Instagram included the direct ones at the end of 2016, a complement to the stories that has been gaining weight within the platform. For this reason, now the company promotes this communication channel that can bring so many benefits. This is everything you need to know about Instagram direct.
Instagram powers live events
Despite the fact that Instagram was born as a social network focused on photography, over the years it has been gaining more and more options until it has become the current "monster" that it is. And we do not say this in a derogatory way, on the contrary. Because now you can not only share photos, but also videos, stories that disappear after 24 hours of publication and also live broadcasts.
This last option is one of those that has grown the most in recent months. For this reason, the company has announced a series of changes to enhance them. So that the most active users can obtain benefits when making new live broadcasts.
So now is the time to make a Complete guide on Instagram direct: how they are made, what options they offer, what interaction it allows with the audience, how to save them, etc.
What are direct or Instagram Live
Instagram Live or direct from Instagram are a way to share experiences with the community of users of the platform. Integrated as a functionality within the stories themselves, all you have to do is access them and start broadcasting the signal captured by your smartphone's camera live.
How to start an Instagram live
To start an Instagram live the process is as simple as posting a story. What you should do is the following:
- Open the Instagram app
- In the upper left corner touch the icon to add a new story
- Once inside, at the bottom slide to the left to select the option Live
- Press the button to start the broadcast
Done, the broadcast will automatically start and your followers will receive a notification that you are live. As long as they have not been disabled, because Instagram notifications can be configured so that Live and IGTV videos are not notified in real time.
How the audience interacts during live shows
Your followers can interact with you while doing a live in different ways. On the one hand, with the reactions that it offers in the form of hearts, emoticons, etc., as well as sending questions or comments to which you can respond. These questions and comments used to be a mess when reviewing, but now they are much more comfortable and efficient thanks to a dedicated box that you will see during your broadcast.
Finally, the direct ones also give you the possibility of interacting with your audience, accepting that someone joins the direct one in a timely manner. You simply have to request to do it and if you accept you will both appear on the screen.
What is the maximum duration of the Instagram live streams?
Until now, the maximum duration of Instagram live events was 60 minutes. From now on, Facebook announced that they would have a duration up to 4 hours (240 minutes). It may be too much for you, but the truth is that it is something that some have already requested.
Therefore, this increase in hours will give more than enough room for most events, talks, seminars and other types of content that are published in this type of event.
How many simultaneous people can do a direct
Instagram direct Right now they can only be done with a maximum of two people. Each of them logically using their smartphone and camera. This is the official option, although there is the possibility of doing live events with more people.
The only problem with this option, although it also provides advantages, is that you have to resort to third-party services. In other words, the use of a computer and applications such as OBS are used that connect with a platform that acts as an intermediary to simulate that you are broadcasting from your phone. They are safe options, at least if you use services like Instagram feed y yellowduck.
The advantage of this last method is that you will be able to have greater control and customization capacity of the live, something that may interest you if you are also looking to increase the quality of the broadcast itself or do it on several platforms at the same time.
Where are Instagram directs stored?
The direct ones are deleted as soon as they finish unless you decide to save them in the stories. If so, you and your followers will have extra time to view it again. This period has also been recently modified and becomes thirty days. Once this time expires, they will disappear.
If you do not want this to happen, the option that Instagram gives is download live video and upload it to another platform or post them directly to IGTV.
Can you make money with Instagram Lives?
Finally, are Instagram Lives monetizable? The answer is no, at least on the part of the platform right now and officially no. If you get sponsorship for its realization, that's something else. Although the most interesting of all is that Instagram is testing something that they have decided to call Instagram Badges.
These instagram badges will allow users to buy for amounts between 0,99 and 4,99 euros a badge that allows them to highlight their comment. And that money goes to the profile of who is issuing. So yes, in the future it could be a way of additional income.
Why Instagram directs are interesting
The use of Instagram direct can be very attractive for any user of the platform, although influencer profiles and brands can take advantage of them even more. With an audience of more than 500 million daily active users, the visibility that can be gained is brutal.
In addition, during the months of confinement, the use of Instagram Live has grown. And if we take into account that when you do a live it is positioned in the first place of notifications of new stories for any user, even more reason to bet on them.
So, now that you're clear about all this Instagram live events, why don't you go ahead and start with one? You can try from the classic format of questions and answers, live classes or simply to show what is happening at that precise moment around you. Up to you.