, Coca-Cola,
Doritos
• Travel: Singapore Airlines, Qantas,
SeaWorld
• Finance: Visa
• Gaming: Nintendo, Xbox
Brands across industries, big and small are jumping on the Facebook Live initiative.

26. Modcloth and Singapore airlines
ModCloth Live Video
Engagement:
• 2,500 likes/reactions
• 102 shares
• 383 comments
It’s not only media publishers seeing markedly more engagement on Facebook Live. Check out the
engagement for these Live videos from ModCloth and Singapore Airlines.
Average Engagement
Per Post in August 2016:
• 194 likes/reactions
• 9 shares
• 15 comments
Singapore Airlines Live
Video Engagement:
• 36,000 likes/reactions
• 2,100 shares
• 2,100 comments
Average Engagement
Per Post in August 2016:
• 3,911 likes/reactions
• 200 shares
• 207 comments

27. What to Remember

28. Facebook Live, a new frontier
Live video achieves enormous levels of engagement
on Facebook, and we can only expect the interest to
grow in the coming months.
Publishers and brands alike have jumped into
producing Live video wholeheartedly.
Thousands of videos from celebrities, athletes,
journalists and other influencers now go live to
viewers every day, attracting significant engagement
and interest.
This is the time to experiment with content formats,
tactics, and trends.
As Live video becomes more sophisticated, it’s vital
to keep an eye on where your audience is engaging
and deliver them the Live experience they crave. Being able to track Live video in Spike, even after it’s done
streaming, also helps!

29. Thank you!

30. Get in touch!
Twitter: @gabrieleboland
gabriele.boland@newswhip.com